betsy sherman

Latest Articles

Review: Charlotte Rampling: The Look

Rampling's physical gifts, unimpeded by plastic surgery in their march through time, are matched by a keen mind and an unapologetic approach to life and work.
Angelina Maccarone's portrait of the actress
By BETSY SHERMAN | February 03, 2012

Review: The Artist(1)

The advent of talking pictures sends a screen idol into both a career nosedive and an identity crisis in Michel Hazanavicius's flashback to Hollywood's transitional period of the late '20s.
Michel Hazanavicius's flashback to '20s-era Hollywood
By BETSY SHERMAN | December 23, 2011

Review: Bucky Larson: Born to be a Star

Of course there are copious gags about penis size and bodily fluids, but Bucky Larson could also have been a decent spoof of the porn industry, especially after Don Johnson enters the picture.
Swardson just doesn't rise to the occasion
By BETSY SHERMAN | September 16, 2011

Review: Sarah's Key

Sarah's Key is a superior "woman in the present becomes obsessed with woman in the past" narrative.
A compelling interplay of tensions
By BETSY SHERMAN | August 05, 2011

Review: Vincent Wants to Sea

Frustration and isolation are part of daily life for 27-year-old Tourette's sufferer Vincent (Florian David Fitz, who also wrote the screenplay), the sympathetic hero of this German road movie.
A quirky German road movie
By BETSY SHERMAN | July 15, 2011

Review: Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky

"I want to breathe ," says Coco Chanel as she cuts off her corset.
Passion among the titans
By BETSY SHERMAN | June 25, 2010

Review: OSS 117: Lost In Rio

This sequel to the hilarious OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies supplies the further adventures of Hubert Bonisseur de la Bath, a secret agent so chauvinistic, he pities anyone not lucky enough to be French.
Eyebrow Arch of Triumph
By BETSY SHERMAN | May 21, 2010

Interview: Dakota Fanning

Dakota Fanning may be just 16 years old, but already she’s built a body of work that shames some starlets twice her age.
Runaway talent
By BRETT MICHEL | April 16, 2010

Review: Lbs.

With obesity now a pop-culture as well as a medical issue, Lbs. offers insight — as well as laughs and heartstring tugging — into the struggles of a food addict.
A double-wide in the woods
By BETSY SHERMAN | April 09, 2010

Interview: Bobcat Goldthwait

"Not many people may know of my films, but I think they may have more legs than, like, a Kate Hudson movie."
Bobcat unleashes another not-so-funny comedy
By BETSY SHERMAN | September 04, 2009

Review: $9.99

In this Israeli-Australian production, Sydney apartment dwellers culled from stories by Etgar Keret pursue (or avoid) various duties and desires, intersecting in elevator encounters.
Gives you your money's worth
By BETSY SHERMAN | June 26, 2009

Ashes of Time Redux

Ashes ’ sumptuous tapestry depicts intersecting tales in a mediæval China teeming with 20th-century angst.
Sumptuous, angsty swordplay drama
By BETSY SHERMAN | October 21, 2008

An American Carol

A Michael Moore–esque documentarian changes his stars and stripes after trying to abolish the Fourth of July.
A dissent-bashing tale
By BETSY SHERMAN | October 09, 2008

The Pool

Chris Smith, maker of the hilarious indie gems American Job and American Movie , set this quietly moving story in the Indian state of Goa, using a mostly non-professional cast.
Quietly moving, and full of dark secrets
By BETSY SHERMAN | October 01, 2008

Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist

In what has been an excellent year for comedies, Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist ensures that the young ’uns won’t be left out.
A smart, refreshing teen romance
By BETSY SHERMAN | October 01, 2008

Beautiful Losers (2008)

A documentary, directed with Joshua Leonard, about an energized group portrait whose accessibility is abetted by the artists’ collectively keen sense of humor.
An energized portrait of Alleged Gallery artists
By BETSY SHERMAN | September 24, 2008

Another Gay Sequel: Gays Gone Wild

Todd Stephens brings back the characters from Another Gay Movie for a homo-erotic Where the Boys Are .
A campy, smutty, neon-hued, extremely silly good time
By BETSY SHERMAN | September 23, 2008

Momma's Man

Jacobs films his childhood home with grace and endows it with an air of mystery.
A lovely cocoon of a movie
By BETSY SHERMAN | September 16, 2008

Babylon A.D.

Vin Diesel’s bad-ass boomfest will do if you’re in the mood for post-environmental-apocalypse action that doesn’t make you think too hard.
Incoherent and somewhat amusing
By BETSY SHERMAN | September 03, 2008

What We Do Is Secret

That staple of the musical bio-pic — a close-up of dope bubbling on a spoon — punctuates Rodger Grossman’s account of the short life of Darby Crash.
Exposition trumps atmosphere
By BETSY SHERMAN | August 20, 2008

Mamma Mia!

The Abba musical, helmed by stage director Phyllida Lloyd, sails to a real Greek island with its fairy-tale aura intact.
Passable, frothy fun
By BETSY SHERMAN | July 16, 2008

Elsa y Fred | Elsa + Fred

Set in modern-day Madrid, Marco Carnevale’s gentle romantic comedy slaps two touchstone images from Italian cinema on the screen.
Geriatric hijinks abound
By BETSY SHERMAN | July 16, 2008

The Promotion

Reilly is an actor who excels at both realism and caricature — too bad the director doesn’t have the chops to take advantage either way.
A bumpy seesaw ride
By BETSY SHERMAN | June 11, 2008

Sputnik Mania

The film underlines the political consequences of the space race.
A brisk, informative documentary
By BETSY SHERMAN | June 11, 2008

The Animation Show 4

The traveling collection of international animation gems is back.
Skewed humor and sophisticated animation
By BETSY SHERMAN | June 11, 2008

Stuck

A post-Katrina parable that’s smart, sobering, and frequently hilarious.
Smart, gonzo pulp
By BETSY SHERMAN | June 06, 2008

Sick puppy

Comedian Bobcat Goldthwait’s audacious premise for his 2006 feature Sleeping Dogs Lie did him in.
Sleeping Dogs Lie and Boy Culture
By GERALD PEARY | May 01, 2007

Pedro, Borat, and a castrato

As usual, dedicated film critics were too occupied seeing four or five movies a day to note the swarm of A-list celebrities at the 31st Toronto International Film Festival.
The 31st Toronto International Film Festival
By GERALD PEARY | September 20, 2006

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