Otmara Marrero Breaks Out in the Sultry Breakup Drama Clementine By Jay S. Jacobs The devastation of a sudden breakup – that feeling that you have found the person who may complete you, only to have it suddenly ripped away from you and you realize that the other person has already moved on – that is a feeling most people have experienced at least once in their lives. This vulnerable point in many people’s existence is the starting off point in the intriguing new dramatic thri

Bombshell BOMBSHELL (2019) Starring Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman, Margot Robbie, John Lithgow, Kate McKinnon, Connie Britton, Liv Hewson, Brigette Lundy-Paine, Mark Duplass, Rob Delaney, Malcolm McDowell, Allison Janney, Alice Eve, Stephen Root, Richard Kind, Robin Weigert, Amy Landecker, Mark Moses, D’Arcy Carden, Kevin Dorff, Anne Ramsay, Tricia Helfer and Jennifer Morrison. Screenplay by Charles Randolph. Directed by Jay Roach. Distributed by Lionsgate. 108 minutes. Rate

Rebecca Schull in “The Last.” Rebecca Schull and Jeff Lipsky Saving the Best for The Last by Jay S. Jacobs What would you do? That is the main question in the new independent film The Last, a movie that has a shocking and inflammatory subject matter but looks at it from a smart and philosophical viewpoint. What would you do if you have grown up in a loving and diverse Jewish family if your beloved grandmother confesses when she learns that she is dying that she is not a Jewis

Downsizing DOWNSIZING (2017) Starring Matt Damon, Christoph Waltz, Hong Chau, Kristen Wiig, Udo Kier, Rolf Lassgård, Ingjerd Egeberg, James Van Der Beek, Jason Sudeikis, Neil Patrick Harris, Laura Dern, Niecy Nash, Kerry Kenney, Maribeth Monroe, Don Lake, Margo Martindale, Brigitte Lundy-Paine, Joaquim de Almeida, Phil Reeves, Ana Marie Cox, Roland Martin, Don Lake and Mary Kay Place. Screenplay by Alexander Payne & Jim Taylor. Directed by Alexander Payne. Distributed by Para

Ellie Kendrick stars in “The Levelling.” Ellie Kendrick Levelling the Field by Jay S. Jacobs You always think of the bright, shiny places that young actors go to find stardom. However, acclaimed young British actress Ellie Kendrick is making a buzz by literally descending into the muck. Though she is only 26, Kendrick has been making a name for herself in British television and film for well over a decade. Her first starring role was in a television version of The Diary of An

GIRLFRIENDS’ GUIDE TO DIVORCE — Season:2 — Pictured: Necar Zadegan as Delia — (Photo by: Andrew Eccles/Bravo) Necar Zadegan Girlfriend’s Guide to TV Stardom by Landyn Gerace The drama is back in Bravo’s first scripted series, Girlfriend’s Guide to Divorce. The show returns for its second season Tuesday, December 1 and the leading ladies aren’t holding back. With four female leads (Lisa Edelstein, Beau Garrett, Necar Zadegan and Alanna Ubach), the writer of the series being a

Hippocrates (Diary of a French Doctor) HIPPOCRATES – DIARY OF A FRENCH DOCTOR (2014) Starring Vincent Lacoste, Reda Kateb, Jacques Gamblin, Marianne Denicourt, Felix Moati, Carole Franck, Philippe Rebbot, Julie Brochen, Jeanne Cellard and Thierry Levaret. Screenplay by Thomas Lilti, Baya Kasmi, Julien Lilti and Pierre Chosson. Directed by Thomas Lilti. Distributed by Distrib Films US.  101 minutes.  Rated R. Hospitals have always been forbidding structures.  Huge, frenetic, s

Boulevard BOULEVARD (2015) Starring Robin Williams, Kathy Baker, Bob Odenkirk, Roberto Aguire, Giles Matthey, Eleonore Hendricks, J. Karen Thomas, Landon Marshall, Henry Haggard, Clay Jeffries, Brandon Hirsch, Curtis Gordon, David Ditmore and Joshua Decker. Screenplay by Douglas Soesbe. Directed by Dito Montiel. Distributed by Starz Digital Media.  88 minutes.  Rated R. Despite whatever positive and negative attributes that Boulevard may display as a film, it will forever be

Horrible Bosses 2 HORRIBLE BOSSES 2 (2014) Starring Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis, Jennifer Aniston, Jamie Foxx, Chris Pine, Christoph Waltz, Kevin Spacey, Jonathan Banks, Keegan-Michael Key, Kelly Stables, Suzy Nakamura, Brendan Hunt and Lindsey Sloane. Screenplay by Sean Anders and John Morris. Directed by Sean Anders. Distributed by Warner Bros.  108 minutes.  Rated R. I’m not sure that anyone in the world has really been waiting around for a sequel to Horribl

Force Majeure FORCE MAJEURE (2014) Starring Johannes Kuhnke, Lisa Loven Kongsli, Clara Wettergren, Vincent Wettergren, Brady Corbet, Kristofer Hivju, Fanni Metelius, Jakob Granqvist and Malin Dahl. Screenplay by Ruben Östlund. Directed by Ruben Östlund. Distributed by Magnolia Pictures.  119 minutes.  Rated R. There is a certain symmetry in the fact that most of Ruben Östlund’s latest film, Force Majeure, revolves around an avalanche that does not quite cause disaster, but is

Sofia Vergara, John Turturro and Vanessa Paradis at the “Fading Gigolo” press conference at the Crosby Street Hotel in New York, April 11, 2014. Photo copyright 2014 Jay S. Jacobs John Turturro, Sofia Vergara and Vanessa Paradis Don’t Want To Fade Away by Jay S. Jacobs You can thank John Turturro’s barber for connecting him with Woody Allen. Turturro is a well-known character actor, who in a career that runs for well over 30 years has been in such varied projects as Do The Ri

Fading Gigolo FADING GIGOLO (2014) Starring John Turturro, Woody Allen, Vanessa Paradis, Liev Schreiber, Sharon Stone, Sofía Vergara, Bob Balaban, Jill Scott, Max Casella, Aida Turturro, Michael Badalucco, Eugenia Kuzmina, David Margulies, Katherine Borowitz and Loan Chabanol. Screenplay by John Turturro. Directed by John Turturro. Distributed by Millennium Entertainment. 90 minutes. Rated R. It’s not very often that you find a movie which explores both male prostitution and

Diego Luna at the New York Press Day for “Cesar Chavez.” Photo by Brad Balfour. Actor Turned Director Diego Luna Celebrates Cesar Chavez by Brad Balfour Born on December 29, 1979 in Mexico City, Diego Luna Alexander lost his mother in a car accident when he was only two. Therefore, Luna became immersed in his father’s passion for entertainment. His father was Mexico’s most acclaimed living theatre, cinema and opera set designer. From an early age Luna began acting in televisi

Demián Bichir at the New York Press Day for ‘Dom Hemingway.’ The Crosby St. Hotel, SoHo, New York. March 27, 2014. Photo copyright 2014 Jay S. Jacobs Demián Bichir Invitation to the Adventure of a Lifetime by Jay S. Jacobs You’ve been seeing a whole lot of Mexican actor Demián Bichir in the movies and on TV these days.  While Bichir has been a well-known actor in his native land for well over a decade, and even had some show-stopping turns in Hollywood projects like Stephen S

Robert De Niro at the Q&A celebrating the 20th Anniversary of “A Bronx Tale.” Robert De Niro The Actor and Filmmaker Shaped Chazz Palminteri’s A Bronx Tale As His Directorial Debut by Brad Balfour On February 26, 2014, the First Time Fest team held a special event in tandem with Tribeca Enterprises in anticipation of the 20th anniversary of A Bronx Tale, Oscar-winning actor Robert De Niro‘s directorial debut. Since the concept of the fest is to celebrate directors and their d

Dom Hemingway DOM HEMINGWAY (2014) Starring Jude Law, Richard E. Grant, Demian Bichir, Emilia Clarke, Kerry Condon, Jumayn Hunter, Madalina Ghenea, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, Richard Graham, Nick Raggett, Katiana Taylor, Collette Morrow, Philippe Pierrard, Claire Viville, Jordan Nash and Grant Russell. Screenplay by Richard Shepard. Directed by Richard Shepard. Distributed by Fox Searchlight Pictures. 93 minutes. Rated R. Antiheroes definitely have a place in movies.  Let’s face

Bryan Callen Bryan Callen It’s A Man’s, Man’s World by Jay S. Jacobs Stand up comedian.  Actor.  Podcast host.  Father.  Occasional color commentary guy.  Seeker of knowledge.  Chronicler of sexual roles. You don’t want to be the dude responsible for keeping Bryan Callen’s résumé current. You’ve seen him on TV, or on the big screen, or in the comedy clubs.  His filmography veers wildly from a recurring role in The Hangover films to doing serious time in Oz to being an origina

Billy Crudup stars in “Blood Ties.” Billy Crudup and Guillaume Canet Honoring Their Blood Ties by Jay S. Jacobs Two brothers.  One is a cop.  The other is a gangster just getting out of an extended stay in jail and now sliding back into his old ways.  That’s going to make for some uncomfortable family holiday dinners. That dichotomy is the story behind the new film drama Blood Ties.  Billy Crudup plays the cop and Clive Owen is the con in a terrific ensemble drama about the h

Jordan Hayes and Billy Campbell star in “Helix.” Billy Campbell and Jordan Hayes Take On a Pandemic in Helix by Jay S. Jacobs The Syfy Channel has high hopes for its new snowbound thriller series Helix. A shiny new variation of many science fiction nightmares has a mysterious and deadly disease - which may or may not be manmade - turning a bunch of scientists in an Arctic scientific outpost into weird, violent zombie-like creatures. The show brought in genre veteran Billy Cam

Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender, Sarah Paulson, Lupita Nyong’o and Alfre Woodard Looking Back on 12 Years a Slave by Jay S. Jacobs Director Steve McQueen's film version of former slave Solomon Northrop's autobiography 12 Years a Slave takes an eye-opening look at one of the great shames of American history, the prevalence of the violent slave trade in the 1700s and 1800s. Northrop was a free man who was claimed as a slave and had to spend over a decade in forced servitud