Year: 2021

Reviews of “Another Round,” “The Life Ahead” and “The Outside Story,” as well as a podcast preview, are all in the latest Movies with Meaning post on the web site of The Good Media Network, available by clicking here ...

“The Life Ahead” (“La vita davanti a sé”)(2020). Cast: Sophia Loren, Ibrahima Gueye, Renato Carpentieri, Iosif Diego Pirvu, Massimiliano Rossi, Abril Zamora, Babak Karimi, Malich Cissé, Simone Surico, Costanta Fana Pirvu. Director: Edoardo Ponti. Screenplay: Edoardo Ponti, Ugo Chiti and Fabio Natale. Book: Romain Gary, The Life Before Us (La vie devant soi). Web site. Trailer. Creating the life we want can prove challenging. The same can be said for creating the life we need, but, given the nature of these circumstances, we often feel motivated to work toward achieving it more diligently. And, in the process, we frequently find that the effort is more than worth it, providing us with benefits beyond what we dreamed possible. So it is for a seemingly unlikely duo in the heartwarming new Italian domestic drama, “The Life Ahead” (“La vita davanti a sé”). When Italian social services are charged with finding a home for 12-year-old Momo (Ibrahima Gueye), an orphaned Senegalese immigrant living on the streets of the seacoast city of Bari, officials place him in the care of an aging physician, Dr. Coen (Renato Carpentieri). It’s a responsibility that the kindly old doctor is not really up to handling, in large part ...

“Another Round” (“Druk”) (2020). Cast: Mads Mikkelsen, Thomas Bo Larsen, Magnus Millang, Lars Ranthe, Maria Bonnevie, Helene Reingaard Neumann, Susse Wold, Magnus Sjørup, Silas Cornelius Van, Albert Rudbeck Lindhardt, Fredrik W. Rasmussen, Aya Grann, Aksel Vedsegaard. Director: Thomas Vinterberg. Screenplay: Thomas Vinterberg and Tobias Lindholm. Web site. Trailer. Is it possible that something can be harnessed for good, on the one hand, and for just the opposite, on the other? If we put our mind to it, we can probably think of many examples. Fire, for instance, can be used for cooking and heating when employed judiciously. At the same time, though, it could also be a tool for arsonists. Similarly, there are countless instances where knives can serve useful purposes and many others where they can wreak havoc. Some would contend that nuclear energy can be both beneficial and destructive, depending on how it’s used. And on and on it goes for numerous other devices, substances and technologies. So, in light of the foregoing, is it possible to look upon alcohol use in a comparable way? Are there indeed two sides to the liquor coin? That’s what four old friends want to find out in the unconventional saga of ...

Tune in for the latest Cinema Scribe segment on Bring Me 2 Life Radio, Tuesday, January 12, at 2 pm ET, by clicking here. https://www.spreaker.com/show/thecinemascribe. And, if you don’t hear the show live, catch it later on demand, now available on Sound Cloud and Amazon! ...

Reviews of “The Dark Divide,” “Driveways” and “The Weasel’s Tale” are all in the latest Movies with Meaning post on the web site of The Good Media Network, available by clicking here ...

“Driveways” (2019 production, 2020 release). Cast: Lucas Jaye, Hong Chau, Brian Dennehy, Christine Ebersole, Jerry Adler, Stan Carp, Bill Buell, Sophia DiStefano, Jeter Rivera, Jack Caleb, James DiGiacomo, Robyn Payne, Samantha Jones, Fernando Mateo Jr. Director: Andrew Ahn. Screenplay: Hannah Bos and Paul Thureen. Web site. Trailer. When we’re stuck in a rut, it feels like change will never come. In severe cases, it’s as if we’re at the bottom of a deep pit from which escape is unimaginable. But circumstances need not remain that way, and making adjustments doesn’t have to be traumatic – provided we give ourselves permission to allow it. Such is the challenge brought up for review in the gentle domestic drama, “Driveways.” When the older sister of middle-aged single mother Kathy (Hong Chau) passes away, she’s forced into traveling out of town with her eight-year-old son, Cody (Lucas Jaye), to clear out her sibling’s home to get it ready for sale. The two sisters haven’t been close since childhood, so Kathy knows little about the adult sibling she hasn’t seen in years. Consequently, taking on such a task for a virtual stranger is not something she’s especially looking forward to. And that dread becomes all ...