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Reviews
Cradle Will Rock (1999)
One of the best "Theatre" movies ever made
...a really smart, well-constructed script by Tim Robbins (who also directed) that links the Depression 30s, performing arts, visual arts, commerce, politics, business and the culture (whew!). Robert Altman would be proud at how all these strands came together with great force. The performances are great (Redgrave, the Cusacks, Bill Murray, Cary Elwes, McFadyen, Blades, Cherry Jones, Azaria) all lovingly presented. The art direction and cinematography are impeccable, and the re-creation of the first "performance" of "the runaway opera" is astonishingly accurate - at least in line with the way Houseman tells it in his memoir, "Run-Through." CRADLE's blend of real and fictional characters and historical fact and fiction makes for a piece of stirring, funny, thoughtful storytelling of an important moment in American history.
Tell Me You Love Me (2007)
Ambitious, slow, thoughtful
The writing is intermittently brilliant; so is the acting, directing and concept. HBO has been flirting for years with stuff so real it's uncomfortable to watch, and this is an advancement of that experiment. Unfortunately, it's so "slice-of-life" that things frequently take a LOOONG time to happen. Ally Walker is the class of the field among the actors; her work is subtle, transparent and totally unforced. I'm not hooked on this series, but I am interested, and it's rich food for thought and conversation between my wife and I about how we view love, sex and their relationship to each other at different moments in our lives. Jane Alexander is a wonderful glue that holds the stories together, and gives me hope that we can keep finding our way to love as we ripen.