The Joys of Disclosure on The Cinema Scribe
Tune in for the latest Cinema Scribe segment on Bring Me 2 Life Radio, beginning Tuesday June 23, 2 pm ET.
This Week in Movies with Meaning
Reviews of "Disclosure Day," "Father Mother Sister Brother" and "Tuner" are all in the latest Movies with Meaning post on the web site of The Good Radio Network.
‘Disclosure Day’ delivers revelations on multiple levels
“Disclosure” can be an awfully loaded word, one that carries connotations on multiple levels, both big and small, but nearly always with personally meaningful ramifications. However, sometimes those implications may be so subtle that they’re not easy to spot, grasp or understand, even though that does not diminish their importance. It’s also interesting to note how they’re frequently revealed simultaneously, heightening their impact, especially if they’re considered in tandem with one another, a circumstance that may be hard to ignore. Such are the dynamics at work in the latest offering from iconic filmmaker Steven Spielberg, “Disclosure Day,” handily the director’s best picture in years.
Three documentaries about remarkable women
At a time when women have come under increasing infringement on their rights and their ability to be themselves, it’s encouraging to see filmmakers rising to the occasion to counter those misguided initiatives, to make it clear that they have much to offer and should not be prevented from doing so. Those contributions take various forms, and they’re now being showcased in three excellent new documentaries, all available for streaming online.
‘Origin’ questions the validity of entrenched beliefs
Adjusting to new outlooks that override established beliefs can be difficult for some of us. We’ve become so entrenched in certain ways of thinking that it’s hard to embrace new ones. We may not understand the revised concepts, either because they’re too radical or esoteric for us to grasp or because they’re not explained in easily comprehensible ways, perhaps too vague or too overly intellectualized. Or we may simply be unwilling to adopt such new thoughts because they make us feel uncomfortable. But, then, there are also those who take to them readily, either out of curiosity or an undeniably instinctual awareness.
‘Indiana Jones’ dials up his destiny one last time
All things eventually come to an end, whether we’re ready for it or not. We may not like what we see, either, especially if we’re troubled by what’s on the horizon. We might even feel like there’s more that we could or should have done to forestall what’s unfolding while we had the chance, opportunities that slipped through our fingers and are unlikely to come again. But sometimes destiny has a way of intervening, giving us another unexpected shot at realizing our aspirations and perhaps even making a meaningful difference.
‘The Living Record of Our Memory’ validates an art form’s innate value
Imagine if there were no “Casablanca” (1942). No “Jaws” (1975). No “2001: A Space Odyssey” (1968), no “Avatar” (2009), no “Wizard of Oz” (1939). The prospect is unthinkable, even to the most casual moviegoer (imagine what that would mean for an avid cinephile). That’s what we’d face if no concerted effort were made to preserve these films for posterity.
My 2023 Oscar Scorecard
So how did I do? I came close on my top six picks, calling five of them correctly and missing out on one (even if I didn’t completely agree with the results of the victors). Here are the details
Who Will Win the 2023 Oscars?
It’s that time of year again – time for my predictions of the winners at the upcoming annual Academy Awards. While the mixed results that arose during the early part of this year’s awards season made it difficult to identify potential frontrunners, the picture has become much clearer in recent weeks
A Filmmaker’s Odyssey on The Cinema Scribe
Tune in for the latest Cinema Scribe segment on Bring Me 2 Life Radio, beginning Tuesday December 1