Ex Machina is a film for our times. It’s a cautionary tale about the potential future trajectory of artificial intelligence and our fear of it. Computers and robots are facts of life today, but their level of sophistication in 2015 may seem awfully primitive in the future as AI gains more and more footholds. It
Tom Jenkinson, better known as Squarepusher, is constantly blowing our minds, and consequently probably blowing our ear drums out as well. With each new release, he tweaks his sound, and like any good musician, he tries to push himself forward and does something new each time. “Damogen Furies” is his first solo LP in three
It is said brevity is the soul of wit, Northampton, Mass. based four piece Speedy Ortiz definitely bring that thought to mind with their second studio album “Foil Deer.” The group’s raw meets Pop sound coalesced with vocalist Sadie Dupuis’ audaciously clever lyrics have made Speedy Ortiz a much buzzed new band out of the
Ripped from the headlines, it is not as good as “Capote,” but close enough. Debut feature director Rupert Goold pulled one out of the hat with this amazingly entertaining dual of wits, and lies, between two men who are world class in the art of deception. At the heart of the film is the weakness
This pot-boiler takes the viewer by surprise after a slow start, but the start is too long and the surprise too short. In the midst of a jocular college reunion, the young, beautiful and mysterious guest Elly (Taraneh Alidousti) disappears without a trace. In the wake of her disappearance, her true story emerges to the
Writer director Andrew Cividino’s coming-of-age film Sleeping Giant has just been announced as Canada’s first feature film entry in competition at the Cannes Film Festival next month. It is part of Semaine de la Critique, the Directors’ Fortnight, competing for the prestigious Camera D’Or award. Sleeping Giant, made for just $60,000 was inspired by Cividino’s’
A B-movie that tried to be something better but stayed a B-movie. Writer/director Alex Garland’s sci-fi flick is the latest in a long line of slipshod Hollywood treatments of artificial intelligence. This tale starts with a pseudo “imitation game” in which Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson) has been chosen to determine which is the real person and
Washed-up television star, and BravoTV “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” cast member, Kim Richards was locked up by police in the wee hours of Thursday morning after she got s**tfaced and acted like an a**hole at the Polo Lounge at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Even better, she pulled her famous locking-herself-in-the-bathroom routine and had to
Although it is very light on action and violence, A Most Violent Year features powerful performances in a slow-burning drama about a good man trying to make an honest living while everyone around him seems to be happy to cut corners anyway they can. Written and directed by J. C. Chandor (Margin Call and All
A wonderful Monday night in Downtown Los Angeles would be incomplete without a dive into the genius of a true legend, or maybe that’s just me. Either way, I dove into the genius of a true legend Monday night, deal with it. Downtown has some of my favorite venues in town, and tonight I got