REVIEW: "Wish I Was Here" - Small Moments on the Big Screen

Theatrical Release Poster

Wish I Was Here

Director: Zach Braff

Starring: Zach Braff, Kate Hudson, Mandy Patinkin, Josh Gad, Joey King, Ashley Greene, Donald Faison

Rating: R (language & brief nudity)
Opens: July 18

Distribution: Focus Features

Zach Braff wanted to tell a story - and he didn't want others to tell him how to tell it. Critical and commercial success as an actor, director, or screenwriter doesn't give a person much more control over outside forces.  If you're lucky, however, it does afford a bit more control over what YOU want to do - and you find people who want to help.

REVIEW: "Begin Again" - A Love Song Sent to Music

Courtesy: The Weinstein Company

Director : John Carney

Starring: Keira Knightley, Mark Ruffalo,  James Corden & Introducing Adam Levine

On the radio as I was driving home, the DJ (with typical fervor), did a quick recap of the top songs over the holiday weekend. The artists he named?

Charlie XCX, Iggy Azalea and Jason Derulo

If you don't know who they are - or you do, and are old enough to remember a time when music was less homogenized and (a bit) more honest, you'll want to see "Begin Again," starring Academy Award nominees Keira Knightley and Mark Ruffalo.

Muppets Most Wanted. . .to Be BETTER

As a parent, I WANT to like family-friendly films.  Don't you? You're spending the equivalent of a week's worth of Happy Meals to sit for an hour and a half with strangers in seats you'd never want to see in sunlight.

If you're a mom, you know what I mean. You're in love with your DVR and Netflix because you can watch what you want when your kids have gone to bed or  - even better - gone to someone else's house.  Heaven is an internet connection and a remote with fresh batteries. You don't need a $15 popcorn/soda combo-for-1 in a megaplex to make you happy. You need 90 minutes to yourself to watch something that doesn't set off a snooze button inside your head.

Unfortunately, real life reminds us that kids don't want to see you in yesterday's tee shirt and yoga pants, holding a wine juice box while your tablet is paused on True Detective and one ear bud is dangling down your shoulder. 

(Hypothetically speaking.)