Join film critics Cynthia Haines and Steve Walker today as they review the latest art, independent, foreign, and documentary films showing on area screens.By Up to Date, Oct 2, 2009
Kansas City , Mo. –
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Films discussed this week:
Capitalism: A Love Story
Whip It
Cold Souls
Yoo Hoo! Mrs. Goldberg
Play the Game
It Might Be Loud
Bright Star
Septemeber Issue
My One and Only
DVDs:
Edge of Love
LymeLife
The Education of Charlie Banks
Beer Wars
Away We Go
Outrage
A few reviews from our film critics:
'Cold Souls' - Paul Giamatti playing John Adams in the eponymous HBO mini-series was sublime. Paul Giamatti playing, well, an actor named Paul Giamatti who seeks out a "soul" transplant in order to better attack a Chekhov play is overkill. Writer/director Sophie Barthes aspires to the kind of plot that made Charlie Kauffman's screenplay for "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" as deep as it was touching. But she never pins down her definition of what a soul is or how it operates. The result is not as as cute or meaningful as it thinks it is. - Steve Walker
'The September Issue' - R. J. Cutler, the director of "The War Room," an inside look at the first Clinton presidential run, goes again into uncharted territory - here, Vogue magazine, as it creates its huge September 2007 issue. Editor-in-chief Anna Wintour was supposedly whom Meryl Streep was playing in "The Devil Wears Prada," but she's not a monster here at all - rather, a commanding, charismatic presence who seems to be an expert at what she does. And her creative director, former model Grace Coddington, is equally fascinating. Watching them put the magazine together, we're given unprecedented access to talented people at the top of their game. - Steve Walker
'My One and Only' - Set in the 1950s, this little confection tells the story of the 15-year-old New York kid (Logan Lerman) who travelled cross-country with his kooky mom - played by a bubbly Renee Zellweger - only to reach Hollywood and become the actor George Hamilton. Though several plot turns are terribly convenient, the period rings true and Lerman gives a complex performance as the frustrated but determined product of a broken home. - Steve Walker
'Whip it' - An entertaining directorial debut by actress/producer Drew Barrymore that is centered around the world of roller duty in Austin, Texas. Ellen Page joines a talented cast of women who celebrate their individuality. - Cynthia Haines
'Yoo-Hoo Mrs. Goldberg!' - An informative documentary about actress Gertrude Berg's influence on American popular culture. Should be seen by everyone interested in media studies. - Cynthia Haines
'It Might be Loud' - An excellent documentary featuring guitariest Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin, The edge of U2 and Jack White of the White Stripes. They meet for a guitarists' summit meeting and discuss their love of music and guitars. - Cynthia Haines
'September Issue' - Forget "The Devil Wears Prada", this is a better and more insightful documentary about Anna Wintour and her role as editor of Vogue magazine. On another level, it's about the relationship of Wintour and her solleague of 20 years, Grace Coddington, the magazine's creative director. - Cynthia Haines