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B
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The Swerve
(2018)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A woman with shaky emotional health turns this into a thriller.
Posted Sep 18, 2020
|
|
3/4
|
Ghetto
(2002)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Some remarkable achival film about how Shanghai (of all places) served Jews who escaped the Holocaust.
Posted Jan 29, 2019
|
|
C+
|
A Cure for Wellness
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
This psychological thriller/horror movie needs to be cut by one third to speed up the action. Slow going until the final twenty minutes.
Posted Feb 06, 2017
|
|
B+
|
Eating You Alive
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Valuable nutrition information that they do not teach in med school, but course level 101 if you've not kept up with recent controversies.
Posted Dec 14, 2016
|
|
B+
|
The Eagle Huntress
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Feminism in Mongolia is given its due in a soaring film that should have the attention of awards groups for its spellbinding cinematography.
Posted Nov 30, 2016
|
|
B+
|
Manchester by the Sea
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Casey Affleck finds his best role as a depressed handyman whose life acquires meaning when he take charge of a teen nephew.
Posted Nov 12, 2016
|
|
B
|
Rules Don't Apply
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Warren Beatty's having as much fun in this movie as he had in "Shampoo" 41 years ago.
Posted Nov 11, 2016
|
|
B
|
Arrival
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Cerebral sci-fi with a Spielbergian sense of wonder.
Posted Nov 07, 2016
|
|
B+
|
Lion
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
If you've ever been lost, and who hasn't? This movie is for you, featuring a five-year-old boy from India who winds up in Australia.
Posted Nov 04, 2016
|
|
B
|
Jackie
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Though the unconventional biopic does not often spring to life, Natalie Portman's awards-worthy performance must be seen.
Posted Nov 03, 2016
|
|
B+
|
Elle
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A revenge tale, but one done in the sophisticated European style rather than the simpler Hollywood treatment.
Posted Nov 02, 2016
|
|
B+
|
Nocturnal Animals
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Tom Ford's returns as director after a seven-year break with a psychological thriller elegantly blended with romance.
Posted Nov 01, 2016
|
|
B+
|
Just Eat It: A Food Waste Story
(2014)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
The filmmakers are so frustrated by the amount of food that North Americans waste that they determine to eat only thrown-out grub for six months.
Posted Oct 31, 2016
|
|
B
|
Toni Erdmann
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
An alternately sad and jocular look at a father's attempt to bring his daughter closer through a series of practical jokes.
Posted Oct 27, 2016
|
|
B
|
The Birth of a Nation
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A rousing look at conditions of ante bellum slavery that led to the most famous bloody resistance movement.
Posted Sep 28, 2016
|
|
B+
|
Imperium
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Daniel Radcliffe as never before seen infiltrates the weirdos in the American Nazi movement.
Posted Aug 13, 2016
|
|
C
|
The Tenth Man
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A decent enough story bogged down by an unappealing principal actor.
Posted Jul 30, 2016
|
|
A-
|
Little Men
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Arguably among the most authentic movie treatments of the adolescent's world.
Posted Jul 30, 2016
|
|
B-
|
Neither Heaven Nor Earth
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A bizarre, cross-genre production that is a war movie, a suspense film, and a metaphysical creation. The viewer will be left with the impression that it's better not to join the military.
Posted Jul 26, 2016
|
|
B+
|
The Infiltrator
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A suspenseful thriller which should have the audience gasping every time that the drug lords are about to expose the customs agent who has infiltrated their network.
Posted Jul 12, 2016
|
|
C
|
Equals
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Overly simplistic sci-fi evoking better works like "Gattaca," "1984," and "Code 46."
Posted Jul 09, 2016
|
|
A-
|
Café Society
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
High-end Woody Allen, exquisitely evoking the 1930's in Hollywood America.l
Posted Jul 09, 2016
|
|
B+
|
The Dog Lover
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Clever but manipulative.
Posted Jul 02, 2016
|
|
B-
|
Fathers and Daughters
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Sad and soapy.
Posted Jul 02, 2016
|
|
C
|
The Purge: Election Year
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Political discussions take a back seat, way way back, to a combination of clownish villains in Halloween-style costumes and seen-it-done-that shooting gallery action.
Posted Jun 28, 2016
|
|
B+
|
Our Kind of Traitor
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A tense spy tale in the John Le Carre tradition.
Posted Jun 25, 2016
|
|
B
|
Microbe and Gasoline
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A look at two creative adolescents with a sweet nature.
Posted Jun 25, 2016
|
|
A-
|
At the Fork
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
An intelligent, family-friendly documentary that takes an extensive look (without hidden cameras) at farms that produce our meat, eggs, and milk.
Posted Jun 23, 2016
|
|
C+
|
Free State of Jones
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Didactic rather than rousing.
Posted Jun 23, 2016
|
|
B+
|
The Innocents
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A somber look at heroism and villainy within a Polish convent in 1945.
Posted Jun 21, 2016
|
|
B
|
Wiener-Dog
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A cute, off-beat tale, separate narratives of people whose lives are bound together by a Dachshund.
Posted Jun 18, 2016
|
|
B
|
Germans & Jews
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A talking heads documentary featuring intellectuals, both Christians and Jews, now living in Germany. Didactic more than it is compelling.
Posted Jun 13, 2016
|
|
B
|
Argentina
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
What's refreshing is that this doc about Argentina's rich folklore avoids clich by covering every dance and song BUT the tango.
Posted Jun 11, 2016
|
|
B
|
Genius
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A theatrical piece with cinematic flair.
Posted Jun 05, 2016
|
|
C-
|
Hitler's Folly
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A charmless, witless attempt to satirize the Nazi era, asking What if Hitler succeeded as a painter?
Posted Jun 03, 2016
|
|
B+
|
Unlocking the Cage
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
The doc makes a strong case albeit without many animations and other effects that intelligent animals like chimps should be classified as legal persons.
Posted Jun 02, 2016
|
|
B-
|
The Fits
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
An offbeat look at a pre-teen who wonders to what extent she should give up her individuality to fit in. The title could have a double meaning: epileptic-type spasms, or fitting in.
Posted May 28, 2016
|
|
B
|
Me Before You
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A saccharine, but quite watchable British romantic drama with a goofy principal character
Posted May 24, 2016
|
|
B
|
Maggie's Plan
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Director Rebecca Miller explores her inner Woody Allen to goofy effects.
Posted May 23, 2016
|
|
B-
|
Alice Through the Looking Glass
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Destined to be looked over by awards groups for costumes, make-up, production design and effects, but all of this barely makes up for its lack of narrative coherence.
Posted May 23, 2016
|
|
B+
|
Money Monster
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
If only our Economics classes were as exciting as this darkly humorous look at high finance!
Posted May 12, 2016
|
|
B
|
Love & Friendship
(2016)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Not among the best of Jane Austen's novels is given a decent adaptation.
Posted May 07, 2016
|
|
C-
|
High-Rise
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A muddle of mayhem.
Posted May 07, 2016
|
|
B+
|
A Bigger Splash
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
One of Ralph Fiennes's best performances and the gorgeous scenery on a Sicilian island doesn't hurt.
Posted May 07, 2016
|
|
B
|
The Lobster
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
The picture's surrealism requires an attentive and particular audience which will find rewards therein.
Posted May 07, 2016
|
|
B+
|
Cash Only
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Intriguing tale about an individual whose mounting debt leads to unfortunate circumstances
Posted May 07, 2016
|
|
B+
|
Dheepan
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
Jesuthasen's ferocious performance as a former child soldier in Sri Lanka now living in a tough French suburb anchors this Cannes Festival prize-winning film.
Posted May 01, 2016
|
|
B
|
The Family Fang
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A quirky film that asks, Are these parents monstrous or simply creative?
Posted Apr 26, 2016
|
|
B+
|
The Man Who Knew Infinity
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
A feel good biopic providing insight into the mind of a mathematical genius and his friendship with a mentor from a different culture.
Posted Apr 25, 2016
|
|
A-
|
Viva
(2015)
|
Harvey S. Karten
|
An exuberant look at a son's need for his father's acceptance.
Posted Apr 24, 2016
|
