‘Zero Dark Thirty,’ reviewed by Marshall Fine

HollywoodandFine.com You’ve no doubt heard about a little movie called “Zero Dark Thirty,” which suddenly is the controversial odds-on Oscar favorite. The controversy has to do with a couple of scenes of torture – or “harsh interrogation techniques,” as the Orwellian Bush-era new-speak had it. They occur early in the …

‘The Sessions,’ reviewed by Marshall Fine

HollywoodandFine.com Sex is a magnetic force, one that attracts and repels with equal force. Those impulses can be electrifying or awkward, drawing us desperately while tripping us up regularly. To make it even more difficult, this primal bit of attraction comes freighted with teachings about morality, religion and hygiene. Now …

‘Finding Nemo 3D,’ reviewed by Marshall Fine

HollywoodandFine.com It used to be that Disney would rerelease its old animated features on a regular schedule into theaters, reaching a new audience every decade or so with sure-fire quality entertainment that made parents cheer and kept kids entertained. That equation was upset with the rise of home video – …

Why Hollywood studios fear political content

HollywoodandFine.com A South American director once observed to me that everything was political. He was referring to entertainment in general, more specifically the films that Hollywood chooses to make, even when they seemingly have nothing to do with politics – because that, in itself, is a political choice. That’s still …

‘A Cat in Paris,’ reviewed by Marshall Fine

HollywoodandFine.com Nominated for the Oscar as best animated feature (which went to the visually brilliant but drastically unfunny “Rango”), “A Cat in Paris” is a slight but entertaining tale, most noteworthy for going old-school, with hand-drawn animation. Directed by Jean-Loup Felicioli and Alain Gagnol from a script by Gagnol, this …

‘Corman’s World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel,’ reviewed by Marshall Fine

HollywoodandFine.com It’s hard to believe no one has done a film tribute to Roger Corman before “Corman’s World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel,” Alex Stapleton’s loving time-capsule of the career of one of the true independent filmmaking sensibilities of all time. Still active at a spritely 85, Corman is shown …

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