Brent Marchant, Author at Brent Marchant

‘The Death of Stalin’ skewers unrestrained ambition

“The Death of Stalin” (2017 production, 2018 release). Cast: Steve Buscemi, Jeffrey Tambor, Andrea Riseborough, Michael Palin, Simon Russell Beale, Adrian McLoughlin, Jason Isaacs, Paddy Considine, Olga Kurylenko, Dermot Crowley, Paul Whitehouse, Paul Chahidi, Rupert Friend, Tom Brooke, Karl Johnson, Diana Quick, Gerald Lepkowski. Director: Armando Iannucci. Writers: Armando Iannucci, David Schneider, Ian Martin and Peter Fellows. Original Screenplay: Fabien Nury. Comic Book Source Material: Fabien Nury and Thierry Robin, The Death of Stalin. Web site. Trailer. When opportunity knocks, it may be tempting to pursue it with all the gusto we can muster. The rewards awaiting us can be incalculable. But what if such a quest prompts us to engage in questionable, almost Machiavellian behavior? Is the prize still [...]

Brent Marchant2018-05-13T01:44:51-05:00March 30th, 2018|Comedy, Conscious Creation, Movie Reviews|

‘A Wrinkle in Time’ illustrates how to grow into ourselves

“A Wrinkle in Time” (2018). Cast: Storm Reid, Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Mindy Kaling, Chris Pine, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Levi Miller, Deric McCabe, Zach Galifinakis, Michael Peña, André Holland, Rowa Blanchard, David Oyelowo, Daniel MacPherson, Conrad Roberts, Yvette Cason, Will McCormack, Bellamy Young, Lyric Wilson. Director: Ava DuVernay. Screenplay: Jennifer Lee and Jeff Stockwell. Book: Madeleine L’Engle, A Wrinkle in Time. Web site. Trailer. Life’s challenges sometimes appear daunting, especially to those of us still growing into our maturity. We may see life as unfair and insurmountable, conditions that lead to frustration and behaviors that ultimately don’t adequately prepare us for what lies ahead. But this doesn’t mean we should just roll over in the face of these circumstances; we can [...]

Brent Marchant2018-05-08T21:04:29-05:00March 28th, 2018|Conscious Creation, Movie Reviews, Sci-Fi|

This Week in Movies with Meaning

Reviews of "Keep the Change" and "A Dangerous Idea: Eugenics, Genetics and the American Dream," as well as a radio show preview, are all in the latest Movies with Meaning post on the web site of The Good Media Network, available by clicking here.

Brent Marchant2018-05-02T07:52:45-05:00March 27th, 2018|Announcements, Movie Reviews, Web Posts|

Tell Me Your Story

Looking for something different to do this weekend? How about a story -- my story, that is. Hear it on "Tell Me Your Story" with host Richard Dugan at 10 am ET, Sunday March 25, by clicking here, or catch the show later on the podcast. We'll discuss my latest book, Third Real: Conscious Creation Goes Back to the Movies, as well as how film reflects the principles of this empowering and inspiring philosophy. Tune in and enjoy!

Brent Marchant2018-04-25T21:34:01-05:00March 25th, 2018|Announcements, Conscious Creation, Media Appearances|

This Week in Movies with Meaning

Reviews of "A Wrinkle in Time" and "The Death of Stalin," as well as two radio show previews, are all in the latest Movies with Meaning post on the web site of The Good Media Network, available by clicking here.

Brent Marchant2018-04-17T23:47:19-05:00March 21st, 2018|Announcements, Movie Discussion, Web Posts|

Tune in for The Cinema Scribe

Tune in for the latest Cinema Scribe segment on Bring Me 2 Life Radio, tomorrow, March 21, at 12:45 pm ET, available by clicking here. And, if you don't hear it live, catch it later on demand!

Brent Marchant2018-04-16T12:53:19-05:00March 20th, 2018|Announcements, Drama, Media Appearances, Movie Reviews|

‘A Quiet Passion’ surveys the evolution of an artist’s worldview

“A Quiet Passion” (2017). Cast: Cynthia Nixon, Keith Carradine, Jennifer Ehle, Catherine Bailey, Duncan Duff, Emma Bell, Rose Williams, Benjamin Wainwright, Joanna Bacon, Annette Badland, Jodhi May, Eric Loren, Simone Milsdochter, Trevor Cooper, Stefan Menaul, Sara Louise Vertongen, Noémie Schellens. Director: Terence Davies. Screenplay: Terence Davies. Web site. Trailer. Geniuses are often misunderstood during their lifetimes. Their eccentricities and alternative viewpoints frequently draw criticisms – sometimes even ostracism – from contemporaries who fail (or refuse) to understand and appreciate them for what they are. In later times, their contributions to humanity often seem patently (and obviously) brilliant. But, in getting to that point, we must first examine how they arrived at their insights, assessing the influences that helped to make [...]

Brent Marchant2018-05-02T08:59:58-05:00March 12th, 2018|Conscious Creation, Drama, Movie Reviews|

‘Loveless’ exposes the perils of self-absorption

“Loveless” (“Nelyubov”) (2017). Cast: Maryana Spivak, Aleksey Rozin, Matvey Novikov, Marina Vasileva, Andris Keyshs, Aleksey Fateev, Nataliya Potapova, Artyom Zhigulin, Aleksandr Sergeev. Director: Andrey Zvyagintsev. Screenplay: Oleg Negin and Andrey Zvyagintsev. Web site. Trailer. How we treat those close to us often speaks volumes about how we care about others in the wider world, even if the parallels aren’t patently obvious. The compassion, caring and courtesy – or lack thereof – that we show them is quite telling, even if we can’t or don’t want to see it for ourselves. Whether such concerted attentiveness or deliberate slights occur on an individual or collective scale, their presence and expression are nevertheless undeniable, as seen in the troubling new Russian drama, “Loveless” [...]

Brent Marchant2018-04-20T07:30:59-05:00March 12th, 2018|Conscious Creation, Drama, Movie Reviews|

‘The Party’ brings us face to face with our innate selves

“The Party” (2017 production, 2018 release). Cast: Patricia Clarkson, Bruno Ganz, Cherry Jones, Emily Mortimer, Cillian Murphy, Kristin Scott Thomas, Timothy Spall. Director: Sally Potter. Screenplay: Sally Potter. Web site. Trailer. Celebrations are supposed to be festive occasions, times for us to enjoy ourselves and recognize the accomplishments of others. They’re a good time to let our hair down, to open ourselves up to others and, one would hope, to have a good time. But sometimes we might expose our inner selves a little too much at these events, revealing more than we originally may have planned. So it is for the guests at the darkly satirical new comedy of ill manners, “The Party.” When Janet (Kristin Scott Thomas), a [...]

Brent Marchant2018-03-31T00:46:33-05:00March 9th, 2018|Comedy, Conscious Creation, Movie Reviews|

‘Annihilation’ challenges our notions of existence

“Annihilation” (2018), Cast: Natalie Portman, Oscar Isaac, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gina Rodriguez, Tessa Thompson, Tuva Novotny, Benedict Wong, David Gyasi. Director: Alex Garland. Screenplay: Alex Garland. Book: Jeff VanderMeer, Annihilation. Web site. Trailer. Many of us probably like to believe that we have reality all figured out, that we know how it works and how the process of its unfolding takes place. But do we? Are we sure that the rules we believe apply are true across the board, in all situations and permutations? And what happens if something comes along that challenges those seemingly rock-solid assumptions? How do we explain these anomalies? What’s more, can we cope with such puzzling, unexplained phenomena, particularly if they significantly differ from our [...]

Brent Marchant2018-03-30T00:29:11-05:00March 9th, 2018|Conscious Creation, Movie Reviews, Sci-Fi|

About Brent Marchant