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Category Archives: TV & Movies

B.J. Novak’s The Premise is an Inspired Satire of Modern Issues

B.J. Novak’s new anthology series “The Premise” is something of a hot-button “Black Mirror,” in that it takes different major topics and explores them over 30 minutes with twisty, sometimes funny narratives. But while the similarities to that Netflix hit are evident, the excitement of “The Premise” is in how it seems to create its own…

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Strength Behind the Joy: Max Harwood, Lauren Patel and Jonathan Butterell on Everybody’s Talking About Jamie

At a time when social distancing measures are being implemented to battle the Delta variant, Jonathan Butterell’s jubilant musical, “Everybody’s Talking About Jamie,” is the cinematic equivalent of a sorely needed hug. This year marks the tenth anniversary of Jenny Popplewell’s documentary, “Jamie: Drag Queen at 16,” which followed British teen Jamie Campbell as he…

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#415 September 14, 2021

Matt writes: Since last month marked the fortieth anniversary of Robert Redford‘s Sundance Institute, RogerEbert.com presented a special edition of Thumbnails featuring priceless articles penned by Roger Ebert, including the one he wrote about his first experience at the Institute in July of 1981. You can read an excerpt of that piece below and find…

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TIFF 2021: The Rescue, Attica, Hold Your Fire

How we handle intense situations wherein life and death are on the line is an unexpected theme of this year’s TIFF in three excellent docs about pressure cookers that led to loss of life. Two are obvious partners, stories of a half-century ago that also say something about conflict resolution of the modern era. The…

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You Can Be Loved No Matter What: Jessica Chastain on The Eyes of Tammy Faye

Near the beginning of “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” an off-camera make-up artist gently suggests that singer/puppeteer/televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker (Jessica Chastain) remove her iconic, one might even say garish, cosmetics. She wipes off her lipstick but the dark lip-liner remains. She explains that it is permanent. Like her eye-liner and eyebrows, it is tattooed…

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The Eyes of Tammy Faye

What is “The Eyes of Tammy Faye”? Michael Showalter adapts the documentary of the same name, the 2000 work that entertainingly reshaped the legacy of a woman often derided for her reliance on make-up and accused of bilking her loyal supporters. But that film exists. Why remake it as a showy dramedy? I’m not sure…

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