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In the hardscrabble backhills of the Missouri Ozarks, a teenage girl must track down the father whose disappearance has imperiled the lives of her mother and siblings. Based on the novel by Daniel Woodrell, Debra Granik’s third feature is outstanding for it’s frank depiction of rural poverty and the iron grip of methamphetamine culture. Superbly [...]

If you don’t mind the occasional dry patch, life as a freelancer can lead you to some pretty wonderful places. Last month I had the privilege of doing another stint as a script supervisor on the production of a demo for “Startide Rising.” Based on the first book of David Brin’s “Uplift Universe” trilogy, it [...]

If I hadn’t been watching the Independent Spirit Awards on the night before this year’s Oscar ceremony, I would likely never have heard of “Starting Out in the Evening,” Andrew Wagner’s rich and beautifully realized film about the loves of an aging writer. Leonard Schiller (Frank Langella) is a once-promising artist racing against time to [...]

Last month I was approached by Actor/Producer Robert Nolan Clark and Production Coordinator Mike Ketcher to work as a Script Supervisor on a short feature called “Capdance.” Over the weekend, I joined a small army of professionals, volunteers and supporters for two 12-hour days of shooting. While the call times were insane – 12:01 AM [...]

You may argue with his marshalling of the facts and cringe at the thought of what he’s proposing, but Michael Moore’s Sicko is one exceptional piece of documentary filmmaking. In Sicko, Moore turns his attention to the state of America’s healthcare system. Unsurprisingly, he finds it dominated by greedy HMO’s and insurance companies. Even less [...]

While many panic-stricken viewers probably checked their television sets to see if they had lost their picture, I thought the closing moment of the final episode of “The Sopranos” was a fitting end to a series that always plumbed the depths of ambiguity. Who were those guys who walked into the restaurant? Wiseguys sent to [...]

Last Friday, I finally had the opportunity to see Philip Groning’s 2005 documentary about life in the Carthusian monastery of Grande Chartreuse, nestled high in the French Alps. According to the director, 16 years passed between his proposal to make the film and the community’s acceptance of the project – the bat of an eye [...]

From 1969 until the mid-1970′s, northern Calfornia was terrorized by a killer who taunted investigators and used the media to claim responsibility for his own crimes as well as murders he could not have committed. He called himself “Zodiac” and his attacks and communications were erratic. While suspicion ultimately fell on a drifter and convict [...]

Although I usually supress a yawn or two, watching the Academy Awards program is a guilty pleasure. This year’s show kept me on the sofa for nearly four hours. Sweet and quirky Ellen DeGeneres did a commendable job as host. With the exception of a gag involving Al Gore getting of the orchestral “hook” just [...]

I first became aware of In Cold Blood with the release of Richard Brooks’ 1967 film. I couldn’t have been more than 13 years old. It would be a few more years until I saw the CBS Television premier but I was really impressed with the movie’s documentary style and the performance of Robert Blake [...]