A misplaced package forms the central conflict of “Handle With Care,” a new romantic comedy from writer Jason Odell Williams about love, communication, fate, and the importance of GPS-enabled tracking devices. It is currently receiving its off-Broadway premiere at the JCC Centerstage. The play opens in a motel room in Goodview, Virginia, on Christmas Eve, […]
Adam Lubitow
Film critic for CITY Newspaper, writer, iced coffee addict, and dinosaur enthusiast.
Posted inMovies
MOVIE REVIEW: “Save the Date”
With the film market more competitive than ever, indie film producers are increasingly turning to on-demand services from satellite and cable providers (like Time Warner), and web-based companies like iTunes and Amazon, as alternative methods of distribution. This can mean either the films show up ahead of their release in theaters (called an “ultra” release), […]
Posted inMovies
MOVIE REVIEW: “The Other Son”
Generally speaking, there are three distinct types of fantasy stories. The most blatant are the tales that take place entirely in a make-believe world filled with fantastical sights and populated by inhuman beings that could never exist in reality. Then there are the stories set in the real world but which add extraordinary elements like […]
Posted inMovies
MOVIE REVIEW: “Scrooge & Marley”
Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” is already one of the most popular fantasy tales of all time, with countless cinematic adaptations — everyone from Patrick Stewart to Vanessa Williams has filled the miserly shoes of Ebenezer (or Ebony) Scrooge — so any new variation on the tale has to prove its worth by bringing something […]
Posted inMovies
MOVIE REVIEW: “Life of Pi”
One of the most talented filmmakers working today, Ang Lee has had a fascinating career. While most directors of his skill usually settle into a distinct aesthetic, Lee remains something of a chameleon, jumping genres and subject matter, apparently content to take on whatever stories happen to capture his interest. From “Sense & Sensibility” to […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
THEATER REVIEW: “Motherhood the Musical”
There are certain theater shows that you decide to see because you want to learn, to be challenged, or surprised or moved in some way. Other shows you see because you need a pleasant, inoffensive entertainment to which you can take your grandmother that won’t rile her up too much. The forgettable “Motherhood the Musical,” […]
Posted inSpecial Sections
From sleigh ride to slay ride
There’s no surer sign that the holiday season is upon us than the inescapable barrage of popular Christmas music saturating the airwaves. The worst part isn’t that most of the songs sound the same (artists often seem afraid to mess with what’s already proven successful), but that the end product inevitably feels…safe. And boring. Once […]
Posted inMovies
MOVIE REVIEW: “Wreck-It Ralph”
By now, at least one generation of children will have grown up in a world where characters like Pac-Man, Mario, and Sonic the Hedgehog are just as iconic and beloved as Mickey Mouse was to their parents and grandparents. So in a way it’s rather fitting that Disney is the studio to bring a film […]
Posted inMovies
MOVIE REVIEW: “The Imposter”
In 1994, 13-year-old Nicholas Barclay disappeared without a trace while out playing basketball in his hometown of San Antonio, Texas. More than three years passed — just long enough for Nicholas’ family to abandon all hope of ever finding him alive — and then, in October of 1997, they received a phone call from the […]
Posted inMovies
MOVIE REVIEW: “You’ve Been Trumped”
With Donald Trump making headlines this week, the Dryden’s screening of Anthony Baxter’s documentary, “You’ve Been Trumped,” couldn’t be more timely. Chronicling the 2010 battle of wills between the billionaire tycoon and residents of the small Scottish coastal community of Aberdeenshire, which started after Trump announced plans to build a golf resort atop the area’s […]
Posted inMovies
MOVIE REVIEW: “Chasing Mavericks”
Another film based around the subject of mere mortals engaged in an epic battle against an enormous, cold, and uncaring force of nature, “Chasing Mavericks” chronicles the life of legendary surfer Jay Moriarty. What results is basically “The Karate Kid,” with surfing instead of martial arts – complete with a role for Elisabeth Shue (though […]
