Articles — Original Cin

Since 2017: Career film critics continuing the conversation

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Echo In The Canyon: A nostalgic tribute to the bohemian Laurel Canyon melting pot that launched folk rock

By Karen Gordon

Framing John DeLorean: An oddly successful meta doc about why they should make a movie about John DeLorean

By Jim Slotek

ReviewJim SlotekJune 4, 2019Framing John DeLorean, John DeLorean, General Motors, Back to the Future, Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan, War on Drugs, Sheena M. Joyce, Don Argott, Alec Baldwin, Morena Baccarin, Josh Charles, Jason Jones, GTO, FBI sting, CocaineComment

Pavarotti: Ron Howard Doc on Life of Famous Tenor (Ahem) Hits All the Right Notes

By Liam Lacey

ReviewJune 4, 2019Luciano Pavarotti, Pavarotti, documentary, Ron Howard, Plácido Domingo, Opera, José Carreras, BonoComment

Your weekend preview: What to see (and what to skip) in the theatres

Photograph: A Mumbai made-up romance that aims higher than a rom-com

By Karen Gordon

ReviewJim SlotekMay 31, 2019Ritesh Batri, The Lunchbox, Photograph, Movies set in Mumbai, Bollywood stars, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sanya Malhotra, Farrukh Jaffar, Pretend romance plots, Indian culture, Arranged marriage, Indian caste systemComment

The Fall of the American Empire: Fourth Film-Cycle Installment Feels… Tired

By Liam Lacey

ReviewMay 30, 2019The Fall of the American Empire, Denys Arcand, Canadian movies, French cinema, The Decline of the American Empire, The Barbarian Invasions, Rémy Girard, Alexandre Landry, Maripier MorinComment

Sorry for Your Loss: A darkly humorous mid-life crisis movie that's more than the sum of its neuroses

By Jim Slotek

ReviewJim SlotekMay 30, 2019Sorry for Your Loss, Justin Bartha, Mid-life crisis movies, Inbar Lavi, Funeral films, Winnipeg, Bruce Greenwood, Kevin McDonald, Collin Friesen, Lolita DavidovichComment

Godzilla: King of the Monsters: All talk, sound, fury and behemoths in the dark

By Jim Slotek

ReviewJim SlotekMay 30, 2019Godzilla, Godzilla King of the Monsters, Battle of Winterfell, Kong: Skull Island, Mothra, King Ghidorah, Toho, Vera Farmiga, Kyle Chandler, Millie Bobby Brown, Monarch Project, Rodan, David Strathairn, Sally Hawkins, Ken WatanabeComment

Asako I & II: Oddball Japanese Romantic Melodrama a Study in Love… and Millennials

By Liam Lacey

ReviewMay 29, 2019Asako I & II., japanese movies, Cannes, Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Tomako Shibasaki, Masahiro Higashide, Erika Karata, Rio Yamashita, Koji SetoComment

Rocketman: Fab Elton John Biopic as Surreal as its Subject’s Real Life

By Kim Hughes

ReviewMay 29, 2019Rocketman, Elton John, Biopic, Music, Bernie Taupin, Taron Egerton, Jamie Bell, Bryce Dallas Howard, Richard Madden, Inside Out, Dexter Fletcher Comment

Halston: Doc on Visionary Fashion Designer Not Quite Dressed for Success

By Kim Hughes

ReviewMay 29, 2019Halston, documentaries, Frédéric Tcheng, Liza Minnelli, Fashion, Marisa Berenson, Joel Schumacher, 1970s, Gay Film, Biopic, Studio 54Comment

Your Weekend Round-Up: What To See (And What To Skip) In The Theatres

By Original-Cin Staff

Review, PreviewMay 24, 2019Booksmart, Aladdin, All Is True, Gordon Lightfoot, Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind, Brighburn, Lady Bird, Mena Massoud, Inside OutComment

Aladdin: Live-action, CGI-laden mediocrity actually FEELS like 1,001 Nights

By Liam Lacey

ReviewJim SlotekMay 24, 2019Aladdin, Disney live-action remakes, Guy Ritchie, Dumbo, Cinderella, The Jungle Book, Gemma Jackson, Alan Menken, Howard Ashman, Tim Rice, Mena Massoud, Naomi Scott, Marwan Kenzari, Billy Magnussen, Will Smith, Robin WilliamsComment

All Is True: Watchable Shakespeare Tale Pretty Much Based On Conjecture

By Liam Lacey

ReviewMay 23, 2019All Is True, Shakespeare, Kenneth Branagh, Dame Judi Dench, Ian McKellen, Sam Ellis, Ben Elton, Dramedy, Derek JacobiComment

Brightburn: Superhero/psycho mash-up asks 'What if Superman were bad?' and answers it badly

By Liam Lacey

ReviewJim SlotekMay 23, 2019Brighburn, Guardians of the Galaxy, James Gunn, Brian Gunn, Mark Gunn, David Yorvesky, Elizabeth Banks, David Denman, Jackson A. Dunn, Superpowers, Evil children, Superman, The Twilight Zone, It's A Good LifeComment

Booksmart: Crafty Coming-of-Age Tale Updated and Buoyed by Female Spin

By Kim Hughes

ReviewMay 22, 2019Booksmart, Olivia Wilde, beanie feldstein, Comedy, Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, Coming of age stories, Teenage friendship films, Jason Sudeikis, Lisa Kudrow, Will ForteComment

Inside Out: LGBTQ Fest Yields Marquee Premieres, Stars, and Some Very Good Films

By Jim Slotek, Liam Lacey and Kim Hughes

Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind - An illuminating voyage of an extraordinary songwriter

By Jim Slotek

Your weekend round-up: What to see (and what to skip) in the theatres

ReviewJim SlotekMay 17, 2019Keanu Reeves, Movie week roundups May 17, John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum, Peterloo, Aniara, Harry Martinson, The Sun Is Also a Star, Yara Shahidi, Charles Melton, A Dog's Journey, Dr. Ruth Westheimer, Ask Dr. Ruth, City Dreamers, Meeting Gorbachev, Werner Herzog, This Is North PrestonComment

Peterloo: All talk and visual detail in the build-up to Mike Leigh's take on a notorious workers massacre

By Thom Ernst

ReviewJim SlotekMay 16, 2019Mike Leigh, Peterloo, 1819 Peterloo Massacre, Peter Field, Maxine Peake, Pearce Quigley, Rachel Finnegan, Gilbert and Sullivan, Topsy Turvy, Henry Hunt, Rory Kinnear, Mr. Turner, J.M.W. TurnerComment