Movie Review: ‘Nightmare Alley’ December 7, 2021By John Mulderig Catholic News Service Filed Under: Movie & Television Reviews The title “Nightmare Alley” (Searchlight) at least gives moviegoers fair warning of what awaits them in director and co-writer Guillermo del Toro’s noir-inspired screen version of William Lindsay Gresham’s 1946 novel, scripted with Kim Morgan.
Movie Review: ‘West Side Story’ December 3, 2021By John Mulderig Catholic News Service Filed Under: Feature, Movie & Television Reviews What do you get when you combine composer Leonard Bernstein, lyricist Stephen Sondheim, playwright Arthur Laurents and choreographer Jerome Robbins, then throw director Steven Spielberg and screenwriter Tony Kushner into the mix?
Movie Review: ‘Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City’ November 30, 2021By John Mulderig Catholic News Service Filed Under: Movie & Television Reviews In 2002, director Paul W. S. Anderson presided over the first big-screen adaptation of the zombie-themed videogame series “Resident Evil.”
Movie Review: ‘Encanto’ November 30, 2021By John Mulderig Catholic News Service Filed Under: Movie & Television Reviews Will viewers be charmed by “Encanto” (Disney)? For the most part, the answer is probably yes, though this vivacious animated musical does include content that could be of concern for the parents of impressionable kids.
Movie Review: ‘Belfast’ November 17, 2021By John Mulderig Catholic News Service Filed Under: Movie & Television Reviews In 1969, as the wider world focused on such events as Apollo 11’s mission to the Moon, long-simmering sectarian tensions in Northern Ireland boiled over, initiating a period of religious and political strife, known as the Troubles, that would last for the next 30 years.
Movie Review: ‘Clifford the Big Red Dog’ November 17, 2021By John Mulderig Catholic News Service Filed Under: Feature, Movie & Television Reviews This adaptation of a series of children’s books by Norman Bridwell, the first of which was published in 1963, is silly but mostly harmless.
Movie Review: ‘Last Night in Soho’ November 10, 2021By John Mulderig Catholic News Service Filed Under: Feature, Movie & Television Reviews It may have been author Peter De Vries rather than baseball great Yogi Berra who first observed that “nostalgia ain’t what it used to be.”
Movie Review: ‘Eternals’ November 4, 2021By John Mulderig Catholic News Service Filed Under: Feature, Movie & Television Reviews A mixed bag, both ethically and cinematically, director and co-writer Chloé Zhao’s Marvel Comics adaptation “Eternals” (Disney) is presented on an undeniably large scale.
T.V. Review: ‘A Samurai in the Vatican,’ Nov. 17, PBS November 3, 2021By John Mulderig Catholic News Service Filed Under: Feature, Movie & Television Reviews An intriguing but largely forgotten historical incident is skillfully recounted in the documentary “A Samurai in the Vatican.”
Movie Review: ‘The Last Duel’ October 28, 2021By John Mulderig Filed Under: Movie & Television Reviews There are many knights but not much shining armor in the grim historical drama “The Last Duel” (20th Century).
T.V. Review: ‘The Oratorio: A Documentary With Martin Scorsese,’ Nov. 5, PBS October 27, 2021By Chris Byrd Catholic News Service Filed Under: Feature, Movie & Television Reviews Charming and uplifting, “The Oratorio” recounts the efforts of those who help to run the 200-year-old St. Patrick’s, along with others, to remember and recreate a largely forgotten operatic performance that took place there June 22, 1826 — and that represented a milestone in the cultural history of New York City.
Movie Review: ‘Dune’ October 26, 2021By John Mulderig Catholic News Service Filed Under: Movie & Television Reviews The gripping sci-fi epic “Dune” (Warner Bros.) arrives on screen with a notable real-life backstory.
