Monumental is a well-produced call-to-action documentary about recovering the foundational strengths of the United States republic. I applaud its major points, but I wish it had been more inclusive. Don’t get me wrong: …more »»
Film Talks: Most Recent
October Baby (2011)
March 26, 2012 by Randy Heffner Quick talkWho wants you? Who cares if you exist? What are they willing to endure for your existence? October Baby puts such questions into sharp, life-and-death focus. Even more, the film turns the questions …more »»
Coriolanus (2011)
March 22, 2012 by Randy Heffner Quick talkWithout a doubt, Coriolanus is Shakespeare done well. Intense and engaging, the film uses the play’s original language and cities but sets it in modern times, reducing the historical …more »»
Oscar 2012: Best Picture Roundup
February 9, 2012 by Randy Heffner Quick talkAll nine Oscar 2012 Best Picture nominations are strong thematically, exploring important questions of the heart. Most are also very well made, and I had to struggle to keep my top tier list small. To the concerns of some conservative viewers, who complain …more »»
The Help (2011)
February 7, 2012 by Randy Heffner Quick talkCuriously, The Help works as a film — it can reach inside and grab us, sending us away as better people with deeper hearts to resist thinking ourselves superior. I say “curiously” because it has a major filmcraft weakness that doesn’t seem to …more »»
Moneyball (2011)
February 3, 2012 by Randy Heffner Quick talkAs an underdog tale of courage and risk-taking, Moneyball succeeds very well. Even more, it succeeds as an exploration of loyalty and self-interest. Being set in the “national pastime” world of baseball lends the film some popular intrigue, and being loosely based on …more »»
Hugo (2011)
February 2, 2012 by Randy Heffner Quick talkHave you thought of the world as a machine? For me, the question carries connotations of a cold, heartless world of isolation and exploitation. Embedded within Hugo’s exploration of other matters of the heart, the film uniquely explores “machine nature” from …more »»
Midnight in Paris (2011)
January 31, 2012 by Randy Heffner Quick talkAs is Woody Allen’s tendency with his films, the delightful Midnight in Paris is definitely about something. This time it’s nostalgia. Also like many of his films, which lean heavily toward having characters tell you what the film is about, so does this one — but somehow, it doesn’t come off as overbearing as usual. And that is …more »»
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2011)
January 29, 2012 by Randy Heffner Quick talkA father’s unique and creative care for his son, which is at the center of Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, carries profound power of hope and healing — even when the father can’t be there. The film embodies this power strongly in its …more »»
War Horse (2011)
January 28, 2012 by Randy Heffner Quick talk
About the story in War Horse, a strict realist would say, “Yeah, right. How likely is that?” I hold to the old adage “truth is stranger than fiction” — or even Jack Johnson’s “fact and fiction work as a team.” But, I do have reservations about the …more »»
Godspell (1973)
January 6, 2012 by Randy Heffner Before viewing talk // After viewing talk // Backstory talkPlayfully serious, musically excellent, and rich in spirit, Godspell romps through New York City exploring and embodying wisdom for life and relationships from the Bible’s Gospel According to Matthew. Set in 1973, Jesus …more »»
The Artist (2011)
January 1, 2012 by Randy Heffner Quick talkThe Artist is a silent film like few others — perhaps unlike any other. Simultaneously staying true to the genre and playing with it, director Michel Hazanavicius creatively employs silent film as one element of great storytelling and filmcraft — and manages to do so without falling into …more »»
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)
December 28, 2011 by Randy Heffner Quick talkTinker Tailor Soldier Spy comes off with an intriguing mix of the slow and unemotional pace of the main character, Smiley, who is driving the action, countered by an emotionally charged, rapid-paced plot, while having little rapid or suspenseful onscreen action. Multiple subplots, as well as the film itself, are built around …more »»
The Ides of March (2011)
December 18, 2011 by Randy Heffner Quick talkOf all the interest The Ides of March has to offer, the title is among the most interesting of them. The reference to political leaders and assassinations is the knee-jerk and most obvious reference, yet the film turns out to be much more …more »»
The Descendants (2011)
December 16, 2011 by Randy Heffner Quick talkWitty and gentle, unfolding at a closely measured pace, The Descendants moves through a chaotic but in the end lovely cohort of relationships wrestling with misdeeds, transgressions, wounds, and flaws, mixing tenderness and aggravation to explore how we might find heart in the middle …more »»
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