'monte carlo' review

Monte Carlo is getting very little buzz, but, honestly, it's better than both Transformers: Dark of the Moon and Larry Crowne . That do...

'larry crowne' review

I've always liked Tom Hanks. That's what made watching Larry Crowne all the more painful. That's not the only reason, though. I ...

'terri' review

One of the best reviewed movies of the summer is Terri , a tart coming-of-age comedy-drama starring John C. Reilly and Jacob Wysocki. I'...

limp bizkit - 'gold cobra' review

Much to my surprise, Limp Bizkit's comeback album, Gold Cobra , is just like the Limp Bizkit of the late '90s: bratty, whiny, and, y...

'transformers: dark of the moon' review

This should explain what an eternal optimist I am: I actually had faith that Transformers: Dark of the Moon might be good. Michael Bay kept...

Derek and the Dominos - "Bell Bottom Blues"

You know, Layla has other great songs than just the title track. "Bell Bottom Blues" is a real standout. (Oh, and that stuff Clapt...

'bad teacher' review

After last night's screening of Bad Teacher , my wife commented that the movie wasn't as bad as she was expecting. Sadly, it was alm...

'a better life' review

I know a few critics who have cried at the ending of A Better Life , an illegal immigrant drama set in Los Angeles. I don't deny its imp...

'if a tree falls' review

If a Tree Falls is a documentary that looks at the Earth Liberation Front, a group of radical environmental activists. For Yahoo, I discuss ...

'bernie' review

Last night's opening film for the 2011 Los Angeles Film Festival was Richard Linklater's Bernie . Starring Jack Black, it's base...

'green lantern' review

My love for Ryan Reynolds continues. He's a funny, intensely likable actor, which made me even sadder that Green Lantern isn't bette...

paul simon - rewrite

An odd choice for a Father's Day song, perhaps, but I've really been feeling "Rewrite" off Paul Simon's latest album. ...

'the art of getting by' review

You can't really hate The Art of Getting By , a coming-of-age indie film starring Freddie Highmore and Emma Roberts. It's sincere an...

'buck' review

Buck is a documentary about Buck Brannaman, a modern-day cowboy who teaches people how to train their horses. He's a soft-spoken man who...

'page one: a year inside the new york times' review

I found Page One: A Year Inside the New York Times to be a pretty fascinating film. But I'm a bit of a media nerd. Will normal humans b...

best coast - goodbye

"I've had people say, 'Oh, your voice is reminiscent of Liz Phair.' And I take that as a huge compliment, but I don't ...

'the trip' review

Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon play fictional versions of themselves in The Trip , a funny and oddly touching little comedy about two friends d...

'super 8' review

While I was watching Super 8 , I was thinking a lot about Fringe , the sci-fi show J.J. Abrams co-created that I used to recap for Vulture ...

jessica lea mayfield - our hearts are wrong

Jessica Lea Mayfield turns 22 in August. I seem incapable of escaping her new-ish single, "Our Hearts Are Wrong," no matter where ...

'film socialisme' review

You may remember that I first saw Jean Luc-Godard's Film Socialisme last year during AFI Fest . (It didn't go so well: The digital ...