Currently browsing the "Marlon Brando" tag.

Review: Truman & Tennessee: An Intimate Conversation

Tennessee Williams and Truman Capote were two of mid-20th century America’s greatest writers. They were also close friends, though at times not so close. This new documentary examines that friendship, their celebrity, and their works. And it is told entirely in their own words, cutting between TV talk show appearances and clips from their famous movie adaptations, alongside a well-curated selection of their writings being read by actors Jim Parsons (“The Big Bang Theory”) as Capote and Zachary Quinto (Star Trek) as Williams. It’s a clever and engaging way to get to know these two geniuses.

Review: Rita Moreno: Just A Girl Who Decided To Go For It

EGOT*. If you know what that is, you may also be aware of Rita Moreno’s body of work. This film about her is a fairly straightforward tribute documentary, with talking heads and film clips, but the woman who emerges is so impressive. At the ripe old age of 89 (87 in the film), she’s still going strong, still fighting for representation, still acting and being her feisty self. But what Rita Moreno: Just A Girl Who Decided To Go For It does beyond going over her extraordinary career in film, and stage, and television, is shine a bright light on the obstacles put in her way at every single step and her indomitable passion to be seen. I knew her name and have seen some of her work, but listening to her talk candidly about her life gave me a whole other level of appreciation for her.

Full Frame Documentary Film Festival 2015

Film festivals are a lot of fun, but kind of exhausting, too. I headed to Durham, NC last weekend for the Full Frame Festival, one of the premier documentary festivals in the country. The program included world premieres, some big time invited docs, and some thematic selections. Now in its 18th year, I kind of wish I’d attend this festival years ago, before it got so big and popular and crowded. I was only able to fit in eleven films in four days, and a few that I really was looking forward to seeing were sold out before I even had a chance to select tickets, but I was happy I got to see most of what I did. And here are my minireviews!