By John H. Foote After seeing the new film A Private War at TIFF this year, the story of war correspondent Marie Colvin I came home to find a similar film I have long admired from the eighties. Simply said, Under Fire (1983) is among the greatest films ever made about American involvement in a…
By John H. Foote (****) Jane Fonda did not just break down doors for actresses and activists, she kicked them off the hinges and burst through. One of the most exciting interviews of my career was speaking with Fonda. Whip-smart, hyper-alert, one of the smartest people I had ever encountered, it was a genuine pleasure.…
(**) By John H. Foote Michael Moore has made two documentaries using the letters 11/ 9 and 9/11. As he states, clearly, each represents one of the two worst happenings in the history of the United States. 9/11 of course represents September 11, 2001, the day terrorists attacked the USA in the form of passenger…
(****) By John H. Foote For the record, I love The Lord of the Rings trilogy on screen. Peter Jackson put such artistry, craft, love and passion into those first three films, they remain extraordinary fantasies, and the finest trilogy ever put on screen. Ian Nathan’s new book is a consistently fascinating account of the…
By Nick Maylor This year’s Toronto International Film Festival saw a slew of great films and welcome surprises. I did not get to see everything I was interested in but with an impressive selection of screenings, I walked away in awe of two major films that are guaranteed to be a massive presence come awards…
(**) By John H. Foote Again a performance is the driving force of this biopic dealing with hellion war correspondent Marie Colvin. Famously killed in action in Syria, Colvin was a fearless woman, one of a kind. More and more we are seeing great female performances, they are dominating the Oscar race at the moment,…
(**) By John H. Foote Michael Moore’s style, I find abrasive, exploitive and sometimes cruel. What he did to poor Charlton Heston in Bowling for Columbine (2003) was nasty. He blindsided a clearly confused actor suffering with Alzheimer’s and did nothing to endear himself to audiences in doing so. Still his film won an Oscar…
By John H. Foote THE HATE U GIVE (***) Imagine you are a beautiful, soulful 15 year old girl. Imagine going out for a drive with a friend you have known all your life. Clearly he loves you and you have deep feelings for him. He kisses you, and you pull away telling him you…
By John H. Foote HER SMELL (**) Elisabeth Moss is an actress who has arrived yet still continues to grow and stun with her work. I have been watching her since her days as Zoey Bartlett, daughter of the President on TV’s brilliant The West Wing, through to her sublime work on A Handmaid’s Tale,…
By John H. Foote FIRST MAN (****) To be clear, this is one for the ages. A soaring testament to what mankind is capable of when they work for the common good. The timing is perfect because America needs to feel good about something again. There have been great films about the American space program…