Paton Ashbrook | Film Festival Today

Film Review: “Minor Premise” Offers a Minor Promise of Premise

December 3, 2020

Familiar Scares Frighten in “Chateau”
By Patrick Howard
December 5, 2024
Chateau (Luke Genton, 2024) 4 out of 5 stars Chateau initially appears to be yet another entry in the found-footage horror genre. The film centers on James (Cathy Marks, The Bell Keeper), who takes on a job restoring a French chateau. Upon discovering that the location may be a magnet for the supernatural, James secretly documents her experiences for a vlog. Will the risk of coming face-to-face with a specter be worth the potential online game ... >>
“The Taste of Mango” Savors Ambiguity
By Christopher Llewellyn Reed
December 3, 2024
The Taste of Mango (Chloe Abrahams, 2023) 3½ out of 5 stars Tammy Wynette’s famous 1968 song “Stand by Your Man” was released in 1968 at a time of growing feminist consciousness and became both immediately popular and mired in some controversy about the significance of its lyrics. In her second verse, Wynette sings, “But if you love him you’ll forgive him/Even though he’s hard to understand/And if you love him, oh be proud of ... >>
Baltimore Mayor Is “The Body Politic”
By Christopher Llewellyn Reed
November 25, 2024
The Body Politic (Gabriel Francis Paz Goodenough, 2023) 4 out of 5 stars In The Body Politic, director Gabriel Francis Paz Goodenough makes his feature debut with a documentary about the early days of Baltimore’s current mayor, Brandon Scott. It’s no easy task running a metropolis that has long struggled with the related issues of poverty and crime. Thanks to David Simon’s five-season HBO series The Wire—now two decades old—Baltimore has become ... >>
“Never Look Away” Holds Our Gaze
By Christopher Llewellyn Reed
November 21, 2024
Never Look Away (Lucy Lawless, 2024) 3½ out of 5 stars Photojournalist Margaret Moth (1951-2010) lived about as full a life as one could hope for, in terms of adventures had and risks taken. An adrenaline junkie, she looked a bit like Joan Jett (who was younger, so maybe she stole Moth’s look …) and dashed around the world, camera in hand, to crash the latest warzone hotspot and gather striking images. Actress Lucy Lawless (of Xena: Warrior ... >>
DOC NYC Review: “Space Cowboy”
By Christopher Llewellyn Reed
November 19, 2024
Space Cowboy (Bryce Leavitt/Marah Strauch, 2024) 4 out of 5 stars Sometimes, boys with toys grow up to be men with even larger toys. In the new documentary Space Cowboy, from directors Bryce Leavitt and Marah Strauch (Sunshine Superman), we meet one such lucky gent, Joe Jennings, who has built a life throwing large objects out of airplanes and skydiving after them with a head-mounted camera to film their descent. It’s exciting stuff, and also ... >>

5 Films to See at Middleburg 2024
October 16, 2024
This year’s Middleburg Film Festival—held annually in ...>>
10 Films to See at TIFF 2024
September 3, 2024
The 2024 Toronto International Film Festival (or TIFF) ...>>
That’s a Wrap at DC/DOX 2024
June 19, 2024
As advertised in my curtain raiser last week, I ...>>
Five Films to See at DC/DOX 2024
June 12, 2024
DC/DOX returns for Round 2, running June 13-16 in its ...>>
Five Films to See at Tribeca 2024
June 5, 2024
This year’s Tribeca Film Festival will take place from ...>>