Pick Of The Week: New
Moonrise Kingdom (Universal)
Warning: If this is like every other Wes Anderson film ever made, Moonrise Kingdom will inevitably get the full Criterion treatment, with adorable illustrations by Anderson’s brother Eric, a commentary track, and feature after feature detailing the painstaking period minutiae that graces every frame. But the Moonrise Kingdom of the future is not the Moonrise Kingdom we have now, which is still one of the year’s best films, an enchanting fantasy that marries the promise of first love with the disillusionment of adulthood. It’s a melancholy vision lightened up by a district thread of optimism and hilarious deadpan gags. (We're giving a few copies away, right here.)
Pick Of The Week: Retro
Letter From An Unknown Woman (Olive Films)
Director Max Ophüls is best known for the sumptuous production and sweeping camera moves of films like The Earrings Of Madame De… and Lola Montes: “A shot that does not call for tracks,” said James Mason, “is agony for poor old Max.” But his 1948 classic Letter From An Unknown Woman reveals an engagement beyond mere technique, telling the richly emotional story of a woman (Joan Fontaine) whose love for an arrogant concert pianist (Louis Jourdan) spanned decades without reciprocation.
Do Not Break The Seal
That’s My Boy (Sony)
Why did America reject That’s My Boy while turning the equally dire likes of Grown Ups, Just Go With It, and Jack And Jill into spectacular—or at least relative—successes? It could be a case of popularity erosion, the bill coming due for a string of Adam Sandler duds. Or it could be the R rating, which kept actual juveniles away from a more explicit variation on his usual juvenilia. But here’s the important point: People stayed the hell away from it, and now that it’s on DVD/BD/whathaveyou, they have a fresh opportunity to stay away again.