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![]() Winter’s tale propels a terrific family movie. Never mind that Winter – the dolphin whose rehab from disabling injury the movie lovingly portrays – is the movie’s only real character. The fictional human characters surrounding her are easy to root for, and laugh with. They include a father…
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Great tale about a dolphin's amazing ...
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![]() Small town BFFs get into big trouble in this high quality yet overlooked drama about disaffected youth. How disaffected? Both girls are from troubled households, though one has a good head on her shoulders. The other? A “cutter” and Mean Girl extraordinaire. Together they anchor a terrific i…
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Here comes trouble.
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![]() Doubly fascinating and deeply touching, this HBO-made biopic rises well above run-of-the-mill TV movies, especially those derided as disease of the week. While deftly produced and acted, it largely shines due to the singularity of its subject, a noble pioneer in two important realms. “Dr. T…
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Well done trailer, well done movie.
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Everybody’s damaged in Please Give. Most are awful, some sweet, all adrift. Misanthropic, it generates frequent laughs at the expense of these modern Manhattanites. Think a more seriously inclined Seinfeld – from the feminine side. Not that …
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Big sis Amanda Peet: Skin deep beauty
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Heroism and bravery have a new name, and that name is Ree. Just 17 years old, Ree’s as brave and heroic as any movie hero ever. Played by stellar newcomer Jennifer Lawrence, her quest – Winter’s Bone being a quest movie – is so virtuous and she’s so intrepid, so true, that you know she’s boun…
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"Talking just causes witnesses."
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Fingering two of society’s soft spots, Cyrus lampoons middle-aged singles looking for love and grown kids who’ve been emotionally indulged their entire overly-protected lives. Plus it generates plenty of LOL moments in the offing. Score. John C. Reilly and Jonah Hill deliver great performa…
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Snow White and the Two Dorks
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![]() Charismatic, disorienting and brooding, Animal Kingdom presents the truthy tale of an infamous crime family, including their murder of two Melbourne cops. The brooding gets a bit much by the third reel, weighing down what would otherwise be a great true-crime movie. The charisma comes from …
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Infamous crime family, charismatic movie
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![]() New addition to the boxing movie canon? Absolutely, complete with elemental title, elemental story and devastating performances. A female power story as much as a male one, Melissa Leo, Christian Bale and Mark Walhberg’s maternal-fraternal triangle pegs the meter for codependency. When Amy Ada…
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All in the (dysfunctional) Family
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![]() I find self-loathing shmucks more annoying than interesting. So Barney’s Version – about a dissolute TV exec played by the redoubtable Paul Giamatti – surprised me by deepening into an affecting and intriguing drama in its third reel. Based on Mordecai Richler’s final novel, its literary pedig…
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Solid acting enlivens a solid novel
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