Calvin (Paul Dano), the male protagonist in “Ruby Sparks,” got hit by Neptune – the planet that oversees creativity and whatever springs from the imagination – at a young age. That visit from the trident god helped Cal write a best-selling book. He’s been bereft of any decent ideas since. One night Cal literally dreams […]
Movie: ‘Killer Joe’ (2012)
July 25, 2012 by
As a cop, a profession that exudes Mars-infused energy, Killer Joe Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) uses firepower to protect the community in his redneck Texan town. As a part-time hit man – a Mars-Pluto combo – Killer Joe turns families’ murderous fantasies into reality. The Smiths are one of those twisted clans. Chris Smith (Emile Hirsch), […]
Television: ‘Breaking Bad’: Destination Hell
July 16, 2012 by
“Breaking Bad,” now broadcasting the first half of its final Season 5, is as red-hot as hell. And it’s all because early on Walter White (Bryan Cranston) hatched a diabolical plan. The series’ inevitable trajectory to the underworld has been a brilliant exercise in watching White’s stunningly dark mind. And there’s no mistaking the contrast […]
Movie: ‘The Imposter’ (2012)
July 15, 2012 by
“The Imposter,” a new true-crime documentary directed by Bart Layton about a missing and then seemingly found child, is a bulging sandwich containing layer-upon-layer of deceits. The movie is set in Texas where blond 13-year-old Nicholas Barclay disappeared in 1994, and in Spain where imposter Frédéric Bourdin turns up three years later claiming to be […]
Astrology: Film: ‘Beasts of the Southern Wild’ (2012)
July 5, 2012 by
The Moon controls the tides, and the threat of water rising always looms large in The Bathtub, the name that locals who populate Benh Zeitlin’s “Beasts of the Southern Wild” affectionately call home. Six-year-old Hushpuppy (Quvenzhané Wallis) and Wink, her single-parent father (Dwight Henry), live in this impoverished watery community in the far reaches […]
Film: ‘Beasts of the Southern Wild’: The House of Women
June 27, 2012 by
Lovingly placed within Moon-themed “Beasts of the Southern Wild” is a bit of Venus-infused magic that occurs in an unexpected setting. Rambunctious Hushpuppy (Quvenzhané Wallis) is being raised by her seriously ill and often erratically tempered father Wink (Dwight Henry) in a marginalized unprotected area of southern Louisiana called The Bathtub. She often calms herself […]
Film: ‘Magic Mike’ (2012)
June 27, 2012 by
Whenever Pluto insinuates itself, something hidden typically goes on full display. Think about stripping bare. That’s the scenario in “Magic Mike,” directed by Steven Soderbergh, where more than male flesh will reveal itself. Magic Mike (Channing Tatum) is the headline act in a male dance revue that’s an ersatz choreographed depiction of raw Plutonian passion. […]
Film: ‘Ted’ (2012)
June 26, 2012 by
Neptune fuzzes out whatever it touches. So it’s not surprising that a fuzzy-wuzzy teddy bear – a huggable plush toy that typically blurs out the harder-edged discomforts of toddlerdom and childhood – is a good Neptunian stand-in for super-blurry imaginary friends. In the movie “Ted,” directed by “Family Guy”’s Seth MacFarlane, the teddy bear that’s […]
Film: ‘The Lovely Bones’ (2009)
November 29, 2009 by
“The Lovely Bones” features an adolescent lead protagonist, Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan) who, despite her youth, will miss out on an earthbound coming-of-age experience. Instead, what we get is Scorpio, death and a grueling aftermath. Based on Alice Sebold’s novel, the film obliterates hope of Susie’s return. Director Peter Jackson visually models the seduction that […]
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