George Clooney’s monument to persistent treasure hunters opens this weekend

Art will imitate life on the silver screens this weekend. George Clooney’s historic project “The Monuments Men” opens. It tells the tale of the good soldiers tasked with saving so many treasures of the art world from the grasp of the Nazi regime, so they won’t be destroyed. There was a book about it first.…

In ‘Labor Day,’ Kate Winslet, Josh Brolin fall quickly

Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin can look at each other and understand so much. In “Labor Day,” they play a mother and an escaped convict who meet under much duress. After a day of circling each other warily — but compassionately, considering the circumstances — the stars’ characters pack two lifetimes’ worth of drama into…

‘Labor Day’ drama, humor from ‘That Awkward Moment’

Love can bloom in strange places. Hollywood tries to prove that again and again with the two major film openings this weekend. “Labor Day” pairs Josh Brolin and Kate Winslet as a mystery man and reclusive mom who just may end up joining together to conquer both of their dilemmas, if the trailer is a…

We sort of find out what would happen if a ‘Frankenstein’ surfaced today

‘I, Frankenstein’ starts with the monster roaming the land 200 years ago, taking care of business, settling scores. It was kind of comforting to think it was so far in the past. But somehow, Adam Frankenstein surfaces in the present. Now that’s a scary thought. The man-made monster meets gargoyles and demons and finds himself…

A monster and good deeds come to our theaters this weekend

The two movies opening this weekend couldn’t be more opposite. In ‘I Frankenstein,’ we will have the latest incarnation of the scary, zipper-necked fellow, taken from the pages of a graphic novel, by the creators of “Underworld.” I am scared already. And then there’s the Hindi-language film “Jai Ho,” a remake of a Telugu movie,…

‘Ride Along’ drives from totally tiresome to pretty terrific

Kevin Hart plays a security guard geek who finds it hard to pull himself away from his video game in the morning to go work at the high school. Ice Cube plays a policeman who not only lives Hart’s Ben Barber’s dream life, but also is the brother of Barber’s girlfriend. So the little man…

Get ’em while it’s hot: Kevin Hart joins Ice Cube for ‘Ride Along’

Every now and again, it seems like every other movie trailer that pops on the screen features the same actor. I’ve been feeling like this is the winter of Kevin Hart. The latest for the funny man is ‘Ride Along,’ in which he plays security guard who tries to prove he’s worthy of taking the…

In ‘Her,’ Scarlett Johansson has Joaquin Phoenix from hello

In the movie “Her,” Theodore Twombly makes his living writing letters for other people. His skills are appreciated. He’s got plenty of repeat clients, folks who trust him to put their thoughts and wishes into the perfect words. I think that would be a pretty cool job. Of course, in Los Angeles of the future,…

Give us one year, Hollywood, to keep things in the present

The big thinkers in the main offices of the Syracuse New Times tasked us writers with a challenge. What would you like to see happen on the beat you cover for the new year. As I’ve been sharing here twice a week, I blog about film for this energetic Syracuse alternative newspaper’s site. The direct…

The cons cooked up by pros keeps ‘American Hustle’ hopping

Christian Bale makes sure con man Irving Rosenfeld keeps his cool. Bradley Cooper plays FBI agent Richie DiMaso as a hot mess. Throw in the split affections of Amy Adams’s Sydney Prosser, the manipulations of Jennifer Lawrence’s Rosalyn Rosenfeld and the big dreams of Jeremy Renner’s Mayor Carmen Polito, and you never quite know who…