Ann Lemons Pollack
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Potiche
"Potiche" means "trophy wife" in French. Catherine Deneuve, beautiful and glamorous as ever, describes herself as "a trophy housewife," which is more accurate. Either way, she and Gerard Depardieu have a great time in this rather dated French comedy and they are good enough to draw the audience into their fun. These veteran actors are
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Sound It Out
When it comes to investments, no one ever will mistake a record store for an oil giant, but hardly anyone enters a local gas station with the joy that people show as they walk into Sound It Out Records in Stockton-on-Tees, the last record shop in a decaying town in northern England. "Sound It Out
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The Human Resources Manager
“Human Resources Manager” is a handy management euphemism for a low-level bureaucrat who used to be called a personnel director. He/She is in charge of not hiring people during hiring freezes which thaw whenever a real executive wants to hire needs a job for a relative. The movie of the same name, an Israeli offering,
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Water for Elephants
Rosie, the riveting elephant, responds to commands in Polish and drinks at least as much whiskey as water, but "Water for Elephants," probably is a more acceptable title for a film that had some good ideas and is technically magnificent but which is startlingly passionless. Reese Witherspoon (Marlena), as platinum blonde as Jean Harlow, is
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Breakfast at White Castle
Yes, believe it or not. Probably the best drive-through option, although different opinions, as always, invited. Read about it here.
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15
Ever wonder what happens to Gotta-Go-There restaurants when things calm down? Sometimes it’s better not to know, but sometimes it can be extremely interesting. Hard to believe that 15, once spelled F15teen, has been around since 2007. Restaurants in the neighborhood just west of downtown seem to come and go like–well, like professional athletes. But
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Till We Have Faces
The myths of the Greeks and Romans, their stories of gods and goddesses, faith and infidelity, love and loss, have been influencing writers ever since. Right up to last night at the Fontbonne University theater. The ancient myths influenced C. S. Lewis, who wrote a novel, "Till We Have Faces," about Psyche. Lewis' book influenced
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Ralph Kalish as Branch Rickey
Writing and performing a one-person show usually begins as a labor of love. Had William Shakespeare been a critic, watching Ralph Kalish’s two-hour struggle to be Branch Rickey could have inspired him with the title, “Love’s Labour’s Lost.” The Rickey legends are repeated at length at the Gaslight Theatre; the show continues through Sunday, and
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Miral
"Miral" is as much propaganda statement as it is movie, and its focus on the dysfunctional relationship between Palestinians and Israelis is bound to create considerable controversy. The story of four Palestinian women over more than 60 years tends toward soap opera, and the viewpoint of director Julian Schnabel is strongly sympathetic to them, and
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Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
"Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives" wins this month's trophy as the longest–and perhaps oddest–name for a movie. It appeared here last fall as part of the St. Louis International Film Festival, but I did not get the opportunity to see it. Now that it has returned as part of the Webster University