Track of the Cat (movie 1954): William A. Wellman’s family drama is notable for its mostly prestigious cast and for its unconventional use of color. Robert Mitchum and Teresa Wright star.
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I Remember Mama (movie 1948): George Stevens’ nostalgic immigrant family drama provided veteran Irene Dunne with one of the best roles of her career. Barbara Bel Geddes costars.
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Visions of the shattered American Dream in 2 ‘Arthur Miller movies’: The subversive family dramas All My Sons and Death of a Salesman.
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Room (movie 2015) review: Starring an effective Brie Larson, Lenny Abrahamson’s psychological drama provides an uncomfortable experience.
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Boyhood (movie 2014) review: Richard Linklater brilliantly tackles the effects of the passage of time. Ethan Hawke and Ellar Coltrane costar.
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Song of the Fishermen (movie 1934) review: Cai Chusheng drama depicts the dehumanizing results of China’s stratified class system.
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The Tree of Life movie box office: Terrence Malick’s Palme d’Or winner had a strong debut in limited release. But will that last? Brad Pitt, Sean Penn and Jessica Chastain star.
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Mildred Pierce (movie 1945) review: Oscar winner Joan Crawford is terrific as psycho Ann Blyth’s devoted mother in Michael Curtiz’s noir melo. Zachary Scott and Jack Carson costar.
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Turner Classic Movies: Dysfunctional-Family Oriented Christmas Films likely to inspire gathered families + Katharine Hepburn 2x and Elizabeth Taylor 3x.
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The Kids Are All Right box office: Lesbian family comedy-drama has no chance of reaching as high as Brokeback Mountain. Annette Bening and Julianne Moore star.
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Tokyo Sonata (movie 2008) review: Kiyoshi Kurosawa exposes the unraveling of Japan’s traditional social fabric in this capably acted urban drama. Teruyuki Kagawa and Kyôko Koizumi star.
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Mr. Wu (movie 1927) review: The genius of Lon Chaney and the best production values that MGM could buy make William Nigh’s ‘exotic’ movie adaptation a must-see.
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Blonde Venus (movie 1932) review: Josef von Sternberg and Marlene Dietrich Pre-Code melodrama is their best joint effort and the acme of their respective careers. Cary Grant costars.
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Fanny and Alexander (movie 1982) review: Ingmar Bergman’s sumptuous big-screen swan song, this period family drama is even more engrossing as a miniseries.
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Aurora Borealis (movie 2005) review: Joshua Jackson delivers a sensitive performance in this otherwise conventional family dramedy costarring Donald Sutherland and Juliette Lewis.
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Amu (movie 2005) review: Shonali Bose’s uneven family drama traces the connection between a long-ago adoption and the bloody anti-Sikh Delhi riots of 1984.
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The Door in the Floor (movie 2004): Kim Basinger is excellent in Tod Williams’ uneven psychological family drama. Jeff Bridges and Jon Foster costar.
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A Hatful of Rain (movie 1957) review: Eva Marie Saint is the one standout in Fred Zinnemann’s early drug addiction drama seriously impaired by its three male leads and overall staginess.
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Affliction (movie 1997) review: Nick Nolte delivers an overheated star turn in Paul Schrader’s well-made and great-looking but annoyingly contrived psychological drama.
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Four news DVDs focus on Oscar-winning director George Stevens: A tribute to British colonialism; an immigration family drama; and two documentaries, one of which features rare WWII color footage.
Interstellar (movie 2014) review: Christopher Nolan sci-fier is a grandiose achievement that ultimately fails to fulfill its thematic promise. Matthew McConaughey stars.
Madea’s Big Happy Family movie box office: Tyler Perry’s latest is performing far more weakly than its two Madea predecessors, while international prospects are nil. Loretta Devine costars.
Sundance movies: Anna Paquin and Josh Duhamel in The Romantics. As usual, the upcoming Sundance Film Festival will screen numerous world premieres; one of them is writer-director Galt Niederhoffer’s The…
Applause (movie 1929) review: Early Rouben Mamoulian musical shows what the newfangled talking pictures could achieve. Legendary torch singer Helen Morgan stars.
Sorrell and Son movie: Adult themes aplenty in father-son drama starring a superlative H.B. Warner. Anna Q. Nilsson, Alice Joyce + Nils Asther costar.
The Grandfather (movie 1998) review: Fernando Fernán Gómez delivers a brilliant central performance in José Luis Garci’s Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award nominee.