Year: 2018

Stern searches for order in ‘American Chaos’

Jeff Mitchell

“American Chaos” – “They hate her, and they hate Obama too.” – James D. Stern The aforementioned quote about Hillary Clinton and President Obama is one of the conclusions that director James D. Stern inevitably acknowledges in his documentary “American Chaos” about a nearly two-year-old event, the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election.  Stern – a lifelong Democrat who declares that Bobby Kennedy is one of his heroes – probably already knew that particular fact before making his movie.  He confirms it, however, during his own personal ground game. For six months…

‘Kin’ misfires its laser gun story

Jeff Mitchell

“Kin” –  Speaking from personal experience, many preteen boys who grew up in the late 1970’s enjoyed “Star Wars” (1977) and wished to own laser guns similar to Han Solo’s and/or Chewbacca’s.  Sure, sheriffs and outlaws firing rifles during “Bonanza” reruns carried a certain admired machismo, but laser guns discharging explosive light missiles provided an indescribable allure. With certainty, a significant subset of these anxious, excitable kids asked their fathers, “Dad, have ‘they’ invented laser guns yet?” Again, speaking from personal experience. In 2018 Detroit, one would be hard-pressed to…

Close honors “The Wife” with an Oscar-worthy performance

Jeff Mitchell

“The Wife” – Look back at any decade since 1979, and Meryl Streep could be called America’s Most Celebrated Actress.  Streep collected 21 Oscar nominations and nabbed three wins over her career, so it is difficult to make a case for another actress to topple this aforementioned, fictional acting title.  In the 1980’s alone, Streep collected seven Oscar nominations and two Best Actress wins for “Kramer vs. Kramer” (1979) and “Sophie’s Choice” (1982), but if she is the most decorated actress from the 80’s, Glenn Close might be the runner-up.…