New this week: (4/5/13)

English Vinglish   (Hindi)

Shashi Godbole is a super-sensitive wife, mother and daughter-in-law; a perfect homemaker and small-time entrepreneur. Her only handicap is English. Does she manage to master the Queen's language?  “English Vinglish is a refined, adult coming-of-age story with a fantastic heroine at its heart. This is definitely a must-see.”—Karen Gibson, Access Bollywood

 

I was saddened to read of the death of film critic Roger Ebert this week. I was a fan of his TV show from the beginning. In fact, a common question to ask friends was: "Do you agree more with Roger or with Gene?" (I agreed more with Roger.) Both Roger and Gene seemed like old friends to me. I purchased and/or read many of Roger's books including his wonderful book about the Cannes film festival Two Weeks in the Midday Sun. I didn't always agree with his reviews but it seemed that he felt the same way about films that I did: that a films' success or failure depended as much on whether or not the film felt right as it did on plot, acting, technical quality, etc. I never felt that Roger, in spite of all the films he reviewed,or all the celebrities he got to know, that he was at all jaded or that he was unfair in his judgments. In my mind he was the best film critic ever. But now the world of film is changing. How we view films is changing and where we get our reviews is changing. My hope is that all of those reviewers out there in cyberspace use Roger Ebert as their model on how a good review should be written. Rest in peace Roger Ebert. We will miss you.