The Film:

Several times deep into El Bulli's generous running time of nearly two hours, this writer had to remind himself, briefly but firmly, that one is supposed to be engrossed and awed by the culinary expertise on display. Watching Ferran Adri (a preternaturally stoic man whose unflappable demeanor suggests a thicker Henry Silva) gesture infrequently and deliver statements that sound like occasional self-parody, director Gereon Wetzel's approach to the documentary becomes puzzling with every passing minute. Presented as observational cinema, with barely any background on the restaurant's haute cuisine status or why it's attracting attention worthy of a feature-length doc (though nowadays everything halfway impressive is obsessively recorded), El Bulli quickly loses its novelty.

Certainly the subtitle attached to Bulli is more than an afterthought - "Cooking in Progr...Read the entire review

Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th incarnation of the Dalai Lama, Tibetan Buddhism's most revered leader, spends five months a year in isolated study and contemplation. During the other seven months though, he's engaged in near-constant advocacy for a myriad of global human rights-related issues including wealth redistribution, public health initiatives, disarmament, climate change, women's rights, literacy, fisheries management, religious toleration, and especially, political and religious autonomy from China for Tibet. The Dalai Lama pursues his agenda through one-on-one meetings with world leaders, larger audiences with the international political class at home and on a global lecture circuit abroad, and by reaching even wider audiences through media, especially television and home video. In addition to countless interviews for television news and public affairs programs, since 2000, the Dalai Lama has appe...Read the entire review

Sarah Fisher's documentary about Buddhist teacher and ex-addict Noah Levine, Meditate and Destroy, answers a question I've long had. As a longtime non-believer in a god or gods who answer prayers, I've frequently wondered where atheist and agnostic alcoholics and drug addicts could turn for help overcoming their addictions when so much of the treatment available in the United States relies on the principles of the 12-step program. You see, six of those 12 steps explicitly involve acknowledging a higher power, confiding in God one's woes, and praying for divine assistance. While well-heeled addicts can turn to secular psychotherapy or other treatment options, where can working-class teens and young-adults turn for encouragement, I wondered; enter Noah Levine.

Born in 19...Read the entire review

The Movie:
Note: this review is based on a pre-release screener, which may or may not reflect the final retail version of this title.

William Goldman, the august screenwriter with an Oscar or two sitting on his mantle, also has written several fascinating non-fiction books detailing various insider information about sundried artistic genres. While his 1983 tome "Adventures in the Screen Trade" may be his most famous work to the general populace (at least the populace that visits sites about film), I personally recommend that anyone with any interest in showbiz generally and theater specifically check out his 1969 masterpiece, "The Season." This frightening, acerbic (and, yes, occasionally homophobic) look at the disastrous 1967-68 Broadway season will open your eyes about the ways shows got produced, at least back then, with several incredibly revealing chapters about the "...Read the entire review