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Cannes 2013: For 'Nebraska's' Bruce Dern, redemption in geezerhood

By Steven Zeitchik — Fri, 24 May 2013 06:30:00 PDT

CANNES, France -- Older actors have been playing crotchety geezers since the days of radio. But very few have done it with the gusto and honesty of Bruce Dern in “Nebraska,” the black-and-white Alexander Payne dramedy that is shaping up as one of the breakouts of this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

Review: 'Epic' looks like its title but doesn't feel that way

By Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times Film Critic — Thu, 23 May 2013 18:33:00 PDT

The forest-set, 3-D animated fairy tale has the right elements (including the voices of Amanda Seyfried, Jason Sudeikis, Beyonce) but can't pull them together.

"Epic," a fairy tale about a tiny universe of creatures who protect the forest, has many virtues.

Review: 'We Steal Secrets' a thriller about WikiLeaks

By Mark Olsen — Thu, 23 May 2013 18:30:00 PDT

In Alex Gibney's documentary, website founder Julian Assange is profiled, as is Bradley Manning, the Army intelligence analyst who provided Assange with a cache of documents.

"We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks" may be a documentary, but director Alex Gibney gives the film the feel of a propulsive espionage techno-thriller played out in the real world.

Review: 'Before Midnight' finds its couple in a dark place

By Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times Film Critic — Fri, 24 May 2013 00:00:00 PDT

Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy and Richard Linklater continue the story of Jesse and Celine from 'Before Sunrise' and 'Before Sunset' in risky, rewarding fashion.

It was a risk for director Richard Linklater to go so dark in "Before Midnight," the latest round of the romantic musings he began with his stars, Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke, nearly 20 years ago. The illusions of a more pristine love in "Before Sunrise" have been shelved so that the tipping point in a relationship can be laid bare. A devastating fight is the centerpiece now, the teasing flirtations a distant memory.

Movie review: 'The Painting' a broad brushstroke on prejudice, romance

By Amy Nicholson — Thu, 23 May 2013 17:50:00 PDT

Consider "The Painting," the fourth feature by slow-moving 74-year-old French director Jean-François Laguionie, a twee "Wreck-It Ralph." Inside a primitive portrait, the subjects are divided into three canvas castes: Sketchies, wraith-like creatures made of pencil lines; Halfies, who were left half-painted; and their snobbish overlords, the Alldunns, who sneer at the incompletes from their castle in the upper left corner of the frame.

Movie review: 'Vampire's' serial-killer story a draining experience

By Robert Abele — Thu, 23 May 2013 17:50:00 PDT

A morose young woman, a soft-spoken blood-drinker and plenty of rainy skies — no, it's not "Twilight," but a languid, micro-budgeted serial killer drama called "Vampire," the first English-language film from Japanese writer-director Shunji Iwai ("All About Lily Chou-Chou").

Movie review: 'A Green Story' a sudsy tale of man's American dream

By Gary Goldstein — Thu, 23 May 2013 17:50:00 PDT

Though it's not that gracefully told and sometimes seems to exist just to plug eco-friendly cleaning supplies, "A Green Story" holds interest as a gentle, old-fashioned look at achieving the American dream. Credit veteran character actor Ed O'Ross ("Full Metal Jacket," "Six Feet Under"), who plays Greek immigrant and Earth Friendly Products founder Van Vlahakis with such avuncular warmth and decency for holding together this bumpy biopic.

Review: 'Becoming Traviata' strikes a vibrant chord

By Sheri Linden — Thu, 23 May 2013 17:45:00 PDT

You don't need to be an opera buff to appreciate Philippe Béziat's exquisitely observed look at performance and the creative process.

Zeroing in on the art of rehearsal, "Becoming Traviata" is an exquisitely observed look at performance and the creative process. You don't need to be an opera buff to appreciate Philippe Béziat's documentary, which makes the essentials of Verdi's romantic drama "La Traviata" clear while building its own stirring narrative around a French festival production's director and star.

Michelle Rodriguez and Gina Carano of 'Fast & Furious 6' can kick your rear end

By Chris Lee, Los Angeles Times — Sun, 26 May 2013 07:00:00 PDT

Staging brutal fight scenes for 'Fast & Furious 6' not only drew them into largely a male preserve in Hollywood, it also bonded them.

If Michelle Rodriguez and Gina Carano share a single regret, it's having not risked spinal injury together to film a key sequence for the thriller "Fast & Furious 6" last year. The action actresses get downright aw-shucks-y — wistful, even — discussing the missed opportunity to careen over a handrail locked in combat and tumble down a grotty stairwell in London's Underground: one of the most over-the-top scenes from one of this summer's most hotly awaited movies, which opened last week.

Cannes 2013: Alexander Payne's 'Nebraska' draws strong notices

By John Horn — Thu, 23 May 2013 16:57:00 PDT

Alexander Payne’s new movie, “Nebraska,” premiered at the Cannes Film Festival to largely favorable yet occasionally qualified reviews.