Aziz Ansari’s creative license takes on many forms this season: an ode to Fellini, long uninterrupted long film takes, character-mixing and disjointed storylines, and a shift in the second half of the season toward a focused, single plotline. Well-acted, Dev (Ansari) is convincing as a man torn between doing the right thing, versus what he feels he wants. Worth the marathon.
Thumbs Up 👍
Sometimes a film buckles under the weight of the story, and as a Cary Fukunaga fan, I really wanted to like Beasts of No Nation, but it was slow, about 45 minutes too long, and lacked the “gripping” scenes it was touted to have. Amid the Terrence Malick-like auteurism, It's worth watching for awareness, as it tells of a rising rebel faction in an unnamed war-torn African country, so there’s that. Otherwise, Idris Elba saves the film as a lecherous and militaristic leader, but overall it just fails to absorb. Meh 😐
Read MoreThe incredible story of identical twin sisters separated at birth, adopted by two different families across the world, only to learn of each other by a chance sighting in a YouTube video. More astounding is the twins' intrinsic similarity, despite their cross-cultural backgrounds; a zero-ing in on the concept of "nature vs nurture." A beautiful, emotional ride and a top documentary of the year. Thumbs Up 👍
Read More
