Email Author Melissa Levine

2006 Stories by Melissa Levine

• Easy Rider

  published August 24, 2006

  A first-time feature film about a failed indie rocker, his beautiful girlfriend and his sanctimonious nature-boy brother on a road trip: There are... More >>

• Letter-Box Edition

  published June 22, 2006

  It may not be an "iconic manifestation of civilization," as documentarian Ken Burns proclaims, but the New York Times crossword puzzle is... More >>

• Smite Me

  published June 15, 2006

  About ten minutes into Michael Cuesta's 12 and Holding, the following thought came to mind: Not afraid to put children in... More >>

• Smite Me

  published May 18, 2006

  About ten minutes into Michael Cuesta's 12 and Holding, the following thought came to mind: Not afraid to put children in... More >>

• Dreams Deferred

  published April 27, 2006

  The Boys of Baraka, a fine documentary about a group of inner-city, at-risk boys who travel to Kenya to attend a special school,... More >>

• Misery Train

  published April 27, 2006

  At the opening of Lonesome Jim, a terrific new film directed by Steve Buscemi, a country song plays behind scenes of small-town... More >>

• Biblical Contortions

  published April 20, 2006

  If you're craving an antidote to the sanctity of repressed gay cowboys, you could do worse than Adam & Steve. This good-natured... More >>

• Lovely, Not Amazing

  published April 13, 2006

  In Nicole Holofcener's first feature, 1996's Walking and Talking, the writer-director warmly portrayed an adult female friendship, nudging... More >>

• Way Down in the Hole

  published April 13, 2006

  Countless are the creative souls who struggled with mental illness, as are the novels and films dedicated to them. Again and again, we've... More >>

• Naomi Then and Now

  published April 13, 2006

  Ellie Parker (Strand) This extremely raw portrait of an actress trying -- and failing -- to make it in Hollywood showcases Naomi Watts... More >>

• Jingle Hell

  published March 16, 2006

  It can't be easy making films about war. It's so inherently dramatic that, as a setting for art, it's overdetermined; it drips with meaning even... More >>

• Free for All

  published March 9, 2006

  If you plan to see The Libertine, an artful and brooding period piece about a scandalously debauched earl of the English... More >>

• The Great Cash-In

  published March 2, 2006

  Walk the Line (Fox) No matter what a junkie does with his spare time -- say, redefine country music, or forge one of history's most... More >>

• Take This Woman

  published February 9, 2006

  It happens so often these days. A comedy opens with clever jokes, endearing characters and an enjoyably brisk pace, all of which put you at ease.... More >>

• Bull@$#*%

  published February 2, 2006

  Here's the first thing that's audacious about What the Bleep!?: Down the Rabbit Hole, the second installment in what has become a... More >>

• Like Star Trek With Worms

  published February 2, 2006

  Dune: Extended Edition (Universal) On paper it sounds insane: A mammoth sci-fi epic directed by David Lynch, based on an... More >>

• Valley of the Dolls

  published January 26, 2006

  The big news about Bubble, the new film by director Steven Soderbergh (Erin Brockovich, Traffic), is the way it's... More >>

• Now Dirtier Than Ever

  published January 26, 2006

  The Aristocrats(Lions Gate) The single joke around which Paul Provenza's documentary revolves has a standard beginning and ending, like... More >>

• Free for All

  published January 12, 2006

  If you plan to see The Libertine, an artful and brooding period piece about a scandalously debauched earl of the English... More >>

• Heath in Heat

  published January 5, 2006

  For your Heath Ledger holiday-movie options, you have a) a cowboy in love with another man, and b) history's most infamous womanizer. Since the... More >>

• Shafted

  published January 5, 2006

  First, the statistics: Between 1979 and 2000, the number of American workers living below the poverty line increased by 50 percent; today, one of... More >>