Baby, You Can Drive My Car
One of the many advantages of having a child in one’s life is that it provides an excuse for going to kid flicks. So on …
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Baggage Line
Rush Limbaugh isn’t the only one being sniffed out for carrying innocent (though embarrass- ing) substances while flying back to the United States. On my …
Trolling for Luggage
Why do people crowd shoulder-to-shoulder around baggage-carousel to watch for their luggage? They stand right next to the conveyer belt, even craning their necks and …
Bound but Determined
In “Snow Flower and the Secret Fan,” Lisa See creates a convincing memoir of an intimate friendship between two women, Lily and Snow Flower, raised …
Do the Right Transition
With “Inside Man,” Spike Lee successfully makes the transition from “black film director” to simply “film director,” creating a tense and entertain- ing bank robbery …
From Suspense to Soap
In late 2001 Fox launched a new series called “24,” a daring experiment that became its biggest dramatic hit. The concept was intriguing: each episode …
V as in M CMLXXXIV
Turn their name upside down, because the Wachowski brothers are Men on a Mission, Moved by a Message, Movie Makers with Meaning. Like their Matrix …
Neuroses and Nets
One of the reasons why Woody Allen movies have lost their box office appeal in recent years is his somewhat provincial focus on Manhattan, both …
‘Twas Beauty Killed the Beast
Director Peter Jackson was just 9 years old when he saw Merian Cooper’s 1933 “King Kong” on television in his native New Zealand. Fascinated by …
Do Two Wrongs Make a Right?
Several years ago, while attending a bat mitzvah with my daughter, I noticed a large ornate altarpiece on the wall behind the pulpit. It proclaimed: …