NUVO: Film

Movie review: Star Trek Into Darkness

Ed Johnson-Ott — Tue, 21 May 2013 16:00:00 -0400

The new Star Trek film is fun and full of action but doesn't quite reward critical analysis. Fair warning that Ed's review reveals major plot points from the movie. by Ed Johnson-Ott SPOILER ALERT: THE FOLLOWING REVEALS MAJOR PLOT POINTS FROM THE MOVIE. For instance, the villain is Khan.…

Movie review: The Great Gatsby

Ed Johnson-Ott — Wed, 15 May 2013 17:15:00 -0400

Baz Luhrmann's Gatsby is faithful but phony, filmed in Annoy-o-Vision with all the spatial sophistication of your average View-Master reel. by Ed Johnson-Ott When the Baz Luhrmann (Moulin Rouge) version of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby opened Friday, the movie didn't simply appear on the cineplex screens - it exploded through the theater walls like the Kool-Aid mascot - that giant, destructive glass pitcher lummox with a smile permanently affixed to its icy face. Luhrmann's take on the novel is filmed in Annoy-a-Vision, an everything-and-the-kitchen-sink approach where the filmmaker ladles excess on glitz on clutter on razzmatazz, covers the whole thing in jimmies and glitter and then uses his camera to whoosh from here to there because God forbid anyone has to wait even a whole instant for their visual gratification.…

Movie review: Killer Joe

Ed Johnson-Ott — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 11:50:00 -0400

Alongside Emile Hirsch, Matthew McConaughey kills as the title character in Killer Joe, a superbly violent and twisted film—in the best possible way. by Ed Johnson-Ott Fans of ultra-violence, twisted sexuality and hiccups of creep show humor should see Killer Joe during its initial theatrical run, so you can tell your friends at viewing parties and midnight screenings in years to come how mainstream audiences reacted to the assault. I enjoyed the film: the propulsive flow; the depraved, lurid tone; the unapologetic wallowing in exploitative nudity (mostly female) and confrontations that build to bloody thwacks, the ugly relationships and the overwhelmingly bad attitude.…

Movie review: Robot & Frank

Ed Johnson-Ott — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 11:39:00 -0400

Frank Langella shines, though the storyline leaves much to be desired. by Ed Johnson-Ott Frank Langella gives one of the best performances of his career in Robot & Frank, a beguiling little movie about aging, loneliness and larceny. Frank (Langella) lives alone and suffers from memory problems.…

Remembering Jane Rulon

Paul F. P. Pogue — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 12:20:00 -0400

A dashing presence on the local arts scene, Rulon was an adept problem-solver who helped filmmakers realize their visions as head of the Indiana Film Commission. by Paul F. P. Pogue As head of the Indiana Film Commission from 1992 to 2005, Jane Rulon was a vital part of the city’s cultural scene during a period of tremendous growth. She was a tireless mover and shaker behind the scenes, with an equally vivid public face.…

Indy Film Fest: Saturday morning cartoons

Maxwell Cothrel — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 12:20:00 -0400

It’s been years since I was awake early enough to catch any Saturday morning cartoons. But I threw a couple spoonfuls of sugar into my all-natural, healthy-tasting cereal and headed off to the sanctuary of the Earth House Collective to catch an Indy Film Fest’s program featuring an eclectic sampling of animated shorts.…

Reliving the days of mid-level hair metal

Marc D. Allan — Fri, 20 Jul 2012 11:50:00 -0400

'Nova Rex: It Ain't Easy Being Cheesy,' premiering early Saturday morning on the Documentary Channel, tells of an Indiana band that worked local stages for 15 years. by Marc D. Allan Kenny Wilkerson isn’t sorry for party rocking. For about 15 years starting in the early ’80s, the Whiteland native played bass in Nova Rex, a hard-working hair-metal band that had a lot of fun and built a local following but couldn’t break out of Indiana.…

We Are City doc series launches at IMA

Abby Wood — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 14:24:00 -0500

The minds behind the We Are City film series — which kicks off Thursday at the IMA — hope to spark foster active discussion on urban life via three documentaries.

“We need constant creative effort to improve the way life is lived in the Circle City.…

'Star Wars' remade with fans' 15-second clips

Tristan Schmid — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:45:00 -0500

Last week we posted a video of dogs barking the Star Wars "Imperial March." In new Star Wars saga-related developments, the crowdsourced Star Wars Uncut movie debuted this weekend on YouTube.

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Slideshow: Naptown Rock Radio Wars

Ja'Taun Durden — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:17:00 -0500

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Review: 'Eames: The Architect and the Painter'

Marc Allan — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 14:41:00 -0500

Although Eames: The Architect and the Painter played on TV in December as part of PBS’ American Masters series, you’re better off seeing it in a theater. This film deserves to be watched with minimal distractions so you can concentrate on the shapes, colors and imagery.…

New 'The Hobbit,' 'Dark Knight' previews

Tristan Schmid — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 17:15:00 -0500

The trailers for Peter Jackson's The Hobbit and the next installment of the Dark Knight saga have been released.

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AnC Films' sex ed doc nearly complete

Paul F. P. Pogue — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 14:19:00 -0500

Our old friends at AnC Films, producers of such short films as Embolism, Moustache, Him Her Roland - and the most absolutely bonkers Christmas cards you will ever see - are seeking some help from the moviegoing public to take their most ambitious project across the finish line.

They boast an impressive resume of shorts and mid-length projects, but the documentary Science, Sex and the Ladies is the first full-length project from Barnaby Aaron, Trisha Borowicz and Charlie Borowicz.…

American Masters: Woody Allen

Marc Allan — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 14:30:00 -0500

Woody Allen: American Masters
9 p.m., Nov. 20 and 21
WFYI (Channel 20)

I’d like to thank Woody Allen someday. For Annie Hall and Manhattan, The Purple Rose of Cairo, Broadway Danny Rose and Zelig, Crimes and Misdemeanors, Match Point and Midnight in Paris.…

Heartland reviews: Take two

NUVO Editors — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 16:45:00 -0400

Our second batch of Heartland reviews includes some excellent documentaries and an adorable narrative feature about nervous French people falling in love. Check out our first round of reviews here.…

Ed reviews 'Fright Night'

Ed Johnson-Ott — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 08:01:00 -0400

Craig Gillespie's new version of the 1985 horror flick stars Colin Farrell and makes for a fun, though occasionally frustrating, viewing experience. by Ed Johnson-Ott Rated R, 3.5 stars I liked the original 1985 Fright Night and I like Craig Gillespie's new version. Both films have parts that are very well done and other parts that are simply ... done.…

Slideshow: IndyFilmFest Closing Night 2011

Stacy Kagiwada — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 15:15:00 -0400

The closing night of the 2011 Indianapolis International Film Festival was held at the IMA. After remarks from IFF President Craig Mince, Mayor Greg Ballard, and Festival Managing Director Lisa Trifone, there was a screening of the Closing Night Feature These Amazing Shadows, a documentary about the National Film Registry.…

Slideshow: IndyFilmFest Agio After-Party

Stacy Kagiwada — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 15:05:00 -0400

The 2011 Indianapolis International Film Festival has officially come to a close, after a 10-day festival. There were screenings of movies from across the world, with a plethora of films and workshops to attend.…

Slideshow: Opening night at IndyFilmFest

Jim Poyser — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 12:32:00 -0400

The opening night of the Indianapolis International Film Festival was held at the Toby Theatre at the IMA. After remarks from IFF President and COO Craig Mince, Festival Managing Director Lisa Trifone and the IMA's Anne Laker, we were treated to a screening of Mark Cahill's Another Earth, a compelling film about loss and love, told through a fascinating science-fiction-y point of view.…

First-ever Hendricks County Film Festival

Caroline Thomas — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 08:00:00 -0400

This Saturday, April 30, the inaugural Hendricks County Film Festival will be unveiled at the Rave Motion Pictures in Plainfield’s Metropolis Mall. This is a one-day event, including three separate screenings.…

Artcraft Theater's Shorts In January

Derrick Carnes — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 14:00:00 -0500

Franklin’s Artcraft Theater, one of Indiana’s oldest picture-show gems, will soon be spinning its reels in the name of local film. On Saturday, Jan. 29, the historic theater will host Shorts In January, a back-to-back screening of four films from three Indiana-based filmmakers, presented by 3Wizemen Productions.…

Peter Weir's "The Way Back"

Jim Poyser — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 07:50:00 -0500

To list the great films by Peter Weir is a boggling enterprise. He first came onto my personal radar as an art-film maker, a la Picnic at Hanging Rock and The Last Wave, movies I saw in my own personal coming-of-age in college.…

PRIDE Film Festival in Bloomington

Jim Poyser — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 13:30:00 -0500

Straight out of Bloomington, Indiana, the PRIDE Film Festival will present its 8th annual cinematic celebration of lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, and transgendered communities at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater, Jan. 27 — 30.

Every year, PRIDE extends a motley collection of programs for anyone interested, be they bi-curious film buffs or arrow-straight passersby who can’t resist the fun.…

Passion and pain: Pollock (DVD)

Chi Sherman — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 04:00:00 -0500

Eventually I will stop talking about how awesome Netflix is. Today is not that day.

Last weekend, still on an artist's high (it's like a runner's high but with less jogging) after watching Modigliani, I queued up Pollock, the 2000 biopic of abstract expressionist painter Jackson Pollock starring Ed Harris and Marcia Gay Harden.…

Indiana Film Journalists name 2010 "Bests"

NUVO Editors — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 17:50:00 -0500

The Indiana Film Journalists Association (www.indianafilmcritics.com), a group of journalists dedicated to promoting quality film criticism in the Hoosier State, has announced its annual film picks for 2010, some of which are on screen over this holiday season.

To be eligible, a film must have played theatrically in Indiana during the 2010 calendar year, screened to state critics in advance of a 2011 general release date, or play in a Hoosier State film festival such as Indianapolis International Film Festival or Heartland Film Festival.…