Frank B.

  • Movie Mondays: Coming-of-age films with an edge

    I recently saw Mud (2013) – easily one of the best movies of the year, so far – and was struck by its multiple layers. It’s a thriller that stars Matthew McConaughey in the title role as a fugitive living on a remote island, hiding from bounty hunters and pining for the love of his life,… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: Films about the Fourth Estate

    This month, two highly anticipated TV series – Aaron Sorkin’s The Newsroom and  House of Cards, the critically acclaimed Netflix original series – are available on DVD. Both shows deal with journalists and the power of the news media, a topic that was the subject of three smart, classic award-winning films. His Girl Friday (1940), based on… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: (Good) movies I never want to see again

    Every once in a while a movie comes along that I appreciate and admire, but don’t “like.” They are provocative and disturbing. I’m glad I saw these, but for me, once was enough. Kids (1995), written by then 19-year-old Harmony Korine (director of Spring Breakers), follows Telly (Leo Fitzpatrick), a reckless teenager whose mission is to… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: Where are the women directors?

    The film at SIFF’s closing night gala this year is The Bling Ring, directed by Sofia Coppola. I’ve known that women have been underrepresented as filmmakers, but when I stumbled upon this infographic recently, it was eye-opening: women directors have been nominated for an Oscar only 4 times in 85 years (Lina Wertmuller’s Seven Beauties, Jane Campion’s The Piano,… Continue reading

  • Documentaries from SIFFs gone by

    As I pore over the hundreds of screenings at the Seattle International Film Festival every year, I find myself focusing on two categories – documentaries and Scandinavian films. Here are some of my favorite documentaries from SIFFs gone by. Every Little Step is about the making of “A Chorus Line” on Broadway. Yes, it’s about actors… Continue reading

  • Movies about siblings

    Some of the most important – and enduring – relationships in our lives are those with our siblings. With emotions from petty to profound, our siblings connect us with our past as well as treading the pathways into the future. These emotions are on full display in Seattle filmmaker Lynn Shelton’s Your Sister’s Sister, which… Continue reading