2009: The Anime Year in Review
The usual caveats apply: I haven’t sampled everything and my tastes are not yours. Series that are continuing into the Spring are not generally eligible, though I am making an… Read more »
Millennium Actress–Anime Review
Millennium Actress is something of an overlooked gem. The movie won all sorts of awards in Japan and was widely praised by critics, but its American release sank without a… Read more »
Up in the Air–Movie Review
The trailers for Up in the Air do their best to suggest that this is a formulaic romantic comedy about two people who initially hate each other but end up… Read more »
Avatar–Movie Review
Avatar, James Cameron’s first movie since Titanic (1997), is a solid science fiction story, probably a classic. It is a visually stunning extravaganza which seems to have required the contributions… Read more »
The Princess and the Frog–Movie Review
The Princess and the Frog is something that we haven’t seen in a long time: a traditional hand-drawn animated film from Disney. The last one was 5 years ago. (It… Read more »
Fantastic Mr. Fox–Movie Review
When I saw the trailer for Fantastic Mr. Fox my initial reaction was “Wow, that’s pretty bad animation!” This was quite unfair. My reaction was based on an unconscious assumption… Read more »
Princess Tutu–Anime Review
This is a bit unusual–an anime based on ballet. The story draws heavily from Swan Lake and the The Nutcracker, with individual episodes inspired by various other ballets, operas and… Read more »
The Blind Side–Movie Review
The Blind Side is a mostly-true biopic. It tells the story of Michael Oher (Quinton Aaron), a homeless, functionally-illiterate teenager who ended up winning a football scholarship to the University… Read more »
The Twilight Saga: New Moon–Movie Review
Twilight, the original movie, was cheesy fun. The sequel New Moon is not as much fun, in fact much of it is rather tedious. The sequel picks up where the… Read more »
Pirate Radio–Movie Review
In 1966, a time when British performers were revolutionizing popular music, the British public had surprisingly few ways to listen to them. The BBC had little interest in broadcasting rock… Read more »