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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