By Joan Ellis Robot and Frank is by turns funny, touching and shot through with sly social commentary. We meet Frank (Frank Langella) as he is wandering aimlessly through his familiar hometown. Son Hunter (James Marsden)…
By Joan Ellis Have you heard of Rodriguez? Not likely. His story might never have surfaced if two South African sleuths had not decided to unravel the mystery of the Mexican-American folk singer’s past. We can be…
By Joan Ellis Whatever your age you will probably watch Snow White and the Huntsman in a contained sense of terror. Branches curl, rocks morph into monsters, armored soldiers attack innocents, and it all happens…
By Joan Ellis A touching comedy about the Catholic Church is not something I’ve been expecting, but here it is. And it’s good. As Eileen Cleary (Kathleen Turner) makes her way from resolute belief in…
By Joan Ellis Darling Companion is a good news/bad news movie. Reasons to see it: nice idea, good cast. Reasons not to: promise unfulfilled. Who wouldn’t want to see a comedy about a wedding that…
By Joan Ellis The Hunger Games? Should you bother? Suzanne Collins’ successful trilogy has been crafted and acted by talented professionals. I add, with appreciation, that the filmmakers have used restraint in presenting a violent…
by Joan Ellis Welcome to a grand surprise. Without much advance buzz, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen snuck into town to enliven the dustbowl that follows the annual Academy Awards. This is a film that…
By Joan Ellis Game Change is a good movie about a controversial subject. When the Republicans found themselves behind in the 2008 presidential campaign, Steve Schmidt (Woody Harrelson) convinced John McCain (Ed Harris) and his…
By Joan Ellis A long time ago I took an oral history of a woman who drove her five children in a hay wagon from her farm in the Russian Sector of Germany to the…
By Joan Ellis Is Wanderlust just another lukewarm yuppie comedy? Almost, but not quite. Like it or not, it will be remembered as the movie that broke through the barrier of male nakedness. For decades, the…