Gary Wolcott's "Mr. Movie" column has appeared in the Tri-City Herald since 1992. The Tri-City native now lives in Portland, Ore., and watches about 250 movies each year. This member of Portland's association of movie critics, Far From Hollywood, believes movies are made to be seen on theater screens and should be seen there and not on television screens. Have a question for Mr. Movie? Click on "Add Comment" below. Mr. Movie has joined Twitter. Follow him here.
She is swept off her feet by a man twice her age. The relationship opens her eyes to worlds of possibilities never imagined.
Character actor Peter Sarsgaard (The Skeleton Key) plays the man. Alfred Molina is wonderful as her doting but controlling father, Emma Thompson and Olivia Williams have small but important parts.
Sarsgaards David is a slime ball. She knows it, but she doesnt care. He bamboozles her father and anyone unlucky enough to cross his path. None of this is over-the-top. Everything about An Education is civilized and understated.
Mulligan, the movie and screenwriter Nick Hornby (About a Boy) got deserved Oscar nominations. Hornby should write more. This is a subtle, non-judgmental picture of 1960s teenage life and the timeless influences good and bad that still shape the lives of girls as they approach adulthood today.
Movie perfection is rare. Everything about An Education is perfect. The sets, the characters, the writing, the acting and directing.
Mr. Movie rating: 5 stars
Rated PG-13 for mature themes. It opens Friday, Feb. 5 at Regals Columbia Mall 8.
5 stars to 4 1/2 stars: Must see on the big screen
4 stars to 3 1/2 stars: Good film, see it if it's your type of movie.
3 stars to 2 1/2 stars: Wait until it comes out on video.
2 stars to 1 star: Don't bother.
0 stars: Speaks for itself.
Sometimes, producers make movies just for the accolades.
Here’s the formula. Grab a major talent and throw something together. Wait to release it until the end of the year. Do the release with lots of hype. The buzz sells everyone on the idea that the picture is the next best thing.
When you land a Meryl Streep to play a role in whatever you toss together, then the buzz gets an extra kick. Critics in Los Angeles and New York screen it first. They rave about her acting, and the extra kick gets an extra kick.
'My Week with Marilyn' elevates Michelle Williams' career
As a snapshot of history, My Week with Marilyn is fascinating.
Take that thought another step into good movie territory, and My Week with Marilyn isn’t that great. It’s not bad, but this is not a story that will wow you.
What does grab your attention are the great performances that dot its landscape and will have you leaving the theater jaw agape.
Anna Faris is the insecure Ally Darling, and relationships never seem to work out for her.
On her way home after just being fired from a job — and just before the pathetic Ally ends up sleeping with the boss that fired her — she reads an article about the number of lovers women have for their entire life.
Matt Damon and Scarlett Johansson lead We Bought a Zoo's cast. It is a highly fictionalized but based on a true story film about a widowed writer who buys and refurbishes a small zoo.
Reality and fiction meet in just two places, the name of the main character and the zoo.
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