Steven Soderbergh recently announced his retirement from making feature films—and it was a bleak day for those who think “genre” is a dirty word to movie lovers. Because if Soderbergh has proven anything over the course of his 20-plus-year filmmaking career, it’s that there’s no broad concept that can’t be executed with professionalism and style: […]
Film
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Zombie Meets Girl
Clever premise and one-liners reanimate this otherwise standard zom-rom-com
What if zombies were self-aware? That simple premise launches the zombie comedy Warm Bodies, as we meet R, a zombie who lives at the airport with a bunch of other zombies, walking around aimlessly and periodically going out to look for people to eat. He and his best friend zombie, M, hang out, exchanging meaningful […]
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Zombie Comedies
Zombie films have been around since movies began, but two-thirds of all zombie movies have been made since 2000. That proliferation has created subgenres, including the zombie comedy. At the top of the list: Zombieland (2009): Woody Harrelson and Jesse Eisenberg star in this road trip comedy set in a land filled with zombies. Shaun […]
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We Belong to a Place
Local activists explore the ideals of Cascadia through film
Listed as #8 on Time magazine’s list of aspiring nations, the Republic of Cascadia has a legitimate shot at seceding. Three local filmmakers are using their artistic abilities to support the cause and spread the message of the Cascadian revolution. The Cascadia movement officially campaigns for the autonomy of the bioregion commonly referred to as […]
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America, F***, Yeah!
But Zero Dark Thirty Does Inspire My Patriotism
Too soon? Too soon for a kickass political action movie about the hunt for Osama bin Laden? It’s been less than two years since a black-ops team of elite American soldiers executed the purported mastermind of 9/11, without any sort of due process, on the sovereign soil of another nation. Or maybe it’s not too […]
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Backcountry, Baby
Film fest shows off the best of the out of bounds
The Bend Backcountry Alliance is hosting the eighth annual Winter Wildlands Alliance Backcountry Film Festival at McMenamins this week and you should go. Erik Johnson, who has been a part of the BBA for the past four years, said the seven short films that make up this one-night fest will give audience members the thrill […]
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The Essence of Misery
New Les Mis is Raw
There is no possible way I can even pretend to be objective about this movie. Not that I ever do so, but this is an especially bad case of me being hopelessly—and as far as I’m concerned—wonderfully biased. I love Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil’s rock opera. And by love I mean adore. I’ve memorized it. I can sing it […]
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The Filmgoers Guide to the 2013 Movie Galaxy
There are heaps of new movies out there. Here’s help.
As we travel into the frontier that is 2013, Hollywood will be riding last year’s wave of excellent films (Lincoln, The Master, Zero Dark Thirty) into the unknown. While a litany of sequels threatens to overwhelm the reels (Anchorman: The Legend Continues anyone?) there are a number of notables beyond the basic piggyback films. Here […]
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The Dude Strikes Again
Tower Theatre to host Coen brothers film festival
If you love The Dude, Marge Gunderson and Harry Pfarrer, pour yourself a white Russian and mark your iCal—three great films from the award-winning Coen brothers are coming the Tower. The Tower Theatre is showing the trio of favorites on three consecutive Fridays starting Jan. 11 as part of its first-ever, Coen Brothers Film Festival. […]
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Identity Theft
Holy Motors‘ dreamlike excursion messes with our minds
Holy Motors is the reason I go to movies. Once in a while I see something this extraordinary that captures everything I want from a flick: surrealism, dreamlike sequences, a “what’s next” attitude, conflict, pathos, smatterings of violence, supremely dark humor, a ton of images to make one ponder the universe along with insanely great […]
