Month: July 2013

“Side Effects”–Warning: Contraindications

Written by diana on July 31, 2013. Posted in movie reviews. 5 Comments on “Side Effects”–Warning: Contraindications

“Side Effects” opens with Martin Taylor (Channing Tatum) being released from prison after serving a four-year sentence for insider trading. His wife Emily (Rooney Mara) is frail, severely depressed, and disinterested in Martin’s re-entering her life. Soon her world unravels as she becomes dependent upon a new, experimental...

“Shattered”–aka “Butterfly on a Wheel”

Written by diana on July 23, 2013. Posted in movie reviews. 2 Comments on “Shattered”–aka “Butterfly on a Wheel”

This intriguing tale of vengeance is centered on a theme found in Alexander Pope’s Epistle to Dr. Arbuthnot” (1735) in which placing undue effort on a minor issue is like breaking a “butterfly on a wheel”. And this first-rate thriller was so named in its British and Canadian release (2007), to be retitled...

“The Page Turner”–Notes to a Thriller

Written by diana on July 18, 2013. Posted in movie reviews. 2 Comments on “The Page Turner”–Notes to a Thriller

A French cinematic sleeper (2006), “The Page Turner” is a thriller as subtle as a sonata, fine-tuned and intricately composed. The story opens with young gifted pianist Mélanie Prouvost, the ten-year-old daughter of a butcher, methodically practicing for an entrance exam to a prestigious music conservatory. She and her parents have...

“Endeavour”–A Prequel to the Inspector Morse Series

Written by diana on July 10, 2013. Posted in Television reviews. 3 Comments on “Endeavour”–A Prequel to the Inspector Morse Series

“Endeavour” is the much-anticipated mystery series currently on Sunday evenings on PBS’s Masterpiece Mystery. A testament to the beloved long-running Inspector Morse series (1987-2000), this series is the back story for young DC Morse before he became the curmudgeonly middle-aged Chief Inspector Morse. Set in Oxford in 1965...

Japanese Art as Metaphor: “Return to the Sea” and “Hanga Reinvented”

Written by diana on July 3, 2013. Posted in Art, Unhealed Wound. 5 Comments on Japanese Art as Metaphor: “Return to the Sea” and “Hanga Reinvented”

Japanese contemporary art can be a wonder to behold, as evidenced by the current exhibit at the Monterey Museum of Art. These two ongoing exhibits are not to be missed. The first is a 300-pound salt installation that covers 1800 sq. ft. of the gallery floor, now roped off so that the observer doesn’t inadvertently step on the salt....