My Interview With Jonathan Gould, Author of 'Burning Down the House'

Burning Down the House: Talking Heads and the New York Scene That Transformed Rock is an exhaustive biography of the seminal band and the city that shaped them. For Paste, I talked to author Jonathan Gould (himself a musician) to discuss many things: David Byrne's autism, Stop Making Sense's greatness, and why the band is never ever getting back together. You can read my Q&A here.

True/False 2022: The Rankings and the Rundown

I haven't been to True/False since 2019. Where did the time go? (Oh, right, the pandemic.) It was great to be back. Below, here's a quick ranking of every film I saw at the festival, including a few I checked out in advance. (Links lead to my Sundance reviews.)

16. Eventually 
15. Days and Nights of Demetra K.
14. We Met in Virtual Reality
13. Brotherhood
12. Fire of Love
11. The Territory
10. Sirens
9. After Sherman
8. Children of the Mist
7. GES-2
6. I Didn’t See You There
5. Factory to the Workers
4. Riotsville, USA
3. 2nd Chance
2. Dos Estaciones
1. Where Are We Headed?

As opposed to my usual (epic) rundown, I split duties with fellow critic Dom Sinacola for this Paste recap. True/False is still recovering from Covid, as all festivals are, but even at three-fourths strength, it was a fine time. 

'About Endlessness' Review

One of the complaints leveled at Roy Andersson's latest is that it's not as funny as his earlier films. That's kind of the point. My review of About Endlessness is up over at Paste.

'Gemini Man' Review

Ang Lee's new action film is the second in a row he's shot in a higher frame rate than is traditional for studio movies. I find his commitment to this technology ... fascinating. Which is not the same thing as saying that Gemini Man is good. I reviewed the movie for Paste.

'Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese' Review

Imperfect, dynamic, mythic, unfocused, pretty damn great: If you're a Dylan person, you know what to expect from Rolling Thunder Revue. I reviewed the concert film for Paste.

'Long Shot' Review

Long Shot got good reviews out of South by Southwest. I didn't see it there. I wrote about this mediocre comedy for Paste.

True/False 2019: The Rankings and the Rundown

My seventh True/False was, by critical consensus, not one of the festival's strongest. But there were still some gems. Here's a quick ranking of everything I saw...

15. Mr. Soul!
14. Home, Sweet Home
13. Mike Wallace Is Here 
12. Untitled Amazing Johnathan Documentary
11. One Child Nation
10. Caballerango
9. Let It Burn
8. Apollo 11 
7. Cold Case Hammarskjöld
6. No Data Plan
5. Midnight Traveler
4. American Factory
3. Amazing Grace
2. Finding Frances
1. The Hottest August

I decided to include Finding Frances, the final episode of Nathan for You's fourth season, for reasons I get into in my annual True/False recap over at Paste. And I hope a smart distributor picks up The Hottest August, which is the strong new film from The Prison in Twelve Landscapes director Brett Story.

'Greta' Review

Look, I get it's supposed to be campy and over-the-top. But I still couldn't get on Greta's wavelength. I reviewed the film for Paste.

'Widows' Review

Widows was my favorite film I saw at Toronto. It's out Friday. I sing its praises over at Paste.

'A Star Is Born' Review

Is the new A Star Is Born good? Yes. Is it great? Uh.... (My review is up at Paste.)

'Makala' Review

I think Makala is one of the best documentaries of the year. It opens Friday in New York and will hopefully start moving around the country from there. I make the case for the film over at Paste.

'The Meg' Review

More like The Mehg, am I right? Anyway, here's my review of the latest Jason Statham stinker.

'Christopher Robin' Review

I am predisposed to like something such as Christopher Robin, which imagines what would happen when the titular boy grows up and runs into his old pal Pooh as an adult. Alas, I wasn't a fan. I reviewed the film for Paste.

'Ocean's 8' Review

I'm praying that Ocean's 8 doesn't face the same online nonsense that befell the 2016 all-female reboot of Ghostbusters. As for the film, it's good, but not great. My review is up at Paste.

'Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom' Review

You know what? I think I'm just kinda over Jurassic Park movies. The latest, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, is less terrible than 2015's Jurassic World. I still didn't like it, though. My review is up at Paste.

Cannes 2018: 'Everybody Knows' Review

Couple last Cannes reviews to share with you. For Paste, I wrote about the festival's opening-night film, Everybody Knows, which I liked more than most did. I explain why here.

'Tully' Review

Charlize Theron and Jason Reitman have now made two movies together. I prefer Young Adult, but Tully is a pretty affecting film as well. As a portrait of exhausted motherhood, it'll resonate with a lot of people. My review is up at Paste.

'A Quiet Place' Review

I think A Quiet Place is very good. However ... I have one reservation. I talk about that over at Paste.

'Lean on Pete' Review

For Paste, I reviewed the moving drama Lean on Pete, which features an exciting breakout performance from Charlie Plummer. (You may remember him from All the Money in the World.) I think the film's pretty darn great.

True/False 2018: The Rankings and the Rundown

A little later than normal, but Paste published my annual rundown of True/False, which remains one of my favorite events on the movie calendar. You can read all 6,200 words right here. In addition, here's my ranking of everything I saw at the festival...

18. Our New President
17. Playing Men
16. Caniba
15. American Animals 
14. Three Identical Strangers
13. The Rider
12. Kinshasa Makambo  
11. Voices of the Sea
10. MATANGI / MAYA / M.I.A.
9. The Family
8. Of Fathers and Sons
7. Hale County This Morning, This Evening  
6. Shirkers
5. Black Mother 
4. Bisbee '17
3. Won't You Be My Neighbor?
2. The Task
1. Makala

An embarrassment of riches topped by three utterly different documentaries. Can't wait for the 2019 edition. And can't wait to see Makala again, which Kino Lorber will be releasing at some point this year.