Jason Statham The Brit Brutalizer Stays Deadly But Also Vulnerable In Safe by Brad Balfour With a voice that’s a cross between surly hooligan and Brit urbane, English action star Jason Statham expands his oeuvre in his latest film, Safe, while staying true to form. He kills; he bashes; he slashes, maims and mangles all … Continue reading
Marjane Satrapi Cooks Up A Tasty Chicken With Plums by Brad Balfour Iranian-born director and artist Marjane Satrapi lives in Paris, France, and has never lived in post-revolutionary Persia throughout her adult life. Yet her home country has shaped and influenced her creative work whether it be her written and drawn graphic novels or her feature films. In 2000, an independent … Continue reading
G. Garvin Cooking Channel Chef’s Great Grilling & Travel Guide by Brad Balfour Summer is upon us and so it’s the smell of grilling wafting in the air. To assist us in our quest for finessing fine grilling exercises, the Cooking Channel has called on one of its vets, G. Garvin – who has enjoyed popular success as chef, … Continue reading
David Oyelowo Is Enjoying a Championship Season by Brad Balfour Born in Britain, part of a royal Nigerian family, raised there and in England, 36-year-old actor David Oyelowo is enjoying a remarkable run – garnering more prominent roles and rising billing in films with bigger and bigger actors. This increasingly favorable career surge doesn’t seem like it’s going to abate any … Continue reading
Asghar Farhadi Iranian Writer/Director Gets Oscar For A Separation & Retrospective at Lincoln Center by Brad Balfour Iranian director Asghar Farhadi manages to both enlighten and mystify. Maybe that’s why he’s been able to evade both the censors and jailers who police filmmakers for thought crimes against the mega-fascist Iranian state. Or maybe because this … Continue reading
Martin Scorsese and Paul Schrader We’re Looking at Taxi Driver by Brad Balfour When directors-screenwriters Paul Schrader and Martin Scorsese came to the Director’s Guild Theater in Manhattan recently to discuss their ride with the groundbreaking film, Taxi Driver, it was an incredible moment in cinematic history. Their story of how this film took form and … Continue reading
Jessica Chastain Has The Help to Get Her Award Noms by Brad Balfour When actress Jessica Chastain attended the Sundance Film Festival more than a year ago, making the rounds for the film Take Shelter, she spoke on a panel for The Creative Coalition. The focus was squarely on her co-star Michael Shannon, who had been … Continue reading
Adepero Oduye Finds Acceptance as a Pariah by Brad Balfour Though Pariah is this little film telling a simple, classic tale seen and heard before, the charm of its actors and the need to have this coming-of-age story told again and again until it no longer needs to resonate makes the film a powerful and award-worthy statement. … Continue reading
Michel Hazanavicius Silences the Skeptics with the Oscar Favorite The Artist by Brad Balfour Wily provocateur and indie screen mogul Harvey Weinstein sees beyond the obvious and recognizes value in some rather offbeat films. Thankfully, that support has so far paid off. Four of Weinstein’s pictures won awards at this year’s Golden Globes, with a … Continue reading
Michelle Williams Her Uncanny Performance in My Week With Marilyn Turns Heads and Wins Award Noms by Brad Balfour Who knew that when actress Michelle Williams first appeared as the bad girl in Dawson’s Creek, she would have the uncanny good sense to take on roles which offered her real challenges? From a supporting part in Brokeback Mountain to the lead in Wendy and … Continue reading
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