Film: ‘Compliance’ (2012)

Film: ‘Compliance’ (2012)

Based on true events, Craig Zobel’s “Compliance” is a chilling exploration of fear, subservience to authority in the workplace and violations of personal boundary issues – three Saturnine themes that Zobel takes to a devastating conclusion. The setting is a Chickwich...
Film: ‘The Odd Life of Timothy Green’ (2012)

Film: ‘The Odd Life of Timothy Green’ (2012)

“The Odd Life of Timothy Green,” written and directed and written by Peter Hedges,  gives new meaning to the expression “fresh produce direct from the garden.” Jim and Cindy Green (Joel Edgerton and Jennifer Garner) have just learned they cannot have biological...
Film: ‘The Campaign’ (2012)

Film: ‘The Campaign’ (2012)

In the political comedy “The Campaign,” the end justifies the means. This is what happens when Saturn – the planet that typically loves to play ethically and by the rules – gets turned on its head. The bad guys in this movie, directed by Jay Roach, are the Motch...
Film: ‘Hope Springs’ (2012)

Film: ‘Hope Springs’ (2012)

You know that the 31-year-old marriage of Kay (Meryl Streep) and Arnold (Tommy Lee Jones) in “Hope Springs” has truly ossified when couples therapist Dr. Feld (Steve Carell) tells them you first need to break the nose to fix a deviated septum. Saturn rules the bones...
Film: ‘Searching for Sugar Man’ (2012)

Film: ‘Searching for Sugar Man’ (2012)

Pluto uncovers what’s hidden. In the case of Detroit singer-songwriter Sixto Rodriguez, the subject of the documentary “Searching for Sugar Man,” Pluto took his time. Directed by Swedish filmmaker Malik Bendjelloul, the Sundance award-winning movie is genuinely...
Film: ‘Ruby Sparks’ (2012)

Film: ‘Ruby Sparks’ (2012)

Calvin (Paul Dano), the male protagonist in “Ruby Sparks,” got hit by Neptune – the planet that oversees creativity and whatever springs from the imagination – at a young age. That visit from the trident god helped Cal write a best-selling book. He’s been bereft of...