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Anti-Gravity: Nolan’s ‘Interstellar’ Is OK To Go
Last year, Alfonso Cuaron’s Gravity blew us away. Not everyone loved the film, but most could agree that it was dazzling to behold on the big screen (especially in 3D) and one giant leap forward in...
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Tender Loving Cherish: ‘The Comeback’ // “Valerie Makes A Pilot”
“Well, I’m mad. And this is about to get messy.” Hello, hello, hello! Note to everyone: The Comeback came back. In 2005, The Comeback was ahead of its time. So ahead of its time, in fact, that no one...
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Mother Of The Year: Oscar-Caliber Turns In ‘Still Alice’&‘Mommy’
Do you want to cry like a baby? Then boy, have I got a pair of films for you. Julianne Moore is one of the most reliable actresses in Hollywood. I daresay she’s never turned in a bad, or even close to...
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Hogging The Bogart: ‘The Comeback’ // “Valerie Tries To Get Yesterday Back”
“Nice to meet you, Jane Benson, Jewish lesbian with an Oscar!” If you want to quote The Comeback, you have an arsenal at your disposal. Chances are you’ll go with, “I don’t need to see that!”, or...
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P.A. Confidential: The Myth Of Movie Magic — Exposed!
(Throwback Thursday: A glimpse back at my reasonably short-lived days as a production assistant, and what it taught me about making movies. First published in INsite Boston in April 2006.) Astronauts...
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Network Jizz: ‘The Comeback’ // “Valerie Is Brought To Her Knees”
“I got you, Gingersnaps.” “Valerie Is Brought To Her Knees” introduces us to “Mallory,” the not-so-thinly veiled character Valerie is playing “loosely” based on her time on Room & Bored. She’s got...
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No Good: ‘The Comeback’ // “Valerie Saves The Show”
“I don’t know what kind of candy you’re making, but I’m a coal miner!” As comedies go, The Comeback rides a fine line between the light and the dark. The breezy tone suggests screwball comedy, yet the...
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The Gun Show: Tatum, Ruffalo & Carell Brawl In ‘Foxcatcher’
In its most extreme realizations, the American dream means being the best. Foxcatcher is about three men who already are the best, and want to be better. It is the based-on-a-true-story story of Mark...
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These Boots Are Made For Sobbing: Witherspoon Goes ‘Wild’
Much has been made of the weak Best Actress race this year. The Best Actor field is filled to the brim with potential nominees, enough to fill ten slots with worthy performances from 2014. The Best...
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You’re The Monster: ‘The Comeback’ // “Valerie Is Taken Seriously”
“I don’t care if you’re available or unavailable. I don’t care if you just found out that you have have herpes or hepatitis C from one of those whores that you pay to come to your room on show nights....
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Los Angeles Flays Itself: Cronenberg Tours Hollywood In ‘Maps To The Stars’
If you live in or around Hollywood, you’re likely to see open-top buses filled with tourists, taking a tour of your home like it’s Disneyland. I happen to live near a lot of the attractions on these...
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Red Is The New Orange: ‘The Comeback’ // “Valerie Cooks In The Desert”
“That’s a cautionary tale, huh? That’s what happens, though, you know, when you make show business your whole life, right? You know? Next thing you know, you’re eating kale chips out of a shopping...
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‘Freak’ Of The Weak: Fall TV Roulette (Part Three)
We are officially wrapping up the fall TV season now, as most shows have begun or are about to take a hiatus for the holidays, and others are taking a hiatus for… ever. Farewell, A To Z! Good riddance,...
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Famous Last Words: A Fond Farewell To The Tabloid Train Wreck
(Throwback Thursday: My final column for INsite Boston, originally published in April 2007. I still feel that I wrote this shortly after Hollywood reached a turning point; when the advent of the...
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Incoherent ‘Vice': A Defective Detective And A Slippery Mystery
Paul Thomas Anderson is considered one of the greatest filmmakers of our time. By some, one of the greatest filmmakers of any time. Boogie Nights and There Will Be Blood are held up, almost...
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The Assassination Of Valerie Cherish: ‘The Comeback’ // “Valerie Faces The...
“No one? Really? Not ‘no one,’ Mark, because I believed in me. I’m not no one. That’s not nice. Maybe you don’t think I’m someone, but I have a birth certificate that says I am. Maybe you should talk...
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Nice Is Different Than Good: ‘The Babadook’&‘Into The Woods’
Into the woods To sell a film They don’t care how The time is now. Fairy tales are a universal language. Specific characters, like Cinderella and Red Riding Hood, appear in various versions of their...
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The Price Of Stardom: ‘The Comeback’ // “Valerie Gets What She Really Wants”
“It’s HBO. Not that many people are gonna see it.” But what does Valerie Cherish really want? The Comeback‘s Season Two finale answers that question once and for all. “Valerie Gets What She Really...
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Pretty As A Picture: ‘Big Eyes’&‘Ida’ Provide A Visual Feast
Art is subjective. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. A picture is worth a thousand words. And everybody — I mean everybody — is a critic. We critique based on the artist. A Picasso will be held up...
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Hard In The City’s “Best Of Google” Volume 3
Happy New Year! This little blog of mine has existed for a little over three years now, and you know what? The more I blog, the more I realize what ignorant freaks the human race can be, thanks to the...
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