Movie Reviews

I have a long history of writing about Edmund Goulding’s Grand Hotel (1932). You see, I managed to flummox my English teacher into allowing me to do my final senior term paper on the film some 40 years ago. I have no idea what I wrote about it then, but I am sure it was […]

The Thursday Horror Picture Show will screen The Changeling Thursday, Jan. 12, at 8 p.m. in the Cinema Lounge of The Carolina Asheville and will be hosted by Xpress movie critics Ken Hanke and Justin Souther.

The Asheville Film Society will screen The Boy Friend on Tuesday, Jan. 17, at 8 p.m. in the Cinema Lounge of The Carolina Asheville and will be hosted by Xpress movie critics Ken Hanke and Justin Souther.

The Story: Biopic on British prime minister Margaret Thatcher, told in flashback format. The Lowdown: An unenlightening, rather ham-fisted film elevated by Meryl Streep and, to a lesser extent, Jim Broadbent.

The Story: An American heads to Italy to find the truth about her mentally ill mother, who may be possessed by demons. The Lowdown: The latest in the shaky-cam school of fake documentary horror is passable entertainment, but distracting in its attempts at realism, wholly derivative structure and an unbelievably frustrating ending.

The Story: Two couples get together to discuss a fight their children had -- only to end up arguing amongst themselves. The Lowdown: A bitterly comic look at the foibles of mankind's pretense of being more civilized and reasonable than it is. Very funny, but very dark in the Polanski tradition.

The Asheville Film Society will screen Dante's Inferno and Always on Sunday on Tuesday, Jan. 10, at 8 p.m. in the Cinema Lounge of The Carolina Asheville, and will be hosted by Xpress movie critics Ken Hanke and Justin Souther. Hanke is the artistic director of the Asheville Film Society.

The Hendersonville Film Society will show West Side Story at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 8, in the Smoky Mountain Theater at Lake Pointe Landing Retirement Community (behind Epic Cinemas), 333 Thompson St., Hendersonville.

Classic World Cinema by Courtyard Gallery will present Orpheus at 8 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 6, at Phil Mechanic Studios, 109 Roberts St., River Arts District (upstairs in the Railroad Library). Info: 273-3332, www.ashevillecourtyard.com

The Story: There's a Russian mole at the very top of the British secret service in this Cold War spy thriller, and it's up George Smiley (Gary Oldman) to find him. The Lowdown: Thoughtful and thought-provoking, this realistic -- and not action-oriented -- spy yarn emerges as one of 2011's best films with a brilliant…

The Story: A group of Americans vacationing in Russia get caught up in an invasion by invisible aliens. The Lowdown: Basic cable-TV-level sci-fi, and completely devoid of originality or style.

The Thursday Horror Picture Show will screen Altered States on Thursday, Jan. 5, at 8 p.m. in the Cinema Lounge of The Carolina Asheville, and will be hosted by Xpress movie critics Ken Hanke and Justin Souther.

The Story: The story of a horse taken from rural England to be used in WWI -- his travails and the hopes of his young owner to be re-united with him. The Lowdown: Depending on your taste for Spielberg's old-fashioned Hollywood spectacle style, this will either thrill and move you, or slightly annoy you. Maybe…

The Story: A widower buys a rundown zoo for himself and his two children. Life lessons, possible romance and animal business ensues. The Lowdown: Harmless, likable, utterly inoffensive and probably forgettable.

The Story: Secret Agent Ethan Hunt returns to save the world through high-flying espionage. The Lowdown: Working as pure matinee fodder, this is the most purely fun entry in the M:I franchise — just don’t go looking for anything deep.

The Story: A disgraced journalist takes a job for a wealthy industrialist to solve a 40-year-old mystery. The Lowdown: Physically darker than the 2010 Swedish film adaptation of the book, but not darker in content. Still very effective — and certainly easier on subtitle resistant audiences.

The Thursday Horror Picture Show will screen The Shining on Thursday, Dec. 29, at 8 p.m. in the Cinema Lounge of The Carolina Asheville and will be hosted by Xpress movie critics Ken Hanke and Justin Souther.

The Asheville Film Society will screen Isadora and Song of Summer on Tuesday, Jan. 3, at 8 p.m. in the Cinema Lounge of The Carolina Asheville and will be hosted by Xpress movie critics Ken Hanke and Justin Souther. Hanke is the artistic director of the A.F.S.

The Story: Fact-based look at the brief relationship between Marilyn Monroe and a young man working for Laurence Olivier Productions on The Prince and the Showgirl. The Lowdown: A charming, sweet memoir about not just one man's experiences with the legendary actress, but an examination of the woman and her appeal, anchored to a wonderful…

The Story: Alvin and his rodent pals get stranded on a tropical island with a lone inhabitant, while Dave and the mercenary Ian search for them. The Lowdown: Stupifying in its stupidity, this sloppy mess is perhaps the worst film of the year.

The Story: Boy reporter Tintin and the frequently intoxicated Captain Haddock go on a search for the lost treasure of Haddock's ancestor, Sir Francis Haddock. The Lowdown: It's beautifully crafted -- if you don't mind motion-capture animation -- and blessed with technical wizardry and visual invention, but dramatically, there's not much here.