Tag: movies

‘The Shape of Water’ and ‘Three Billboards’ share the Phoenix Critics Circle’s Best Picture award

Jeff Mitchell

On Dec. 15, the Phoenix Critics Circle, along with their friends and spouses, enjoyed a festive evening at the Phoenix Film Foundation office and announced its winners for the best films, performances and technical categories of 2017. Guillermo del Toro’s “The Shape of Water” and Martin McDonagh’s “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” both took the top prize for Best Picture  – via a tie – during an evening of two other ties as well.   “Three Billboards” was the big winner with four wins, closely followed by Jordan Peele’s “Get Out”…

Four essential Michael Douglas movies from the 1980s on Netflix and/or Amazon

Jeff Mitchell

Michael Douglas celebrates his 73rd birthday on Sept. 25.  Happy Birthday, Mr. Douglas! For young fans, Douglas is known as Dr. Hank Pym in “Ant-Man” (2015) and “Ant-Man and the Wasp” (2018), but this Hollywood legend has starred in great films for decades. Looking back to the 1980s, here are four essential Michael Douglas films that you can catch on Netflix and/or Amazon right now. “The Star Chamber” (1983) – After years of watching guilty men enter their courtrooms and unfairly walking free, a group of judges form their own…

Looking back at director Taika Waititi’s wonderful New Zealand film catalog

Jeff Mitchell

On Aug. 7, Art House Film Wire looked back at four fantastic four-star Australian thrillers on Netflix and/or Amazon, and the land Down Under has certainly raised the cinematic bar.   Well, Australia’s nearby neighbor, New Zealand, is not new to the movie-making business either.  Like the Aussies, the Kiwis have churned out terrific movies too, and no, New Zealand cinema is not limited to the “Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” series.   Specifically, let’s look at one director, Taika Waititi.   We’ll, he’s not just a director, because he…