CHICAGO – Excelsior! Comic book legend Stan Lee’s famous exclamation puts a fine point on the third and final play of Mark Pracht’s FOUR COLOR TRILOGY, “The House of Ideas,” presented by and staged at City Lit Theater in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood. For tickets/details, click HOUSE OF IDEAS.
Miral
Blu-ray Review: Banal Romance Sinks ‘In the Land of Blood and Honey’
Submitted by mattmovieman on April 11, 2012 - 9:01amCHICAGO – Cinema is one of the most powerful tools of communication that mankind can utilize to shed light on gravely overlooked areas on our planet. Yet good intentions are not enough to achieve success with this art form. If the scripted drama rings false, the message, however vital, gets lost in a sea of disinterest.
Blu-Ray Review: Talented Director Lost in Saga of ‘Miral’
Submitted by BrianTT on July 21, 2011 - 2:17pmCHICAGO – I wanted to like Julian Schnabel’s “Miral” for so many reasons. I think Schnabel (“The Diving Bell and the Butterfly,” “Before Night Falls”) is not only one of our most interesting filmmakers but he’s redefining what one should expect from a biopic. I love the supporting cast — Hiam Abbass, Alexander Siddig, Willem Dafoe, more. I want Freida Pinto to be more than that pretty girl from “Slumdog Millionaire.” Despite my high hopes, this is Schnabel’s least effective film, a startling misstep that both bites off more than it can chew and still finds a way to be his least passionate work.
Film Review: ‘Miral’ Succeeds as Historical Drama, Falters as Character Study
Submitted by mattmovieman on April 15, 2011 - 7:53amCHICAGO – No matter how many films he makes, Julian Schnabel may always consider himself a painter first. Watching one of his cinematic efforts is akin to being pulled headfirst into the vivid and visceral canvas of a true neo-expressionist. His work aims to engulf the viewer. It shatters the barriers between a contrived character’s existence and that of the flesh-and-blood audience.
Interview: Julian Schnabel, Rula Jebreal Explore the Perspective of ‘Miral’
Submitted by mattmovieman on April 14, 2011 - 1:33pmCHICAGO – Julian Schnabel’s controversial new drama, “Miral,” tells a tale both sprawling and intimate. On one level, the film is about the titular Palestinian girl (Freida Pinto), and her coming of age during the Arab-Israeli war. On another level, the film is about a movement for peace, and the several generations of women whose acts of independence eventually set it into motion.