CriterionCast » Catherine Stebbins

Catherine Reviews Brandon Cronenberg’s Antiviral [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 07:59:17 +0000

Brandon Cronenberg's debut may not be able to capitalize on its potential, but its ideas and lead actor carry it through a steady intrigue.

Filed under:

Film Reviews

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Sam Raimi’s Oz the Great and Powerful [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 08:34:58 +0000

Disney teams up with Sam Raimi in the hopes of reigniting the magic of Oz, à la 2010’s decidedly unmagical Alice in Wonderland.

Filed under:

Film Reviews

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Mark Kitchell’s A Fierce Green Fire [PIFF 2013 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 09:23:11 +0000

Mark Kitchell's documentary, a broad overview of the environmentalism's historical trek has is more a schizophrenic introduction than anything revelatory.

Filed under:

PIFF 2013

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Werner Herzog and Dimitry Vasylukov’s Happy People: A Year in the Taiga [PIFF 2013 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 05:31:29 +0000

Constructing his documentary from footage shot by Dimitry Vasylukov, Werner Herzog sadly disappoints with his latest.

Filed under:

PIFF 2013

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Moussa Touré’s La Pirogue [PIFF 2013 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 07:01:35 +0000

A humanistic and moving Senegalese film about immigrating from West Africa to Spain in a dangerous sea voyage.

Filed under:

PIFF 2013

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Jean-François Laguionie’s The Painting [PIFF 2013 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 14:00:56 +0000

This imaginative French animated film gets by just enough on its ideas and visual palette.

Filed under:

PIFF 2013

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews David Redmon & Ashley Sabin’s Girl Model [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 14:00:09 +0000

Girl Model unsettlingly tackles the unregulated meat market aspects of modeling with a digestible tip-of-the-iceberg approach that slaps a face on the roles of the recruiter and the recruited.

Filed under:

Film Reviews

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Rian Johnson’s Looper [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 22:31:55 +0000

The third film from Rian Johnson is an assured piece of sci-fi fare that manages to be invigorating even as it stumbles.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Joachim Trier’s Oslo, August 31st [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 04:18:12 +0000

Oslo, August 31st capitalizes on the evident potential seen from Trier's debut as he reins himself in for a more subtle, somberly reflective work that is markedly more rewarding.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Brenda Chapman and Mark Andrews’ Brave [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Mon, 02 Jul 2012 04:06:48 +0000

Pixar's latest, their first female-centric film, successfully deals with maintaining identity amidst tradition and takes on the underexplored bond between mother and daughter.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Sarah Polley’s Take This Waltz

Catherine Stebbins — Tue, 05 Jun 2012 03:22:33 +0000

Sarah Polley's second feature is a candidly adult look at the cyclical nature of relationships, with Michelle Williams giving yet another stellar performance.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Jafar Panahi and Mojtaba Mirtahmasb’s This Is Not a Film

Catherine Stebbins — Sun, 13 May 2012 17:00:56 +0000

If you care about cinema, about the right we have to tell stories and why we tell them, and about human rights, you must seek out This Is Not a Film.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Lauren Greenfield’s The Queen of Versailles [IFFBoston 2012 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Sun, 06 May 2012 04:56:15 +0000

The Queen of Versailles, Lauren Greenfield's outrageous yet humanistic peek into a billionaire family's struggle with the economic crisis.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Stephen Kessler’s Paul Williams Still Alive [IFFBoston 2012 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Sun, 06 May 2012 04:39:31 +0000

A decent documentary about Paul Williams that you should see because it's a documentary about Paul Williams.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Andrea Arnold’s Wuthering Heights [IFFBoston 2012 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Tue, 01 May 2012 06:37:32 +0000

Andrea Arnold's bracingly original take on a literary classic contains a breathtaking first half and an intolerable second half.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Bart Layton’s The Imposter [IFFBoston 2012 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 19:55:46 +0000

Bart Layton's stranger than fiction true-crime documentary will have you aghast and on the edge of your seat throughout.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Marius Holst’s King of Devil’s Island [DVD Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 03:52:36 +0000

The film that broke Norwegian box-office records is a recognizable but wholly engaging work thanks in part to the pair of breakout performances at its icy center.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s 21 Jump Street [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 04:11:00 +0000

A refreshing surprise to say the least, 21 Jump Street is a mostly uproarious and surprisingly sincere comedy featuring an onscreen duo for the ages with Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Alfred Hitchcock’s Rebecca [Blu-Ray Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 07:44:11 +0000

Revisiting Alfred Hitchcock's first American film in glorious Blu-Ray.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Julia Murat’s Found Memories [PIFF 2012 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 05:45:06 +0000

A Brazilian village with only eleven elderly inhabitants are changed by the appearance of a young photographer in Julia Murat's first narrative feature.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Corinna Belz’s Gerhard Richter Painting [PIFF 2012 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 04:07:33 +0000

A startlingly insightful look at painter Gerhard Richter, and the indescribable creative process, in this observational documentary.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews James Watkins’ The Woman in Black [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 05:48:15 +0000

The Woman in Black effectively resurrects Gothic atmosphere and tropes but does not offer much else.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Steven Soderbergh’s Haywire [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 05:39:31 +0000

Catherine reviews Steven Soderbergh's latest as Gina Carano receives the Sasha Grey treatment.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Lech Majewski’s The Mill and the Cross [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 05:49:43 +0000

Not many films deal with how humans have always used art to cope and reconcile what we experience and see. The Mill and the Cross uses a recent medium to show how an older medium lends itself to creative expression that gives desperately needed meaning to the inconsolable atrocities that can occur.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Michelangelo Frammartino’s Le Quattro Volte [Blu-Ray Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 06:04:43 +0000

Part minimalist observations, part docudrama; it is a trancelike rumination that shows everything and tells nothing, allowing us to drift in and out of our own ponderous observations. Kino Lorberâ€™s Blu-Ray release amply captures this meditative wonder.

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Clint Eastwood’s J. Edgar [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 20:38:59 +0000

Is it possible to, knowing a film cannot sum up a historical figure’s life, make enough of an artistic impression through layered dramatic representation to make a reductive but meaningful impact? Biopics are sticky material to work with, but with an understanding of creative license and severe necessary truncation, great [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Lars von Trier’s Melancholia [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 07:33:12 +0000

This review does contain spoilers

It may seem contradictory to say that Lars von Trier’s end-of-the world opus is the director as his most peaceful and life-affirming; but it is. This isn’t to say that Melancholia is sunshine and rainbows; just look at the title and basic plot synopsis. But this is [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Pedro AlmodÃ³var’s The Skin I Live In [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 18:05:19 +0000

Pedro AlmodÃ³var made a horror film? Oh the possibilities! Well, apparently not. The Skin I Live In feels like any other AlmodÃ³var film, which is always a great thing, but in this case is also a bad thing, and it culminates as a missed opportunity. You can expect all the delicious goodies [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Jeff Nichols’ Take Shelter [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 03:43:36 +0000

Warning: this review contains spoilers.

Jeff Nichols does not play the ‘˜is he or isn’t he’ game with his audience; Curtis (Michael Shannon) is succumbing to paranoid schizophrenia. We are invited to simultaneously experience events as the protagonist does and to see the reality of the situation’¦at the same time. Take Shelter [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews George Clooney’s The Ides of March [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 04:55:23 +0000

It is difficult to pinpoint why The Ides of March never quite had me in its grip. All of the elements are there with across-the-board talent working on the production. And yet while it has been overall well-reviewed, I take issue with several criticisms against it, which will be addressed forthwith. It [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Sean Durkin’s Martha Marcy May Marlene [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 05:17:37 +0000

Seen through Cinecache’s Free Preview Screening at Brattle Theatre on September 27, 2011

How far will people delude themselves in order to fulfill a desired sense of worth? Whatever leads Martha (Elizabeth Olsen) to believe that joining a cult in the Catskills is the best option for her, it is [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Nicolas Winding Refn’s Drive [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 18:53:55 +0000

It is an all too uncommon feeling when a film ends and you realize you are not yet ready to leave its world. This is the feeling I had when Drive ended, Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn’s latest film (and his first American one). It is a slick retro ride, filled with [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Asif Kapadia’s Senna [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 05:19:57 +0000

Note: Senna had no subtitles in the theater I viewed it in. A moderate chunk of the film is spoken in Portuguese. Keep in mind that any audio interviews by Senna’s family, sports commentators from Brazil and some interview footage of Senna himself was lost on me.

Senna plays more like a [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Stephen J. Anderson and Don Hall’s Winnie the Pooh [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 19:20:49 +0000

Looking at Christopher Robin’s room at the start of Winnie the Pooh, we see that the boy has not been tainted by modernity. His abode remains as it always was; chock full of books, stuffed animals, old-fashioned toys and an assortment of collections. It is doubtful any child’s room looks like this [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews John Carpenter’s The Ward [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 06:35:41 +0000

John Carpenter’s best work exudes a kind of subtle magnetism rooted in minimalist atmosphere. Mainly I speak of Halloween and The Thing. Halloween stands among a golden few in the mostly empty slasher subgenre as an exercise in build-up. The Thing is all about environment and the paranoia that can [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews André Ã˜vredal’s The Troll Hunter [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 07:16:23 +0000

Found footage films, almost always taking place within horror, have certainly made themselves a cozy spot in the bevy of subgenres within cinema. Every time one of them comes out, its detractors call found footage played out and tired. Because these films have such an immediately recognizable and visually set format, it [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Kihachi Okamoto’s The Sword of Doom

Catherine Stebbins — Sun, 12 Jun 2011 05:38:28 +0000

We open on a mountaintop. An elderly man (Kamatami Fujiwara) and his granddaughter (Yoko Naito) emerge. He tells her the Buddhist origins of the lands surrounding them. They stop to rest and eat their lunch before beginning their downhill descent. The granddaughter, whose name is Omatsu, goes to find water. The elderly [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Matthew Vaughn’s X-Men First Class [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 07:13:39 +0000

When it was announced that X-Men: First Class was being made, many including me, groaned. After X-Men: The Last Stand and X-Men Origins: Wolverine, the prospect of being put through a likely awful prequel was disconcerting. Luckily, the result is surprisingly good; director Matthew Vaughn puts forth an uneven but fresh and [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Mitch Glazer’s Passion Play [DVD Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Sat, 28 May 2011 19:11:27 +0000

Back in April, Mickey Rourke made a brutally unhinged comment about two of his upcoming films, Passion Play and 13. He called them both ‘˜terrible’. Naturally, this sparked curiosity on just how bad the former, Mitch Glazer’s straight-to-DVD directorial debut would be. Is it terrible? In a word, yes. Yes, [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Giuseppe Capotondi’s The Double Hour [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Wed, 18 May 2011 02:52:24 +0000

Plot twists are inherently risky. Over recent years, they have become much more complicated. Certain genres, like horror or thriller, naturally invite the convention to the point where inclusion instantly subjects the film to a battle with predictability. Mostly, the risk comes from the chance taken on losing the audience. Will the [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews James Marsh’s Project Nim [IFFBoston 2011 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Sun, 08 May 2011 05:17:57 +0000

Beginning to write about James Marsh’s documentary Project Nim, it becomes tempting to immediately spring into all-out praise mode. Marsh approaches stories from different angles. 2008′s Man on Wire functions as a heist narrative. Project Nim is a chimpanzee biopic. Herb Terrace’s experiment was amateurish and botched from the start. By default, [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Miranda July’s The Future [IFFBoston 2011 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Wed, 04 May 2011 06:04:40 +0000

Miranda July’s brand of storytelling works mainly in spurts. When her methods work, they resonate with an authenticity that rarely comes around in film, making a meaningful impact. When her ideas do not work the way they are meant to, moments and scenes feel simultaneously underworked and overworked. In these moments, the [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Liz Garbus’ Bobby Fischer Against the World [IFFBoston 2011 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Wed, 04 May 2011 05:47:31 +0000

Biographical documentaries always present an inherent problem; how does one sum up a person’s life in ninety minutes? Some films take an event-heavy approach; we get a sense of the subject by accounting for the major events in their life and how they felt and acted in these moments. Other documentaries create [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Michael Winterbottom’s The Trip [IFFBoston 2011 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Sun, 01 May 2011 00:22:20 +0000

The Trip boasts an unusual combination of dialogue-heavy comedy, of scenic travelogue complete with a focus on high-end food and finally a somber self-reflexive experiment. While these are occasionally at odds with each other, The Trip is hilarious from start-to-finish and ultimately insightful because of the persistent and atypical way it goes [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Richard Ayoade’s Submarine [IFFBoston 2011 Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Sun, 01 May 2011 00:16:07 +0000

By the end of Submarine, the audience will have spent ninety minutes in the head of Oliver Tate. Â It is an inventive mind, one full of hypothetical situations, observations and the typical self-absorption maintained by all teenagers. Richard Ayoade’s film, adapted by Joe Dunthorne’s novel, may not be quite the new classic [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Joe Wright’s Hanna [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 04:28:53 +0000

Sometimes a film’s failings can be completely trumped by its strengths, so much so that it becomes an absolute triumph in spite of itself. This is the case with Hanna, the new action/fairy tale/thriller from director Joe Wright who takes himself completely out of his comfort zone with an entirely new type [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Wanda Tuchock and George Nichols Jr’s Finishing School [DVD Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 18:14:02 +0000

Right up until the end of the Production Code era of filmmaking in 1930′s Hollywood, the various studios churned out stories that pushed the boundaries of transgression for audiences everywhere. These films may seem more than a little tame today, but what these films did for the time cannot be overstated. Women were [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Duncan Jones’ Source Code [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 04:20:41 +0000

Did you know that life is precious? Did you know that you should make every minute count? If you didn’t, Source Code is going to make sure you do. What starts out as a very tight and tense high concept science-fiction film eventually becomes a parable that bashes its message over our [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Peter Godfrey’s The Two Mrs. Carrolls [DVD Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 03:51:26 +0000

Sometimes ideas are better left unfulfilled. A case in point; taking two of the biggest studio stars of all time, Humphrey Bogart and Barbara Stanwyck, and putting them in a suspense noir with strong Gothic overtones. In concept, this is not a bad idea; it gives each star a new and unfamiliar [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)

Catherine Reviews Cary Joji Fukunaga’s Jane Eyre [Theatrical Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 21:51:00 +0000

The story of Jane Eyre shares several similarities with the phenomenon known as the teen romance, which has taken over young adult literature and film in recent years. A young inexperienced girl, a potentially dangerous and fiercely attractive male and a series of hurdles the two have to overcome before [...]

Filed under:

(Read The Full Article →)