Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat Movie Reviews & Previews

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Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat

Agrees with the Tomatometer 74% of the time.

Biography:: Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat have been discovering spiritual meanings in films for 40 years. We are always on the lookout for movies that "speak to our condition" (a Quaker phrase) and reveal new possibilities for our lives. We love dramas that touch on universal experiences, knock down barriers between people, and evoke our compassion. We are enriched by stories that touch our hearts and send us out of the theater rejoicing. A truly good film is not only thought-provoking and entertaining, it also leaves the viewer with a sense of what it means to live deeply and fully every day. We are the authors of two books, Spiritual Literacy and Spiritual Rx, in which we frequently use movies to illustrate spiritual "takes" on everyday experience. We also regularly prepare "Values & Visions" Discussion Guides for film clubs. You can read about our approach to movies in "Befriending Films" and "Spirituality and Films" in the Spirituality & Film section at our website.
Favorites:: We publish an annual list of the "most spiritually literate films of the year" (see "Other" section). Some all-time favorites are: Gandhi, My Life as a Dog, Babette's Feast, Wings of Desire, Forrest Gump, Dead Man Walking, Babe, Enchanted April, Jesus of Montreal, The Last Wave, Grand Canyon, Sunshine State, In America, Brokeback Mountain, American Beauty, Little Miss Sunshine, Water, Lars and the Real Girl, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, The Visitor, and Slumdog Millionaire.
Publications:: Spirituality and Practice
Critics' Group:: New York Film Critics Online, Online Film Critics Society

Total Reviews:: 4812
Total QuickRatings:: 197

Location:: New York, New York

Listing Of All Reviews & Articles

Showing 1 - 50 of 4812

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Rating	T-Meter	Title \| Year	Add Date
—	56%	Edge of Darkness (2010)	— Spirituality and Practice Posted Feb 10, 2012
4/5	83%	Undefeated (2012)	" An inspiring documentary about a caring coach of a losing inner-city football team." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Feb 9, 2012
3.5/5	28%	The Vow (2012)	" A touching drama about memory, loss, and reclaiming love." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Feb 9, 2012
4.5/5	92%	Chico & Rita (2012)	" A Spanish animated film for adults that is a real crowd-pleaser." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Feb 9, 2012
4/5	43%	Bonsai People: The Vision of Muhammad Yunus (2012)	" An enlightening documentary about the revolution wrought by Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank's micro-finance loans to the poor." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Feb 9, 2012
4/5	85%	In Darkness (2012)	" The true story of a selfish Polish man whose caring for a band of Jew living underground in sewers during World War II qualifies him for recognition as a Righteous Gentile." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Feb 9, 2012
4.5/5	51%	Perfect Sense (2012)	" A deeply spiritual love story that challenges us to be fully alive to the report of our senses and to live in the present moment which will never appear again." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Feb 4, 2012
4/5	88%	Declaration of War (2012)	" An extraordinary French film about the emotional education of a couple with a seriously ill infant. " — Spirituality and Practice Posted Feb 2, 2012
4/5	85%	Chronicle (2012)	" A scary and sad movie about a victim of bullies who becomes what he hates most when he gets some mysterious superpowers." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Feb 2, 2012
5/5	72%	Big Miracle (2012)	" A thematically rich drama about the efforts to save three trapped whales that speaks volumes about cross-cultural misunderstandings, media circuses, and the good that can rise to surface when opposing groups work together." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Feb 2, 2012
1.5/5	32%	Man on a Ledge (2012)	" A unbelievable thriller with a surfeit of unappealing characters." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Jan 27, 2012
3.5/5	77%	The Grey (2012)	" A suspenseful story about a depressed oil refinery worker in Alaska who leads six co-workers struggling to survive after their plane crashes in the wilderness." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Jan 26, 2012
3.5/5	93%	Coriolanus (2011)	" A modern-day version of the Shakespeare play about the toxic results of rage, starring and directed by Ralph Fiennes." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Jan 26, 2012
—	65%	Cherry Tree Lane ()	— Spirituality and Practice Posted Jan 24, 2012
3/5	33%	Lula, the Son of Brazil (2012)	" A biopicture about the formative early years of one of Brazil's most famous presidents whose muse and advocate was his beloved mother." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Jan 14, 2012
3.5/5	95%	The Guard (2011)	" An impressive performance by Brendan Gleeson as an eccentric, independent and surly cop in a small Irish seaside town. " — Spirituality and Practice Posted Jan 3, 2012
3.5/5	57%	It's About You (2012)	" A striking musical documentary about rock singer and songwriter John Mellencamp and the changes overtaking this musical genre and the heartland of America." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Jan 3, 2012
3/5	54%	The Iron Lady (2012)	" An Academy-award caliber performance by Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher the Prime Minister revealing how her refusal to compromise trashed a nation and increased the gap between the rich and the poor." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 28, 2011
4/5	96%	Pariah (2011)	" A powerful coming-of-age drama about a creative and inexperienced African-American lesbian who tries to be true to herself." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 28, 2011
4/5	85%	Eames: The Architect And The Painter (2011)	" An enlightening documentary about a multi-talented married couple who have been called the most important American designers in the 20th century." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 28, 2011
4.5/5	45%	Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2012)	" A poignant and emotionally literate film about the wise stewardship of pain by a precocious teenager mourning the loss of his beloved father." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 22, 2011
4.5/5	95%	Pina (2011)	" An amazing and appealing 3D documentary by the inimitable Wim Wenders on the innovative dancer and choreographer Pina Bausch." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 22, 2011
5/5	76%	War Horse (2011)	" A spellbinding drama about a heroic horse, the young man who loves him, and the kind handlers who help the horse during the hell he endures on the battlefields of World War I. " — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 22, 2011
2/5	75%	The Adventures of Tintin (2011)	" A 3-D adventure thriller about the quest of two greedy souls to find a lost treasure of gold. " — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 21, 2011
4.5/5	44%	The Flowers of War (2011)	" An exploration of the nature of heroism and sacrificial love during the Japanese occupation of Nanking in 1937, from acclaimed Chinese director Zhang Yimou." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 20, 2011
4.5/5	53%	Albert Nobbs (2012)	" An odd but endearing drama about a meticulous waiter in 1898 Dublin with a gigantic secret and expansive dreams for the future. " — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 20, 2011
4/5	69%	Blackthorn (2011)	" A Western about a cowboy vagabond who learns that you can't go home again. " — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 20, 2011
4.5/5	83%	Warrior (2011)	" A sports movie about a martial arts tournament and an intimate drama about letting go of hatred and opening the heart to the healing balm of forgiveness. " — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 20, 2011
3.5/5	87%	The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)	" A dark thriller that mines the meanings of family skeletons, power, corruption, sex, and misogyny." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 20, 2011
3/5	93%	Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol (2011)	" One of the best Mission Impossible flicks with several adrenaline- pumping action sequences." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 15, 2011
5/5	99%	A Separation (2011)	" A searing Iranian film about divisiveness as a toxin in relationships." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 15, 2011
5/5	63%	We Bought a Zoo (2011)	" An emotionally literate film about a grieving family trying to jump-start their lives again by running a small zoo for animals." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 15, 2011
3/5	60%	Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011)	" A sequel that betters the original by focusing on relationships and the battle between the Zen master of attention and the fiend of chaos and darkness." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 15, 2011
3/5	——	Gang de qin (The Piano In A Factory) (2011)	" A mildly humorous tale set in northern China about a project designed to bring more beauty to a disgustingly ugly environment." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 9, 2011
2/5	84%	Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)	" A failed attempt to revive John le Carre's espionage novel for a new audience." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 8, 2011
4/5	90%	London River (2011)	" An engaging morality play about the quest of an English woman and an African Muslim to find their children after the 2005 terrorist attack in London. " — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 8, 2011
4/5	80%	We Need to Talk About Kevin (2012)	" An unsettling drama with a chilling portrait of a destructive mother-and-son relationship that eventually impacts the lives of others." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 8, 2011
3/5	50%	Goodbye First Love (2012)	" A fine and fluid French drama about the enchantments of first love and the challenges of moving beyond it despite its beauty and meaning. " — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 8, 2011
4/5	56%	My Piece of the Pie (2011)	" A clever and thought-provoking French comedy about two people who are thrown together: a working-class single parent and a high-finance superstar who makes money the easy way." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 8, 2011
4.5/5	82%	Young Adult (2011)	" A dramady about beauty and change in the life of an attractive messed-up woman." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Dec 8, 2011
4/5	80%	Shame (2011)	" An intense portrait of a sexual addict in New York City whose life revolves around satisfying his libido and conquering women." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Nov 30, 2011
4/5	71%	Carnage (2011)	" Involving portrait of two couples meeting to smooth out the rough edges of a mutual problem who wind up letting loose all the anger, disappointment, and hatred inside themselves." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Nov 30, 2011
5/5	86%	Force of Nature: The David Suzuki Movie (2011)	" An astonishing documentary about the life and work of scientist and eco-activist David Suzuki who shares his elder wisdom about science, nature, conservation, and the right path of indigenous peoples." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Nov 30, 2011
1/5	92%	Arthur Christmas (2011)	" Another family holiday flick that disappoints rather than delights." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Nov 23, 2011
4/5	58%	Crazy Wisdom (2011)	" An edifying documentary on the life and times of the controversial Tibetan Buddhist spiritual teacher and spiritual warrior whose mission was to build an enlightened society. " — Spirituality and Practice Posted Nov 23, 2011
3/5	84%	My Week with Marilyn (2011)	" One week in the life of a lucky young man who is befriended by the sweet angel of sex and has the time of his life. " — Spirituality and Practice Posted Nov 23, 2011
4/5	77%	A Dangerous Method (2011)	" A cerebral trip with Jung and Freud, sex and cigars, the talking cure and adventures beyond." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Nov 23, 2011
4.5/5	94%	Hugo (2011)	" A free-flowing and enchanting celebration of movie-making, finding the way home, and the kind of caring that can transform the lives of others." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Nov 23, 2011
1/5	45%	Another Happy Day (2011)	" A tiresome and irritating melodrama about an extended family gathering for a wedding and showing their neurotic sides without any restraint." — Spirituality and Practice Posted Nov 18, 2011

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