What do you remember? Or, was it in a dream? Do you have reality straight in your mind? In your subconscious? The confluence of such questions is the space Inception perceptively explores. Part of the genius of Christopher Nolan’s writing and directing is …more »»
Film Talks opened in: 2010
Inglourious Basterds (2009)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — February 20, 2010
If you take pleasure in revenge and you choose to go on taking pleasure in it, Inglourious Basterds will give you plenty to feed your pleasure. I don’t want that to be me, yet there is truth in what the film …more »»
Insomnia (2002)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — September 30, 2010
“This is why I did that…it wasn’t so bad.” Insomnia, another fine piece of work directed by Christopher Nolan, cunningly explores self-justification from multiple angles. …more »»
The Kids Are All Right (2010)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — December 20, 2010
Although some will immediately focus on the fact that The Kids Are All Right depicts a family headed by two married lesbians, I want to set that aside and consider the merits of the film on other concerns. Many of the questions the film explores are …more »»
The Lovely Bones (2009)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — January 20, 2010
The Lovely Bones is a murder non-mystery. By telling us at the start that Susie Salmon was murdered and near the start who did it, the film turns the focus to the lives and relationships …more »»
Please Give (2010)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — November 21, 2010
Please Give mixes together an ensemble of stories, mostly about relationships and money. It’s a study in contrasts, with (typically) just enough exaggeration to bring out …more »»
Precious (2009)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — February 16, 2010
Engaging, heart-wrenching, real, and strong, Precious delves deeply into dark places where our need for love collides with poverty — poverty of money, of spirit, of love, and of character. In the midst of the collision …more »»
The Road (2009)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — January 20, 2010
Set in a bleak and barren post-apocalyptic world, The Road intensely and insightfully explores the nature of goodness, hope, and love. How dark can your world get before you lose hope? At what point …more »»
Secretariat (2010)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — October 26, 2010
With an early 70s, down-home southern feel, Secretariat tells more than the story of the greatest ever racehorse. Most centrally, it connects us with the difference between …more »»
A Serious Man (2009)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — February 22, 2010
Have you had those times when nothing in life seems to fit? Times that you want the formula for how things work so you can try to fix them? A Serious Man is about that. But there’s more: watching the film puts you in that …more »»
The Social Network (2010)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — November 30, 2010
It’s a engaging tale, The Social Network, and well-told: Jilted lover thinks of revenge, scramble for a good business idea, corporate intrigue, broken relationships. It all could be quite stereotypical, and …more »»
Still Walking (2009)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — March 24, 2010
In Still Walking, we are treated to an excellent, deliberately paced, progressively revealed journey through a day with a Japanese family. The characters, through their own words and through the things said …more »»
Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — October 19, 2010
Zany, crazy, tongue-in-cheek, just a bit over-the-top and, in its irony, light-heartedly insightful. Thoroughly Modern Millie is, all-in-all, fun — and a good example of …more »»
Toy Story 3 (2010)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — December 18, 2010
Dodging the dangers of sequeldom, Toy Story 3 is plain fun to watch as it takes us through a familiar landscape of toys and joys and tears and fears. We know, from the first two films in the series, most of the characters and the general territory of …more »»
True Grit (2010)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — December 31, 2010
In True Grit, the Coen brothers have created an engaging portrayal with themes of honor and expedience, justice and revenge, age and experience, and, well, okay I’ll say it: grit and determination. I’ll leave to others comparisons with the 1969 John Wayne version and …more »»
