When I was 11, I was dancing 5 days a week, going to girl scouts and slumber parties. Life was pretty incredible. I had not a worry in the world then. I did what I wanted, wore what I wanted, (when not in school uniform), loved The New Kids on The Block, and scrunchies. Everyday I came home from school and ate two pieces of American cheese folded into fourths. I was kind of peculiar, graceful yet awkward, bright and precocious, but I had a ton of friends and loved every day I was alive. Australian documentarian, Genevieve Bailey, recalls being just as happy at age 11. As an adult, she wondered if that was the case for kids today. Taking time off to travel, she decided that along here journey she would interview kids that were 11 and find out if they were as happy as we remembered being then. I AM ELEVEN proves to be a beautiful phenomenon and on the heels of the release of Richard Linklater’s BOYHOOD, the timing could not be more perfect. Read More →
Category Archives: Go To The Movies
Liz’s Review: ‘Wetlands’… Gross and Glorious!
I knew going into this film that the trailer alone was NSFW. I was in for a complete surprise when Wetlands as a whole blew the trailer way out of the water. Never have I ever experienced a movie so utterly disgusting and amazing at all once. Read More →
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Liz’s Review: ‘Rocks In My Pockets’ – The extraordinary weight of sadness and madness.
Mental illness is a hot button issue these days. We pretend to address it but if we’re being honest, we continue to sweep it under the rug. In a brand new film by writer/director Signe Baumane, we follow the true story of her familial heritage, specifically with undiagnosed bouts of severe depression. Read More →
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Liz’s Review: ‘As Above, So Below’
Last year I toured the Catacombs of Paris. If you are at all claustrophobic, this may not be the tour for you. They are very deep beneath the streets of Paris and not for the faint of heart. If you don’t know, they are the resting place for over 6 million bodies; skeletal remains. Check out a few pics from my trip. Read More →
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7 New Movies To Watch Today In Theaters And/Or At Home
Here’s a quick look with more detail description and trailers below:
- Dinosaur 13 – doc on the biggest T Rex ever found
- The Expendables 3 – They’re back. Again.
- Found
- Frank – fantastic indie flick. Check out Liz’s review!
- The Giver – did you read the book? Then don’t see the movie.
- Ragnarok
- Septic Man – a Starz release
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Liz’s Review: to be ‘FRANK’ … I am obsessed.
It’s rare these days you see a film that is so different from everything else. Frank is the story of an eclectic indie band and it’s lead singer of the same name. A young aspiring songwriter Jon, played adorably by Domhnall Gleeson, stumbles upon the band “Soronprfbs” and inadvertently becomes their keyboardist. The band travels to Ireland to record their album. While abroad, Gleeson delves into the mystery that is Frank. You see, Frank is never seen without his massive, cartoonesque, papier-mâché head on. Gleeson secretly shares short rehearsal clips on the internet to create a buzz around the band, leading to a requested appearance at South By Southwest. But is that really best for Frank? Read More →
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Liz’s Review: James Franco’s ‘Child of God’
One of the first films I had the pleasure of viewing at last year’s New York Film Festival was James Franco‘s Child of God. I was certainly in for a ride. Below is my original review.
Child Of God is a new film with James Franco in the director’s chair. Based upon the 1973 Cormac McCarthy novel of the same name, we are introduced to Lester Ballard. Clearly a social outcast both physically and emotionally, he lives in the woods, barely surviving off squirrel meat. One day he comes upon a car with two deceased teenagers and proceeds to rape the young girl. Deciding not to slip away quietly, he takes her body to an abandoned shed where he lives for a while. Clearly with no sense of relationships, he treats the body as if it is still alive; buying it clothes and food, perhaps to somehow justify the nightly necrophilia. Due to an accident, the shed and the girl are burned to ash. This is merely a small deterrent to Lester’s behavior as eventually he moves into the local West Virginia caves and continues to wreak havoc on the small town. Read More →
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Liz’s ‘Life Itself’ Review: Two Thumbs Way Up
As someone who has been on a whirlwind adventure in writing exclusively about film for the past year, it was sincerely my pleasure and honor to see Life Itself this afternoon. Director Steve James brings a touching documentary to the audiences who grew up watching Robert Ebert tell them which movies were worth spending their time and hard earned money on. We are privy to passages directly from Ebert’s memoir of the same name, intimate interviews both on camera and via private emails between Steve and Roger, as well as sit down, one on ones with some of the people closest to this critical giant, including his wife, Chaz, director, Martin Scorsese, and Marlene Iglitzen, wife of his industry other half, Gene Siskel. Read More →
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Liz’s ‘Thanksgiving’ Review: Let’s Talk Turkey and Truth
Over the holiday weekend, I went to a typical NYC rooftop party. The company was comprised mostly of young lawyers and investment bankers in their mid to late twenties. When one girl complained about the Lower East Side becoming irrelevant, I was perplexed. ” Why?” (an audible Freudian slip). She explained, “Every five feet, they’re are strollers and children! It’s so obnoxious!” I have to say I was genuinely offended. At 34 and kids on the brain, I was angry. Was I ever like this at parties?! Truth is, I probably was. Cue the ashamed shoulder slump and face palm. Read More →
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Liz’s ‘Boyhood’ New York City Press Junket Coverage
Monday, I had the pleasure of participating in the New York press junket for BOYHOOD. In attendance were writer/director Richard Linklater, breakout star, Ellar Coltrane, and industry strongholds Ethan Hawke and Patricia Arquette. With the film’s highly anticipated release, everyone in the theater was eager to get some deeper insight into this innovative new film. Below you will find some of my favorite highlights from the afternoon.
This movie is about growing up. Can you tell us what you remember about your first kiss? Read More →
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Liz’s Review: ‘Boyhood’ – A Cinephile’s Dream
How do you keep track of your life? With technology these days, it seems that we experience less and less and take digital snapshots of everything we eat, see, hear, and feel. Time is being recorded in short snippets each day. But do all these moments resonate to anyone but ourselves? We cannot forget how we got here. Life and time is not something that can be repeated. We need to pay more attention.
In Richard Linklater’s newest film, BOYHOOD, we are privy to 12 years of not just snapshots but real life moments in time. We not only follow Mason, but his mother, Olivia, father, Mason Sr. and sister, Samantha. 12 entire years of filming one family (and the same actors) through the eyes of a young boy of just 5, into his 18th year. These are the formative years that shape who we are. How we view our mother, father, and siblings forever impacts the choices we make in the future. In Boyhood we are along for moments like family outings, bike rides, first kisses, school, jobs, fights, marriages, both good and bad. These seemingly mundane moments are weaved into a brilliant narrative unlike anything I’ve ever experienced in a film until now. Read More →
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