Blue Valentine may not be a classic like Casablanca or Star Wars, but when it came out three years ago, it set the indie film world a flutter with news of a festival darling that pleased critics and audiences alike. I just wasn’t in any of those audiences, not even when it screened in the 19th Annual Philadelphia Film Festival. Consequently, I have had to hush up whenever people around me discussed the brilliance of the film. For the next three years, I kept meaning to watch it, but was never quite in the mood to be depressed.
By Le Anne Lindsay
On Thursday February 16th PFS members got to see a preview screening of a new police drama starring Woody Harrelson, which actually is the second movie he's made with director Oren Moverman and actor Ben Foster, the first being 2009's The Messenger. In truth, Rampart isn't a crime drama or police exposé, it's a character study of a man who is both extremely articulate and seductive and at the same time, ridiculous and immoral.
Last night PFS members had a chance to see the new action comedy, This Means War. I was pleasantly surprised after seeing the film. The rom-com spy movie, originally scheduled to be released on Valentine’s Day, is clearly designed to be a date-night movie, which often end up falling flat. Although not the best rom-com to be released, the chemistry of the three lead actors (Tom Hardy, Chris Pine and Reese Witherspoon) puts the audience in the perfect mood to enjoy the comedic scenes while the action adds excitement, making it an entertaining film.
By Le Anne Lindsay
I read that Steven Soderbergh was looking to make a more beautiful, stylistic action film in the vein of the classic James Bond film From Russia With Love or the Michael Caine thriller Funeral in Berlin when he set about to make Haywire.
His other inspiration was professional mixed martial arts fighter Gina Carano:
Soderbergh was flipping between channels late one night and stumbled onto one of Carano's fights. "I see Gina coming out.
By Le Anne Lindsay
I saw the Philadelphia Film Society screening of In the Land of Blood and Honey more than a week ago, yet I kept putting off writing my commentary. Why? Because I have a hard and fast rule when it comes to movie/film genres - I don't see war movies! I've never seen Bridge Over River Kwai, Platoon, Saving Private Ryan, Black Hawk Down, The Hurt Locker etc...
By Le Anne Lindsay
At the Philadelphia Film Society preview screening of Tinker Tailor Solider Spy, I was handed a cheat sheet for the film -- a guide of the characters, Secret Intelligence Service jargon, background on The Circus etc...
By Le Anne Lindsay
So here we are, once again in the midst of the holiday movie season with plenty of family fun and enchantment to choose from: The Muppets make a comeback, Happy Feet II or is it III?
by Le Anne Lindsay
If our civilization continues into the 22nd Century and we evolve into beings who finally respect and view each other as equals, we undoubtedly will still be telling stories of the two most heinous times of our history - Slavery and the Holocaust. There are many societal, economical, historical and psychological reasonings for the continual re-examining of these atrocities; but artistically, every time these topics are seen through the eyes of new characters the story is looked at from yet another perspective.
For months, the film world has been aflutter with news of this festival darling. It is one of the few films to be screened at the "Big 3" -- Sundance, Cannes, and Toronto (September 8-18).
Martha Marcy May Marlene is about a young girl, Martha, who escapes an abusive, cult-ish "family" and moves in with her sister and brother-in-law. Transitioning from the communal community, which promoted living in the moment, to the excessive home of a yuppie couple proves extremely difficult for Martha, who went by Marcy May and Marlene in the cult.
On Monday, PFS Members got a special sneak peek at racing documentary Senna. The film, directed by Asif Kapadia, chronicles the career of Aryton Senna, arguably the best driver in Formula One history. This film is sure to attract racing enthusiasts and novices alike. Brad Schreiber reviewed the film for the Huffington Post, saying that "its complexity, irony and heart put it in a special class of film."
Become a member for future sneak peeks! Click Here!
