Noah Wyle Anchors Intense, Effective Max Medical Drama “The Pitt”
It’s a bit disconcerting to see the “new kid” of Cook County General Hospital on the massive hit “ER” become the grizzled veteran of a similar medical drama three decades…
Read moreShort Films in Focus: My Son Went Quiet
Ian Bawa’s “My Son Went Quiet” tells a story of grief and ghosts. In the film, a Father (Harkaran Jhinger) and Son (Jay Vaidyanathan) have just come from a funeral…
Read moreFrustrating Second Season of “Severance” Gets Off to a Rocky Start
The first season of “Severance” was one of the best standalone TV outings of the streaming era, all the way down to its incredible conclusion. But it always felt like…
Read moreTim Allen and Kat Dennings Fire on All Cylinders in ABC’s “Shifting Gears”
Having grown up watching Tim Allen in “Home Improvement,” I went into ABC’s “Shifting Gears” with some skepticism. It’s not so much that I don’t like the guy as I…
Read morePeter Berg Shows the Ugly Side of American History With the Frustrating “American Primeval”
Director Peter Berg‘s works alternate between wholesome American stories and completely unhinged jingoism. Over the past decade, the latter side has come out in films like “Lone Survivor,” “Patriots Day,”…
Read moreDon’t Bother Waking Up for “On Call”
An early indicator of what to expect from Amazon Prime’s “On Call” is in the opening credits. Listed as the creator is Elliot Wolf, son of copaganda impresario Dick, who…
Read moreCinema Is Freedom: Mohammad Rasoulof on “The Seed of the Sacred Fig”
Leaving behind the more metaphorical language of his earlier films in favor of an incendiary direct address, Mohammad Rasoulof’s “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” is a brave and searing…
Read moreWhat’s gone can never be replaced: thoughts on Los Angeles, disasters, and the present moment
As you read this, Los Angeles is still in flames. The fires that consumed the Pacific Palisades and Eaton are already thought to be the worst in the region’s history,…
Read moreDream of Death: Robert Eggers on “Nosferatu”
Death and desire collide with seductive, shivering power in Robert Eggers’ “Nosferatu,” a grandly Gothic reinterpretation of F.W. Murnau’s silent-film classic that channels the dark, psychosexual energies at the core…
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How Come They Don’t Fly Away?: James Ransone (1979-2025)
I first remember seeing James Ransone on my screen when I was eleven, while watching Larry Clark’s “Ken Park” on a tiny television screen with some of my childhood friends.…
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