http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/movies.shtml Reviews of independent and wide-release films written by lead critic Joe Lozito and his merry band of crackerjack movie reviewers. Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:32:13 PST en-us http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/The-Men-Who-Stare-at-Goats.shtml Reviews A funny first half hour becomes aimless and painful to watch in this poor imitation of a Coen Brothers film. ]]> Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:31:36 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/The-Men-Who-Stare-at-Goats.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Precious-Based-on-the-Novel-Push-by-Sapphire.shtml Reviews "It's just another day for you and me in paradise," according to Phil Collins. "Precious" puts an exclamation point at the end of that sentence. ]]> Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:50:00 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Precious-Based-on-the-Novel-Push-by-Sapphire.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/The-Fourth-Kind.shtml Reviews Director Olatunde Osunsanmi's teasingly effective thriller aims to do for alien abduction what "Paranomal Activity" did for hauntings. ]]> Thu, 05 Nov 2009 09:43:50 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/The-Fourth-Kind.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/A-Christmas-Carol.shtml Reviews If you need another version of the Dickens holiday classic, featuring a multitasking Jim Carrey and improved but typically stiff motion-capture animation, this is the movie for you. ]]> Thu, 05 Nov 2009 09:40:54 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/A-Christmas-Carol.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Pirate-Radio.shtml Reviews Musically, "Pirate Radio" is a pop rock lover's dream. Too bad that cinematically it's shipwrecked. ]]> Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:43:00 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Pirate-Radio.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Michael-Jackson-s-This-Is-It.shtml Reviews An up-close glimpse of a performer rediscovering his creative fire, Kenny Ortega's often mesmerizing account of Michael Jackson's final months of song and dance is a portrait of the artist as an older man. ]]> Wed, 28 Oct 2009 08:41:17 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Michael-Jackson-s-This-Is-It.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Amelia.shtml Reviews Stiff biopic of the legendary flier skims the surface of her achievements but never quite takes off. ]]> Thu, 22 Oct 2009 22:50:50 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Amelia.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Cirque-du-Freak-The-Vampire-s-Assistant.shtml Reviews Suddenly, death by bloody neck doesn't seem so unappealing. ]]> Thu, 22 Oct 2009 16:36:00 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Cirque-du-Freak-The-Vampire-s-Assistant.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Antichrist.shtml Reviews If Luis Bunuel directed an unholy union of "Scenes from a Marriage" and "Friday the 13th", the resulting beast would bare some resemblance to Lars von Trier's "Antichrist". ]]> Thu, 22 Oct 2009 08:20:00 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Antichrist.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Untitled.shtml Reviews It's not surprising that this disjointed mess about an avant-garde musician and his equally annoying art gallery friend is left "Untitled". ]]> Thu, 22 Oct 2009 08:06:03 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Untitled.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/New-York-I-Love-You.shtml Reviews Tepid, two-dimensional and decidedly homogenous, this Big Apple-based follow-up to "Paris je t'aime" is about as representative of the New York experience as a Statue of Liberty snow globe. And as romantic. ]]> Wed, 21 Oct 2009 16:32:24 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/New-York-I-Love-You.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/The-Stepfather.shtml Reviews By-the-numbers remake covers well-trodden ground and provides a few entertaining moments for viewers who aren't looking for anything too challenging. ]]> Sat, 17 Oct 2009 18:12:27 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/The-Stepfather.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Afghan-Star.shtml Reviews Documentary of an "American Idol"-type show in Afghanistan is sometimes slow but never dull because the stakes are far higher there than they are here. ]]> Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:32:07 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Afghan-Star.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Where-the-Wild-Things-Are.shtml Reviews Spike Jonze's beautifully audacious and sadly flawed film brings Maurice Sendak's much-beloved, nine-sentence children's story to vivid, CGI-enhanced life. If only he had kept it a short story. ]]> Fri, 16 Oct 2009 00:07:59 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Where-the-Wild-Things-Are.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Mary-and-Max.shtml Reviews Two lost souls find a reason to live in this poignant, charming, depressing and hysterical claymation presentation. ]]> Thu, 15 Oct 2009 12:31:14 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Mary-and-Max.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/An-Education.shtml Reviews Duty and desire face off in "An Education," the wonderfully stylish and seductive film by director Lone Scherfig. ]]> Fri, 09 Oct 2009 10:55:00 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/An-Education.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Trucker.shtml Reviews Whoring, drinking trucker-chick's young son reappears in her life in this formulaic, predictable mess. ]]> Thu, 08 Oct 2009 09:05:30 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Trucker.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Couples-Retreat.shtml Reviews On the surface, "Couples Retreat" appears to be a quickly stitched together comedy that places a bunch of likable actors in a tropical setting for some cheap laughs. And that's exactly what it is. ]]> Thu, 08 Oct 2009 09:00:16 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Couples-Retreat.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Brief-Interviews-with-Hideous-Men.shtml Reviews John Krasinski's directorial debut feels more like an acting exercise than a movie - like walking into a group therapy session for monologists. ]]> Sun, 04 Oct 2009 23:37:33 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Brief-Interviews-with-Hideous-Men.shtml http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Whip-It.shtml Reviews Drew Barrymore has left her fingerprints all over the film, which means you'll want to hug it and smack it simultaneously. ]]> Thu, 01 Oct 2009 17:33:00 PST http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Whip-It.shtml