What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)A typically bloodless performance by Johnny Depp sabatoges this otherwise mildly diverting near-remake of The Last Picture Show. Why bother?

The Fugitive Kind (1959)Tennessee Williams, Sidney Lumet, Marlon Brando, 1959: it can't miss, right? Well, not quite. Neither Lumet nor Brando seem sure what to do with this sub-par Williams melodrama about a small time hustler/drifter who, dallying with the straight and narrow, enmeshes himself in the romantic intrigues of a (poorly delineated) southern town. Oddly, there are too few dramatic peaks here, and the viewer is left rather dissatisfied.

Malena (2000)No story? No problem! No script? No problem! This endlessly repetitive tale of a boy obsessed with the town sexpot goes nowhere fast, is rife with a contrived sense of whimsy (then doom), and makes no use of its Fascist Italy setting. It's like a locked groove. Skip it.

The Pawnbroker (1965)Way up Park Avenue, a Holocaust survivor (Rod Steiger)—a former professor who has succumbed to utter bitterness—intermingles with his pawnshop employee, an ambitious and sagacious Puerto Rican youth (Jaime Sanchez), as well as Harlem’s underworld of prostitution and heroin. As life whirls on all around him, the pawnbroker finds he cannot escape the loss he has endured, and all outstretched hands—from his employee, from a lonely spinster (Geraldine Fitzgerald)—are  coldly rebuffed. Boris Kaufman’s lensing (at once stylized and verite) and Quincy Jones’s exotic scoring, are major assets.

Tempest (1982)While the scenes set in New York crackle with a modicum of wit and and sophistication, the lion's share of this aimless, seemingly endless misfire by Paul Mazursky creeps at a snail's pace on a deserted Greek island, where Philip/Prospero (John Cassavetes) is supposedly looking to re-energize his unhappy (though financially successful) life. Despite a formidable array of talent on hand (Gena Rowlands, Raul Julia, Susan Sarandon, Vittorio Gassman, Molly Ringwald), this one can easily be skipped.

Faithful (1996)The setting of a potential murder victim exchanging witty repartee with her would-be killer has been done to death, but Paul Mazursky can always be counted on to bring intelligence and urban wit to even the most mundane of tales. Here, he gets such engaging performances from Cher and Chazz Palminteri (who also scripted), and his direction is so slick and sophisticated, that even a cliche-laden tale such as this is pulled off with real panache.

Dogpound Shufffle (1975)Folks, if you have kids, or if you've ever been a kid yourself, you'd be wise to watch this wonderful, heartwarming story of an embittered tap-dancing bum (Ron Moody) and his sweet-natured mouthharp-playing young tag-along (David Soul), as they attempt raise the funds to get the former's dancing dog out of the East Vancouver pound. A true undiscovered gem, this film is a genuine marvel of intelligent direction, warm humor, fine performances, and uplifting music.

Fatal Instinct (1993)Calling this spoof of legal/cop thrillers "hit-or-miss" would be charitable. This is a real disappointment from Carl Reiner, who should know better than to attempt the sort of verbal/visual pun humor mastered by the Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker team--Reiner's obvious inspiration here.

Woman In The Dunes (1964)The myth of Sisyphus. An entomologist, finding himself trapped at the bottom of a sand pit in the ramshackle house of a peasant woman, comes to realize that he has all he would ever need: sustenance, and companionship. Teshigahara’s erotic masterpiece is a sumptuous feast for the eyes and the ears.

The Distant Journey (1949)“Auschwitz. Majdanek. Treblinka…Only a few survived.” There would seem only two ways to effectively convey the Holocaust in film. Spielberg’s unflinching verite approach, and this, Alfred Radok’s surrealistic expressionist nightmare, which replaces blood and gas with light and shadow, angle and curve. The remarkable mis-en-scene, with its multi-layered labyrinthine sets and Ravel-inspired score, conspire to create a genuine cinematic masterpiece. Watch this movie. You will never, ever forget.

A Perfect Couple (1979)In this lighter-than-air slice of urban romance, a plain Dick (Paul Dooley, excellent) and plain Jane (Marta Heflin, sickly looking) try to eke out a romance, away from their burdensome familial and professional obligations. A pleasant departure for director Altman, its partial success is tempered by inevitable comparisons to master-of-the-genre Paul Mazursky. (Unforgivably, the digital transfer of this music-heavy film—with its decidedly Starland Vocal Band-esque popcorn mush--suffers from flawed audio.)

Fool For Love (1985)In this "opened-up" filming of Sam Shepard’s play exploring long-buried family secrets and forgotten memories, Altman provides thoughtful, stylish direction in the New Mexican desert. Still, while the performers (including Shepard himself) do what they can with a maddeningly uneven, pretentious, go-nowhere script, when the pay-off finally comes, you may wonder if it was really worth the effort.

Beaufort (2007)Gripping and intense drama depicting the last days of Israel’s occupation of southern Lebanon in 2000, and the flawed, agonized young commander whose decisions can mean life or death for his troops. As Hezbollah’s rockets relentlessly rain down, one may be reminded of John Kerry’s famous question “How do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake?” Greatly abetted by claustrophobic sets and very effective electronic scoring.

Melinda And Melinda (2004)Hmm. Well, apparently, one thread here is supposed to be a comedy, and the other a drama, but damned if I can tell which is which. In this tale of vapid, disgustingly rich NYC pseudo-sophisticates and their idiotic problems, tin-eared dialogue abounds, and Radha Mitchell's supposedly Park Avenue origins are betrayed by an accent that varies between Beverly Hills and Maida Vale. Really, this is truly awful filmmaking.

Little Children (2006)Unable to transcend its literary origins, Todd Fields’ exploration of Bostonian suburbanites in various stages of emotional stuntedness is fine on mood, but rather lacking in sympathetic characters. Indeed, among the harassers, adulterers, and pornographers portrayed herein, it’s a child molester (played by comeback kid Jackie Earle Haley), who finally emerges as the one character we identify with.

I'm Not There (2007)How to convey the unconveyable? This question is usually asked in critiques of Holocaust literature, but may also be applied to artistic explorations of genius. Unlike Scorcese, who raised more questions than he answered about his subject, Todd Haynes, in this kaleidoscopic Felliniesque exploration of Bob Dylan, acknowledges that we can’t even begin to understand who or what Dylan is. Give it time, watch it again and again, and it will surely emerge as a masterpiece.

Focus (2001)Too Jewish? Superbly photographed and expertly lit in Hopperesque splendour, Arthur Miller’s exploration of wartime Father Caughlin-inspired American anti-Semitism takes a Kitty Genovese-like case as its jumping off point, as mistaken-for-Jews William H. Macy and Laura Dern confront the limits of their passivity in the face of racial hatred in deepest NYC. The support, led by David Paymer and Meat Loaf, don’t have enough to do, and the themes are hit a bit too hard, but the top-notch production compensates for the shortcomings.

The History Boys (2006)Some Yorkshire boys do sufficiently well on their A-levels to get a crack at Oxbridge in this gratingly glib and hopelessly stagey production. The History Boys is appropriately multi-culti: a black kid, an Asian Muslim, a gay Jew, a fatso, yet Britain was so far behind the times socially in 1983 (I know; I lived there then) that the self-loathing speechifying herein could have come straight out of The Boys in The Band (which took place fifteen years earlier), especially in one cringe-inducing scene between the Jewish student and his closeted teacher.

The Night Of The Iguana (1964)John Huston filmed this highly stylized—really, vaguely surreal—interpretation of Tennessee Williams’ study of sexual repression and religious doubt. The leads—Richard Burton (as the hopelessly human whiskey priest), Ava Gardner (as the expat innkeeper--or was that Suzanne Pleshette…?), and especially Deborah Kerr (as the New England spinster)—are superb, all running from (for?) their lives in tropical Mexico. It’s enough to make me want to write a poem about Nantucket…

The Bubble (2006)A gay Arab from Nablus finds refuge and romance among a set of young Bohemians in Tel Aviv’s Sheinkin Street, but along comes Hamas and rains on everyone’s parade, that is, bursts their bubble. Eytan Fox’s morality tale would have had a greater impact were it a bit less intent on getting its message through in the big finish, and instead stuck with the daily trials and tribulations of its players. Still, the thesis that homophobia promotes terrorism is a compelling one.

Lan Yu (2001)Simple tale, subtly rendered, of a no-nonsense Beijing businessman who takes years to realize that the young architecture student he keeps for casual pleasures is really his true love. The domestic scenes especially are quite true to (Chinese) life, with friends and family oblivious to the romantic link between the two. Slightly diminished by an unnecessarily melodramatic coda.

Solaris (2002)Hampered by several weak performances (including an appallingly mannered one by Jeremy Davies), this is nonetheless a surprisingly effective stripped-down interpretation of the Stanislaw Lem novel, in which an alien intelligence contacts human visitors by tapping their most guilt-laden memories, and conjuring replicas of the people who are the source of this guilt. Paradoxically, the replicas become more and more human-like as they begin to recognize their alien origins. An excellent performance by Viola Davis helps, as does the atmospheric score by Cliff Martinez.

Michael Clayton (2007)R.D. Laing would have approved of this predictable corporate law drama, in which a manic-depressive lawyer (an excellent Tom Wilkinson) goes off his meds, and finally comes to his senses about his firm’s defending an Archer Daniels Midland-like conglomerate, responsible for poisoning the wells in rural Wisconsin. Tilda Swinton is also very good as a conflicted corporate villain, but the film really gives us nothing that hasn’t been done--and done better--many times before.

Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man (2005)Amateurish and uninformative documentary dolled up with annoying special effects, consisting mostly of mangled cover renditions of many classic Leonard Cohen songs (fellow Montrealers Kate and Anna McGarrigle are clearly slumming here). Leonard himself gets in on the action, but only barely, embarrassing himself by lip-synching (poorly) in front of a clueless U2. Listen to the records instead.

Advise And Consent (1962)Charles Laughton is outstanding as a loathsome Dixiecrat, but the whole cast is superb in this studied and somber portrait of a D.C. where policy is determined by who blackmails who. The scandalous skeletons include youthly dabblings in communist ideology, and same-sex romance. Some things never change.

Exodus (1960)Leon Uris's epic novel about the founding of Israel is given a slightly flat but never boring treatment by Otto Preminger. It is quite faithful to history—the British colluding with European and Arab fascists to keep Holocaust survivors stateless, the internecine conflicts between the Irgun and the Hagana, between refugee Jews and Palestinian Jews, and (a good touch) the humanists that dotted all sides. Sal Mineo (who wasn’t Jewish) plays a far more convincing Israeli than does Paul Newman (who is--and runs the gamut of emotions from aleph to bet).

Superbad (2007)Two high school buddies (Jonah Hill and Michael Cera,) trying to get alcohol for a party and "score some chicks", end up falling in love with each other instead. Shoddily directed, sloppily edited, and poorly ad-libbed (especially by Seth Rogan and Bill Hader), Superbad is partially redeemed by Christopher Mintz-Plasse in a very appealing performance as a lovable nerd. Achieving a new low in bodily fluid humor (pun intended), it's enough to give the “awful teen comedy” genre a bad name.

Shampoo (1975)It’s L.A. Dolce Vita as Warren Beatty beds every woman from the Palisades to the Cahuenga Pass while his life—and Western Civilization (Nixon’s '68 victory is prominently featured)—comes crashing down. Lee Grant, channeling Barbra Streisand, is especially good, as is the Beatles and Beach Boys-heavy soundtrack.

Forrest Gump (1994)Oh, I see. All you need is a good and pure heart, and life will turn out peaches and cream, that is, you'll get stinking rich...even if you're mentally retarded (or so the Republican propagandists behind Forrest Gump would have us believe). Tom Hanks is constitutionally incapable of delivering a nuanced performance, and Forrest Gump may well be his career nadir. The one clever gimmick is stolen from Woody Allen's Zelig of more than a decade earlier.

Nights Of Cabiria (1957)Fellini treads a remarkably fine line between heightened sentimentality and hopeless cynicism in this tale of a hard-nosed prostitute whose life changes forever in a sudden moment of completely unexpected candor. In a truly remarkable performance, Giuletta Masina might go from elation to heartbreak with a curl of her lip or a tilt of her head—Harpo Marx, Charlie Chaplin, and Lucille Ball all in one.

Juliet Of The Spirits (1965)A demure society woman (Giulietta Massina, playing against type) suspects her husband of taking a lover. As we explore her inner world, Fellini, drunk on color and Art Nouveau sets and costumes, provides kaleidoscopic and fantastical imagery where the apparent reality is no less bountiful in its splendor than is the fantasy. Nino Rota’s mod/mad carnival score is perfect.

Brothers Of The Head (2005)This Is Not Spinal Tap. A serious mock-rockumentary of a pair of conjoined twins who, strange as may seem, played punk in 1975, the year before it arrived in London from NYC (and named themselves after a Squeeze song released three years later). Brothers Of The Head is ultimately an exercise in style, making few attempts to emotionally grab the viewer. Clive Langer, who hasn’t written songs like this since Deaf School’s English Boys/Working Girls from 1978, does a fine job slumming.

Peeping Tom (1960)By giving us a shy and handsome protagonist and a horrifying back story of child abuse, in Peeping Tom Michael Powell conjures heretofore unheard-of lump-in-the-throat sympathy for a serial killer. The Pirandello-esque murder technique involves the killer filming his victims watching themselves be murdered by him. Got that? Peeping Tom proves to be remarkably prescient in this over-photographed, all-trash-all-the-time world we live in.

The Heartbreak Kid (1972)When he finds the girl of his dreams, it’s shiksappeal gone wild as Charles Grodin tries to extricate himself from his premature marriage to Jeannie Berlin. The laughs come in fits and starts (indeed, much of the movie is downright painful to watch) but they hit hard on arrival. Eddie Albert is astonishingly good as Cybil Shepard's oh-so-dignified (and probably Jew-hating) father.

Ed Wood (1994)“It's so bad it’s g…” Well, it’s just so bad. Neither Tim Burton nor Johnny Depp would recognize a genuine human emotion if it came up and socked them in the jaw. This supposed “character study” of legendary Z-director Ed Wood leaves one ice cold: not a single insight into Wood’s inner world is even attempted. Martin Landau does a great job as a broken down Bela Lugosi, but other than that, this is strictly amateur hour.

Black Robe (1991)A bleak and beautiful rendering of Quebec’s early seventeenth century missionary period, religious conviction in Black Robe is convincingly likened to a sort of mental disease, inducing its victims to act regardless of the human consequences. (The Catholic Church held its grip on this land until the Quiet Revolution of the mid twentieth century.) Georges Delerue’s stirring score, and the remarkable period detail, greatly enhance the effect.

This Is England (2006)Electrifying performances (especially by Stephen Graham and the young Thomas Turgoose) are the highlight of this emotionally complex and wholly believable account of a northern boy’s seduction by, and ultimate rejection of, the National Front. There’s not even a whiff of sentimentality for its early-80s post-Rude Boy setting, and the film is all the more resonant for it.

House Calls (1978)Everybody Loves Walter. And why not? The man's an American treasure. Any comedy set in a hospital is inherently flawed, but Matthau and Glenda Jackson are delightful together, while the supporting cast--Art Carney, Richard Benjamin, and especially Candice Azzara as a Coney Island widow--is fully game. -Dan Solomon

Love In the Afternoon (1972)Sort of “Brief Encounter” with a Parisian accent, Rohmer here makes the mistake of giving us a rather unlikeable protagonist, having him play out in real life what should be a wholly internal debate on fidelity. Were a woman so self-indulgently cruel to the men in her life, she would be called a tease, or worse. The acting and the dialogue are wonderful, of course.

Safe (1995)Had Kubrick been a humanist, he might have come up with Safe. Todd Haynes' camera keeps a (safe) distance as Carol White (Julianne Moore) find herself increasingly unable to cope with modern living, while egomaniacal charlatans try to rob her of what little humanity she possesses. In this definitive south-of-the Boulevard Valley movie, the dialogue rings appallingly true, while lurking underneath, ex-Necessary Ed Tomney provides an all-pervasive hum. An absolute marvel: the best movie of the 1990s.

Claire's Knee (1971)In this irresistible slice of bucolic French life, a just-graying expat comes back to sell off his childhood summer home, and, right before his imminent marriage, gently inserts himself into the romantic intrigues of the young people he encounters. I don’t know if life really flows so easily, and if people are really this lovely, but, well…happy people with happy problems…

Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959)A Frenchwoman, forever haunted by a forbidden love in provincial Vichy France, experiences an interlude of tenderness with a local man in post-bomb Hiroshima, and a flood of awful memories comes pouring back. As the city fades to sleep around them, the two are left to confront their impossible dilemma. Anyone who has loved and lost—especially in a foreign land—will find Resnais’s and Duras's work here almost unbearably resonant.

The Face Of Another (1966)A remarkable assemblage of film techniques, Teshigahara's The Face of Another nonetheless plays more like a very precocious student's project: technically stunning, but emotionally undernourished. Frankenheimer's Seconds (also 1966) would make a good double bill; it's a more humanistic meditation on identity in a technologized society.

Life Is Beautiful (1997)The idea that a child can be shipped to a concentration camp, and be fooled by his father into thinking it's all a game, is not only absurd, it is, in the words of film critic David Denby, "a mild form of Holocaust denial." This is a deeply offensive movie.

The Way We Laughed (2001)Rich in atmosphere, this deeply moving drama from Gianni Amelio features his favorite actor--the amazing Enrico Lo Verso--as an uneducated Sicilian migrant in postwar Turin, doing all he can for his irresponsible little brother. In a shocking moment, the tables turn, and now, it seems the little brother must come to his older brother’s rescue. Few directors have Amelio’s sure touch and steady hand to successfully render such a subtle and affecting story. Masterful.

Enemy Mine (1985)The first two-thirds of this alien war film consists of a disguised tale of gay seduction, sort of “Kiss of the Spider Woman” meets "Robinson Crusoe On Mars," cleverly conceived and passably handled. Alas, it descends into shoot-em-up mediocrity, squandering its formidable merits.

Black Book (2006)Once, on an installment of SCTV that took place during "Sweeps Week", a special miniseries was plugged called "The Long Hard War", ostensibly about the horrors of WW2, but really just an excuse for some T&A. Hey, it was sweeps week after all, and Guy Caballero needed a winner. Along comes Paul "Showgirls" Verhoeven, and here, at last, we get to see "the Long Hard War" in all its glory. The only moment of any depth comes in the last 10 seconds of the film.

The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)One man's hard work pays off, and he makes a killing on Wall Street. A feel-good movie? Strange, I didn't feel so good as the filmmakers so callously ignored the endless lines at the soup kitchens and flop houses. I guess these losers deserved their lot. A Republican propaganda piece if there ever was one.

War of the Worlds (2005)One of the most effective nightmares ever committed to film, Spielberg’s remake of the George Pal original (a classic in its own right) is absolutely terrifying. The family drama, though inevitably somewhat trite, never overshadows the unrelenting and awful progress of the bigger story. We don’t always understand the strategies of the aliens, but why should we? They’re aliens!

24 Hour Party People (2002)Botched. Steve Coogan's one-note performance is only the most obvious of this film's many flaws, and he's in practically every (claustrophobically tight) shot. Tracing the Jim Morrison-inspired Ian Curtis's downward spiral to the pill-popping Happy Monday's brief holiday in the sun, Manchester's remarkably rich musical legacy is held at arm's length throughout. No Fall? No Any Trouble? I didn't learn a thing.

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)Trite, contrived, and sophomoric. Some fine actors are wedged into this unappealing and superficial story that has the pretense of sophistication because Proust is mentioned--and by a bearded gay man, at that! Arkin deserves an Oscar, but not for this piece of tripe.

The Squid and the Whale (2005)"No hugging, no learning" indeed! Preposterously overrated cartoon version of urban family life. The director generates not an iota of sympathy for any of these miserable, nasty people. Even the supposed denouement is a meaningless muddled mess. Hateful, bitter, and most unpleasant. To be avoided!

Hostel (2006)Selected for their nationality, innocent civilians in Europe take trains eastward, where they are tortured and murdered by gleeful madmen in a killing factory. Eli Roth's Holocaust metaphor looks intriguing on paper, but it is nothing more than a by-the-numbers gorefest.

The Sugarland Express (1974)The remarkably fluid camera work and immaculately staged action scenes are an obvious taster of things to come in Spielberg's career. Most interesting, however, are the elements of uncertainty and ambiguity in how we relate to the characters, and the matter-of-fact depiction of Texas' abhorrent gun culture.

Steel Toes (2006)In this quintessential liberal movie of a Jewish Montreal lawyer assigned to defend an Anglo neo-Nazi, superb perfomances by the two leads are partially undermined by unimaginative camerawork, stock attitudes, and a too-tidy ending. Still, it far outshines "American History X" in its exploration of the issues, and definitely deserved a better showing at the box office.

Can She Bake a Cherry Pie? (1983)Michael Emil is a gas as a verbose neurotic in this Upper West Side story. The film suffers the typical Jaglom maladies (primitive production values, plot contrivances, mannered performances) but also possesses his usual strengths, especially in the subtle intelligence of the dialogue. A really good New York film. (Larry David has a bit part.)

Blume in Love (1973)A masterpiece. A keenly observed modern love story, filled with winning, sympathetic characters, nuanced, knowing dialogue and brilliant performances by all involved. Although certain attitudes are sadly (rather, thankfully) dated (some may feel fatally so, and they may be right; I'd like to think that Mazursky regrets his insensitivity), the rewards far outshine the flaws, and the timeless themes nonetheless prevail.

Lackawanna Blues (2005)S. Epatha Merkerson only gets to genuinely act on Law and Order once in an NYPD blue moon, but when she does, it's always a treat. In this story of an upstate New York woman who pours her grief over a lost child into a life of caring and nurturing for others, she truly shines, and is surrounded by an amazing array of talent. Some of the editing is distracting, but that's a minor quibble.

Munich (2005)Another Spielberg triumph, providing a very realistic (if untrue) "imagined" follow-up to the Palestinian mass murder of the 1972 Israeli Olympic team. The Israelis are portrayed as conscience-stricken (holding fire when a red-coated little girl is in harm's way--an obvious reference to Schindler's List), while the terrorists go on with their lives wholly untroubled by their dastardly deeds--enjoying poetry readings, and shmoozing with their shopkeepers. Sure it didn't happen that way, but it captures bigger truths. A great film.

The Terminal (2004)No one can assemble a film like Spielberg, and The Terminal, like everything he does, is a stunning production, concerning an international traveler caught in airport limbo when his home country's government fails. The weak link here is Tom Hanks, who is neither talented enough nor intelligent enough to bring any complexity to his role.

Still Crazy (1998)In an era when "British comedy" is almost an oxymoron, and from a director not exactly known for his light touch, this was a delightful surprise. Even the unstomachable Billy Connolly is kept under control. Here's an intelligent and bittersweet story of a 70s schlock-rock band's reunion. Their songs steer from ELO-ish trip-pop (circa "10538 Overture") to Thin Lizzy-esque guitar rock, and they're really good! No surprise there, since Clive Langer, Jeff Lynne, and Chris Difford were involved.

Quintet (1979)This movie is ripe for re-appraisal. The setting--the frozen, abandoned Expo 67 in Montreal--is stunning, and Scott Bushnell deserved an Oscar for her Eskimo-cum-Medieval costumes. That being said, yes, it is boring and pretentious, but don't bother with the story; there are more than enough striking images, muffled crunches of ice and dice, and thought provoking elements to the dystopian culture to keep me (for one) wanting to see it yet again. Might make a good double-bill with the incalculably superior Stalker--if you have the zitsfleish!

La Ceremonie (1996)A very likable well-off family ultimately meets its demise at the hands of an uneducated hateful woman that the family has given every chance to. If the goal of this film was, preposterously, to encourage one to hate the poor and love the rich, this movie succeeds.

A New Leaf (1971)In a career of high notes, this may be Walter Matthau's highest of all. Elaine May's tale of a newly broke millionaire looking to marry--then murder--the mass of symptoms that is May's character is a hysterically funny movie that somehow fell through the cracks. Side-splitting scenes and unforgettable one-liners abound ("Don't let them out!!" "She has to be vacuumed after she eats!"). Essential viewing.

Where the Truth Lies (2005)I was concerned when I heard that excellent if offbeat director Egoyan was given Rupert Holmes' superb novel to film. My concerns appear justified, as this movie has neither the look nor feel of the book, and ALL the leads are woefully miscast. Taken on its own terms, it's perfectly enjoyable, but not recommended for those who read (and, it hardly needs saying, loved) the book.

Imitation of Life (1959)Juanita Moore gives a bravura performance in this deeply affecting melodrama, which ultimately focuses on a troubled black girl's ordeal with "passing". As Douglas Sirk directs, it is ironic that the colors here are so muted. This could have been intentional (given the subject matter), or it could be a bad digital transfer (I've never seen the film in a theater).

A Private Matter (1992)Well acted and surprisingly well-written: no easy answers to thalidomide pregnancy are provided, and the characters are convincingly multi-dimensional. The direction at times is a bit flat, which is especially surprising given Joan Micklin Silver's excellent track record, though she's clearly working on a tight budget here.