"Hotel Mumbai” is an Australian film directed by Anthony Maras who co-wrote the film with John Collee. The film tells the story of the invasion and near destruction of the famous Taj Hotel in Mumbai, India by Jihad Terrorists. Starring Armie Hammer, Dev Patel and Jason Isaacs. the characters portray those caught in the midst of this terrorist attack and the efforts of staff and guests to survive. Were it not for the fact that this is a true story of an incident that actually occurred about 11 years ago in the city of Mumbai, India, it could easily be dismissed as simply another action film made to suit the whims and tastes of a modern audience. However, knowing that all of what is depicted in the film did, in fact, take place, coupled with the excellent editing and interjecting of actual voices and newsreel film, it causes the audience to be riveted in their seats as the 2 hour film speeds by with action, drama and suspense.I give the film 3 stars for it gives insight into not only the victims but the perpetrators as well and makes for a powerful theatrical experience.

"Hotel Mumbai” is an Australian film directed by Anthony Maras who co-wrote the film with John Collee. The film tells the story of  the invasion and near destruction of the famous Taj Hotel in Mumbai, India by Jihad

Terrorists.  Starring Armie Hammer, Dev Patel and Jason Isaacs. the characters  portray

those caught in the midst of this terrorist attack and the efforts of staff and guests to survive.

Were it not for the fact that this is a true story of an incident that actually occurred

about 11 years ago in the city of Mumbai, India, it could easily be dismissed as simply another action film

made to suit the whims and tastes of a modern audience. However, knowing that all of what is depicted in the film did, in fact, take place, coupled with the excellent editing and interjecting of actual voices and newsreel film, it causes the audience to be riveted in their seats as the 2 hour film speeds by with action, drama and suspense.I give the film 3 stars for it gives insight into not only the victims but the perpetrators as

well and makes for a powerful theatrical experience.

“Working Woman” is an Israeli film depicting the frustration of a vulnerable  member of the work force as she is victimized by the sexual harassment of her  employer and how difficult it is for her (and for so many other women similarly situated) to cope with the awkwardness of the role in which she has been placed. Foreign by definition both in language and origin, the film is universal in its appeal for what befalls the heroine in this movie could occur anywhere in the world proving that “bad boys will be bad boys” regardless of the language they speak. I give the film 3 stars with special acknowledgment to Michel Aviad who, as director and co-writer of the film, has captured the humanity and plight of its leading character.

Gloria Bell

“Gloria Bell” stars Julianne Moore and John Torturro in the English version of Sebastian

Lelio’s Chilean film entitled “Gloria” which,, like “Gloria Bell”, he also wrote and directed. This film, but for the language and locale is the same film as “Gloria” so American audiences can now see it absent subtitles and with a new leading lady. This is the big difference because although similar in almost all other respects, Ms. Moore dominates this film as only great and talented actresses can. Superficial and non-dimensional, the story is light and thin but what Ms. Moore does with the material makes it a worthwhile theatrical experience.. It’s hard to imagine this movie without her and, as a result,  I give the film 3 stars.

Never Look Away

"Never Look Away" is a film written and directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck. He also directed two previous and notable German films, one entitled "Black Book" and the second "The Lives of Others". The latter film won an Academy Award as the Best Foreign Language film in 2006 and both films received 4 stars from this reviewer because of their clarity. power and the wonderful theatrical experiences they created. One of the common threads in each of the two prior films and in this one as well is the presence of Sebastian Koch, a dominating figure on the screen. Here Mr. Koch co-stars with Tom Schilling and Paula Beer in this saga that begins in1940 under the reign of Adolph Hitler, moves forward through the era of the German Democratic Republic in the eastern part of Germany and then finally concludes its story in the west.

Loosely resembling the life of artist Gerhard Rickter, the film is filled with coincidences and drama that keep the viewer deeply involved as the young artist, portrayed by Mr. Schilling, looks for and attempts to find his own  reality amidst the politics and autocratic regimes of the Third Reich and the GDR. The film is 188 minutes in length but never has a 3 hour plus film been so easy to watch and that is due mainly to the superb writing, directing and acting of those in it and responsible for it. Kudos, too, to Caleb Deschanel whose camera work has earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Cinemaphotography. I give this film 4 stars and can easily understand why Germany made it its entry for Best Foreign Language film of 2018.

Velvet Buzzsaw

“Velvet Buzzsaw” stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Rene Russo. Written and directed by Dan

Gilroy, this is a film that just can’t make up its mind nor can some of the characters in

it.  Mr. Gyllenhaal’s character struts throughout the film as a homosexual art dealer

but all of the sex scenes are between him and other women. Likewise, the film itself purports

to be a satire on the art scene yet it also tries to be a horror film never fully or committing

under either label.  Currently being exhibited on both Netflix and in local theaters,

the film doesn’t deserve to be seen in either venue. I give the film one star and suggest

that a blank tv or movie screen will be more entertaining than this poor attempt at

entertainment

Who Will Write Our History

"Who Will Write Our History" is a docudrama directed by Roberta Grossman

who co-wrote the film with Samuel Kassow based on his novel of the same

name.

The film tells the story of Emanuel Ringelblum and a group called the Oyneg Shabes, 

the secret archive he created and directed in the Warsaw Ghetto. With 30,000 pages of writing,

photographs, posters, and more, the Oyneg Shabes Archive contains eyewitness accounts

documenting not only how the Jews of the ghetto died, but how they

were forced to live. Most interesting is the fact that the actual films shown (obtained

through the British archives)  were taken by German soldiers so the audience sees

the torture and inhumane acts thrust upon these vulnerable and defenseless individuals

through the camera lenses of their captors.

This is a review of a film that will contain no rating for it is not entertainment in any

sense but, instead, a history of man's inhumanity to man and how those, faced

with almost certain death, attempted to guarantee that the outside world (from which

they were excluded) would some day learn the horrors they faced and the evils they

encountered. As with all such acts of intolerance and terror, one must ask "why", and

sadly it is a question that still remains unanswered even as of today.

“On the Basis of Sex” is the story of one notable period in the life of Justice Ruth

Bader Ginsburg and how she successfully argued in Federal Court that statutory bias and discrimination based  on a subject’s gender was unconstitutional.

Directed by Mimi Leder with a screenplay written by Justice Ginsburg’s  nephew,

Daniel Stiepelman, the film portrays this dynamic lady as a

crusader for the rights of persons of both sexes and lets the viewer know and understand the tenacity and perseverance of this legal giant. Aptly portrayed by Felicity Jones in the leading role, Ms. Jones  is supported by by Armie Hammer, Sam Waterston and Justin Theroux. Having attended the same law school when Justice Ginsburg studied there, I can personally attest to the very few female law students in attendance  and how extraordinary they had to be in order to gain admission to this restricted legal club .Clearly, Justice Ginsburg is the embodiment of the best of the best of all of them. I give this film 3 stars for its interesting story and the entertaining manner in which it was able to relate the historical significance of all that Justice Ginsburg achieved.