Diversions

‘Color of Stars’ Childsplay’s salute to smalltown America

To celebrate its 35th birthday, Childsplay, the resident theater company for young people at Tempe Center for the Arts, is once again doing a show that isn’t entirely, well, child’s play. “The Color...

Taking aim at a moving target in ‘Hunger Games’

Wild turkeys have been a recurring theme in my life recently. I missed the screening of The Hunger Games, still mopping up at the box office two weeks after its opening, because...

Visual authenticity doesn’t save ‘Carter’

Maybe the highest compliment that can be paid to John Carter, the long-awaited version of A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs, is that it looks just like it ought to...

Dr. Seuss spinoff ‘The Lorax’ doesn’t conceal its bias

For those unfamiliar with The Lorax, the 1971 children’s book on which the new film Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax is based: It’s an environmentalist parable told by a mysterious character called The Once-ler....

Arietty’ already Top 10-bound

Even if, like me, you’re not an especially big fan of the Japanese anime style, don’t miss The Secret World of Arietty. We’re only in February, but I would have to have...

‘Moonstruck’ a perfect pick for your Valentine

A woman falls in love with her fiancé’s estranged brother. An aging, successful businessman cheats on his wife. These are the plot and subplot, respectively, of Moonstruck, which turns 25 this year. To...

‘Extremely Loud’ gives fine acting

Despite the title, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is a mostly quiet movie, and for quite a while it keeps its emotional distance, too. The central character, Oskar Schell (Thomas Horn), the...

Our film guy lists his top 2011 picks

Phoenix Film Critics Society, of which I am a proud founding member, announced its 2011 Award winners shortly before New Year’s Day. Among those selected were The Artist for Best Picture; its...
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