REVIEW: The Hundred-Foot Journey [2014]

“You cook to make ghosts” With Chocolat and Salmon Fishing in the Yemen under his belt, The Hundred-Foot Journey isn’t anything approaching new territory for director Lasse Hallström. But if it ain’t broke don’t fix it, right? Honestly, if he can continue making feel good tales like this—bona fide crowd-pleasers—we should all be happy since it keeps him busy and away from the allure of helming a hat trick of Nicholas Sparks adaptations. There may be no surprises in this cinematic version of a novel Oprah Winfrey selected as part…

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REVIEW: Salmon Fishing in the Yemen [2012]

“In that case I can fish” Much like how an absurd notion of satisfying a wealthy Sheikh’s whim to bring British salmon into the Yemen could actually occur—so Anglo-Middle East relations can attain a meaningless victory against a highly destructive war—the film adaptation of Paul Torday‘s novel Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is a feel good tale able to put a smile on your face. The entertainment industry has flooded us with Arab villainy the past decade, so watching two posh Englanders uproot their lives to help facilitate the impossible…

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REVIEW: An Unfinished Life [2005]

“You start to think you don’t deserve better” I always wondered why An Unfinished Life didn’t get the chance it should have upon its release. Between the reknowned director, in Lasse Hallström, to the top-heavy, star cast, nothing was really said about it. I remember seeing the trailer online and thinking it seemed intriguing enough, and then next I knew it was out on DVD. If it hit theatres here in Buffalo, I was not aware. Finally, though, I was able to catch up on the story and see if…

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