Film Review

Recent films

Just back from Wiener-Dog, Todd Solondz's latest. Well done but definitely a downer story of mostly bitter, cruel people with only a few admirable souls who are barely afloat. Meanwhile a cute dachshund is passed from owner to owner. Good performances but a disturbing film overall. Les Cowboys, a French/Belgian thriller by a first time director, is terrific. Set in 1990's France in a rural small town, a group attempts to imitate American western culture as a hobby. A teenage daughter disappears, which leads the father on a years long search. Very complex narrative, tense, with skillful acting and good camerawork. A big screen film. And who can resist vampire films? This one an Austrian comedy, Therapy for a Vampire, with a depressed Dracula in therapy with Sigmund Freud in Vienna in 1932. Clever, with some bite. Tomorrow will catch Free State of Jones, despite mediocre reviews. But the most depressing thing is that most of the screenings were almost empty (except Cowboys). Will we even have theaters ten years from now? Have a great Fourth! Happy Birthday, America!

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