News & Updates - Page 379 of 460 - Chlotrudis Society for Independent Film

Tell Tale (2009)

Bruce says: “Director Michael Cuesta and screenwriter Dave Callaham go out of their way to tip their hats to Edgar Allan Poe. Cuesta has succeeded in creating a gothic atmosphere by filming TELL TALE in the old section of Providence,

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Tactical Unit: Comrades in Arms (2009)

By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.5 cats
Director: Wing-cheong Law
Starring: Miggie Siu | Samuel Pang | Simon Yam | Suet Lam

Jason says: “The popular PTU series returned to Hong Kong cinemas this January after an installment or two went direct to video. Even for folks like myself who have not seen the original or the other sequels will likely find

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Sweet Karma (2009)

Jason says: “SWEET KARMA is an ‘avenging angel’ movie with all the fat boiled off. The filmmakers know why people are seeing this movie – a hot girl killing bad men in a cool, righteous fury. And even though it’s

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Survival of the Dead (2010)

By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.5 cats
Director: George Romero
Starring: Alan Van Sprang | Athena Karkanis | Devon Bostick | Julian Richings | Kathleen Munroe

Thom says: “Recent Canadian citizen Romero was, of course, there for the delightful Q&A. Admittedly Romero is the ‘king’ of the zombie genre, nearly inventing this horror staple. Unfortunately, nearly all his other work is lamentable, but this ‘THE REAL

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Sunshine Cleaning (2009)

Michael says: “SUNSHINE CLEANING is a nice movie. It features some terrific, heartfelt performances, and a script that is as unconventional at times as it is cliché at others. Rose and Norah are sisters who need jobs. Rose has a

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Summer Hours (2009)

By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3 cats
Director: Olivier Assayas
Starring: Charles Berling | Edith Scob | Isabelle Sayodan | Jérémie Renier | Juliette Binoche

Bruce says: “This film began as a commission from the Musée d’Orsay and then evolved into a different animal from what had originally been envisioned. By the time the film was made the relationship with the d’Orsay evaporated. Hard-core Assayas

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Sugar (2009)

Diane says: “Loved SUGAR. More kudos to that fab filmmaking duo, Boden-Fleck. SUGAR is beautifully filmed and edited. Every shot has an emotion underlying it. This baseball ignoramus was able to get the story completely. My only complaint: I thought

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Suck ()

By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society

Suck (Canada) directed by: Rob Stefaniuk starring: Malcolm McDowell; Dave Foley; Jessica Paré; Nicole de Boer; Henry Rollins; Iggy Pop; Alice Cooper; Moby Thom says: “Another lackluster Canadian entry this one about a touring rock ‘n roll band will

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Still Bill (2009)

By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.125 cats
Director: Alex Vlack | Damani Baker

Jason says: “The recording studio that occupies a fair-sized chunk of Bill Withers’s Los Angeles home in STILL BILL is a tremendous tease. It’s new-looking, with plenty of digital tools, which certainly suggests that the man behind ‘Lean on Me’

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Still Walking (2009)

Jason says: “Among my moviegoing friends, I have gained a not-undeserved reputation for lacking patience with French dysfunctional family dramas. I contend that this is a bit unfair; while I did, in fact, bang my head against the back of

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Star Trek (2009)

Diane says: “Awesome. I grew up with STAR TREK and found this film very satisfying. Impressed with art director’s restraint in keeping the futuristic look developed in the 1960s, and with the graphics of the black holes. Nice touch to

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Splinterheads (2009)

By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.5 cats
Director: Brant Sersen
Starring: Christopher McDonald | Dean Winters | Lea Thompson | Rachael Taylor | Thomas Middleditch

Jason says: “Apparently ‘splinterheads’ are a subset of what I’ve always thought of as ‘carnies,’ but that’s apparently like calling a sailor, Marine, or airman a ‘soldier’ – outsiders may think it’s close enough, but in actuality it’s not. Carnies

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Sorry, Thanks (2009)

By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.5 cats
Director: Dia Sokol
Starring: Andrew Bujalski | Donovan Baddley | Ia Hernandez | Kenya Miles | Wiley Wiggins

Jason says: “The ‘mumblecore’ generation is, perhaps, starting to get interesting. Digital video is both good and cheap enough that these movies no longer default to looking like a muddy mess. More importantly, the characters are starting to feel much

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The Song of Sparrows (2009)

Diane says: “I love many of Iranian filmmaker Majid Majidi’s films (CHILDREN OF HEAVEN, BARAN, WILLOW TREE, COLOR OF PARADISE) for their gentle recognition of the beauty inherent in life. SONG OF SPARROWS, however, is so driven by its morality

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Tokyo Sonata (2009)

Jason says: “There have been many sequences in movies where someone loses his or her job, but few have been so callously cruel as the one that opens TOKYO SONATA: A pretty girl walks through an office, drawing all eyes.

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Somers Town (2009)

Michael says: “Beautifully shot in black & white, Shane Meadows’ (THIS IS ENGLAND) latest film SOMERS TOWN is a sly look at two teenagers who become friends in working class London. Marek has recently arrived from Easter Europe and spends

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Solomon Kane (2012)

Thom says: “This is one of those big-budget extravaganza & fantasy creation that is beautifully done with lovely images of creatures from lost worlds. The time is the 1500s and our hero Kane has to fight pure evil to overcome

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Smash Cut (2009)

By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.5 cats
Director: Lee Demarbre
Starring: David Hess | Jesse Buck | Michael Berryman | Ray Sager | Sasha Grey

Jason says: “The appeal of the deliberately shoddy homage continues to elude me, even when I find something to enjoy in one, as I did with SMASH CUT. Wouldn’t it be a finer tribute to take what you learned from,

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Sleep Dealer (2009)

By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.125 cats
Director: Alex Rivera
Starring: Giovanna Zacarías | Jacob Vargas | Leonor Varela | Luis Fernando Peña

Jason says: “Science fiction on film is tricky. The money to do spectacle generally comes with strings attached, but without it, a filmmaker runs the risk of having their world look unconvincing or settling for using their big ideas to

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The Slammin’ Salmon (2009)

By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Kevin Heffernan
Starring: April Bowlby | Cobie Smulders | Kevin Heffernan | Michael Clarke Duncan | Steve Lemme

Jason says: “I have more or less ignored BROKEN LIZARD for what are pretty stupid reasons: The trailers for SUPER TROOPERS didn’t amuse me and it later became a movie much-loved by people who were fans of comedies I disliked.

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