What is the government for, anyway? What is it supposed to do? If you’re a libertarian or an old school Republican, you think its function should be minimal. Government should safeguard the rights of citizens, and otherwise butt out of everyday life.. If you’re a liberal, you believe its function should be more active. You […]

If a genie offered you three wishes, what would you wish for? You’ve probably had that conversation. Whether you were baked out of your mind, sitting around a campfire, or chatting with a close friend or lover, that question has passed through your mind. You could make that one person fall in love with you. […]

Once upon a time, there was a director who got royally screwed. His name was (and continues to be) David Ayer, and his upbringing in South Central Los Angeles informed him well. There are likely two reasons you’re familiar with Ayer. The first is his work as the talented screenwriter of Training Day and the […]

If you’re a screenwriter in Hollywood, a successful one, after a while you start to get the itch to direct your own stuff. Sometimes it works out. Look at Christopher McQuarrie. Other times it doesn’t. Look at Dan Aykroyd. Aaron Sorkin has likely felt the same way, and he’s seized his opportunity with his latest […]

What happens when the title of a movie promises one thing but delivers something entirely different? That goes to the larger issue with moviegoing, I suppose. You see a trailer, spy a poster, even just hear a title, and an imaginary movie with a very particular look and feel starts playing in your head. If the […]

You already know that making a good movie is hard. The alchemy is peculiar, and it requires combining the skill of a craftsman with the soul of a poet to create something uniquely itself. If you think that’s tough, try adapting a novel into a movie. Sometimes the filmmaker can be faithful, too faithful to the source […]

We need Star Trek right now. Badly. The America of Stardate 2016 is fractured. Paranoid. Raging. We’re locked into a presidential election that rejects hope and embraces fear. The vast majority of us plan to vote against a particular candidate instead of being inspired by one. Our country is beset by problems and, when we should be coming […]

Every week before I see the movie I end up reviewing, I talk to my kid about it. He’s 8 years old, bright, and possesses a goofy sense of humor. Sometimes he’s interested in what I’m going to see. Other times, his attention is captured by more lofty subjects.* I mentioned offhandedly to him that […]

Hi, guys. I’m Tim Brennan, and I’ll be your film critic this evening. For the foreseeable future, as well. I grew up in Boulder and got bit by the movie bug young. I’ve seen thousands of films, good, bad and ugly. I’ve also co-written several screenplays, which helped me to learn about the nuts and […]