Bitter Tears

'Tears of Gaza' is brutal, one-sided [ok]

It’s difficult to know what exactly to make of Tears of Gaza. It wants to be an indictment of war in general and also an indictment of a very specific war, the Gaza War of late December 2008.

Embrace This Wreck

'Wreck-it Ralph' is a blast [yay!]

Maybe it’s the 1980s and 1990s nostalgia for vintage video games. Maybe it’s John C Reilly’s and Sarah Silverman’s terrific performances as Ralph and Vanellope.

Worst. Siblings. Ever.

It’s rough going, but see 'Sister'

There’s a kid (Simon, played well by Kacey Mottet Klein) who’s been dealt a shitty hand; he exploits people around him by stealing—and not too smartly—at a ski resort. The adults aren’t much better than he is.

Hi Honey, Bye Honey!

You'll wish 'Hello I Must Be Going' stayed [ok]

Occasionally a movie gets to the guts of human emotion honestly. Hello I Must Be Going is one of those movies.

The Old Woman Down the Road

'Found Memories' is thoughtful and rewarding [ok]

Each morning, Madalena (Sonia Guedes) wakes before dawn to make bread in the dark. A single kerosene lamp lights her kitchen. She then trudges outside, slowly following a set of unused train tracks to Jotuomba, a fictional Brazilian village that seems to exist outside of time.

Portrait of the Artist as Enigma

What’s going on in Bel Borba Aqui? [meh]

When all the movie awards start popping up later this year, perhaps someone will recommend a new category: The film most like Seinfeld, the show that was about nothing. Bel Borba Aqui would certainly be among the nominees.

To the Battlements

How to Survive a Plague chronicles AIDS activism in the ’80s and ’90s [ok]

How one survives a plague (according to How to Survive a Plague) is to go on the offensive, relentlessly, until you get what you want (or really, deserve).

Indie Hop

Action! Santa Fe's Independent Film Festival rolls along

Four years strong, Santa Fe’s independent film fête aims to hold leading-man status by bringing in celebrated festival darlings.

'Liberal Arts' is light and fun [OK]

At 35, Jesse Fisher (writer/director Josh Radnor) is single and bored with his job at a New York university as an admissions counselor.

Wanted: Unknown Singer-Songwriter

'Searching for Sugar Man' is quietly inviting [Yay!]

It sounds like the idea for a bad movie: Talented musician no one cares about disappears. A small group of overseas fans, knowing nothing of his life, endeavors to find him.