John J. Bennett

  Reviews HUGO. For a while, I was frustrated with Martin Scorsese. Duped by my fixation on the visual and narrative style of Goodfellas (my jumping-off point), I mistakenly thought he’d taken a turn for the blander in his later films. I realize now that his inimitable directing style has evolved to suit each script […]

  REVIEWS THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN — PART ONE. As I sat in a theater super-heated by the hummingbird metabolisms of 150 tweens, watching end-credits roll, I considered this: I had just sat through my fourth *Twilight* movie in the space of a week. This last is the penultimate installment in the series, the […]

  Reviews J. EDGAR. J. Edgar Hoover was a singular figure in 20th Century American history. In his near half-century tenure as director of the FBI, he grew the organization from a nearly impotent fledgling department into the crime-bustin’ juggernaut it is today. He modernized criminal investigation, introducing databases, forensic detection and a host of […]

REVIEWS A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas. I’m kind of a sucker for Christmas movies. And buddy comedies, and stoner pictures. So, despite the fact that I checked out of the Harold and Kumar franchise shortly after being nonplussed by the trip to White Castle, I was prepared to enjoy this one, even if […]

  FOOTLOOSE. I’m old enough to remember the original Footloose (1984), lo these many years later, but young enough to have lost any significant nostalgia for it. Still and all, writer/director Craig Brewer’s remake is such a pallid imitation of a familiar movie that it’s surprising he got away with making it. The biggest flaw […]

Reviews THE IDES OF MARCH. I wish there was more to be said about The Ides of March. I’ve enjoyed George Clooney’s work as a director since Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002), but I don’t think any of his subsequent films achieved the resonance of his debut. It could be argued that Confessions benefited more […]

REVIEWS 50/50. Usually, atypical urban settings in movies kind of bug me, coming across either like pandering or kitsch. But in 50/50 — set in Seattle, filmed in British Columbia — the oppressiveness of the perennially gray Pacific Northwest adds to the mood. Combined with excellent performances from a smart, understated script and a concise, […]

REVIEWS DRIVE. Director Nicolas Winding Refn’s latest is a masterpiece of crime-grime moviemaking, offering a pointed reminder of how good (and relatively inexpensive) movies can be. Refn’s ultra-keen eye for composition and subtlety of movement combine with a churning retro-synth soundtrack, impeccable production design and dead-right crazy performances, making for one of the year’s most […]

REVIEWS THE DEBT. The Debt, a remake of a 2007 Israeli film that I am not familiar with, is a tautly directed, effective spy thriller. As with the best spy stories, John Le Carré comes to mind, but this film is much more than gripping cloak-and-dagger. Its core narrative concerns the nature of truth and […]

Reviews ANOTHER EARTH. If there were such a label, I would call the independent feature Another Earth “alt-science fiction.” The scifi element of the film consists of the discovery that a second earth is approaching our own, labeled by us, of course, as “Earth 2.” Gradually, it appears that this other Earth may be a […]

Reviews THE HELP. Unquestionably, I bring a lot of baggage to The Help. For one thing, it is based on Kathryn Stockett’s 2009 debut novel of the same name that was mostly well-reviewed, became a best-seller, and is much beloved by many readers. In the latter category is a local friend who was very enthusiastic about […]