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Jean Oppenheimer

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Unknown

Starz FilmCenter in the Tivoli

By Jean Oppenheimer
Nov 23, 2006

The nifty premise of Unknown owes a large debt of gratitude to the twin brain-teasers Memento and The Usual Suspects, but first-time screenwriter Matthew Waynee and music-video/commercial director Simon Brand will need a tad more experience before achieving the atmospheric intensity or narrative dexterity of those two films. Five battered...
In the Face of Evil

Sophie Scholl relives the last days of an anti-Nazi hero.

By Jean Oppenheimer
Mar 30, 2006

We all want to believe that in even the most dangerous or frightening of situations, we would have the courage to stand up for our convictions -- that we would not name names, that we would not betray our friends or our ideals. Thank God most of us will never...
Simply Galling

The Dying Gaul offers three likable people who act appallingly.

By Jean Oppenheimer
Dec 1, 2005

Deception, betrayal and revenge. In his film directorial debut, acclaimed playwright/screenwriter/theater director Craig Lucas is done in by his own script, which becomes so excessively icy and cruel that it breaks, rather than solidifies, any bond it could hope to establish with its audience. A modern-day Greek tragedy -- complete...
Truth Syrup

An intriguing cover-up tale melts into a melodramatic mess.

By Jean Oppenheimer
Oct 13, 2005

It's the cover-up, stupid! It doomed Nixon during Watergate, got Clinton impeached, inspired outrage against the Catholic Church and apparently is part of the day-to-day operations at places such as Enron and Tyco. The initial crime is bad enough, but the conspiracy to hide it always ends up hurting more...
Exhuming McCarthy

The Red Scare returns in Good Night, and Good Luck.

By Jean Oppenheimer
Oct 13, 2005

Good Night, and Good Luck, a riveting movie that's as entertaining as it is socially and politically important, could not have come at a more propitious time. But more than just the right film at the right moment, George Clooney's sophomore directorial effort is dynamic filmmaking: brilliantly conceived, visually arresting,...

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