Toledo Filmmakers Magazine

The Proposal

Audiences are more than overdue for a reminder as to why Sandra Bullock remains a box office attraction. So along comes “The Proposal” and her place in Hollywood makes sense again. Bullock, so lovable and feisty in “Speed,” gets her best role in years with her newest romantic comedy, but she has a little help. Read more...

American Swing

Although the film's title suggests an up-to-date overview of America's ever-morphing swing scene, where couples go to swap sexual partners, Matthew Kaufman's and Jon Hart's by-the-numbers documentary sticks to the rise and fall of Larry Levenson's infamous New York swingers club Plato's Retreat (1977-1985). Read more...

Confessions of a Shopaholic

Isla Fisher stole “Wedding Crashers” out from under Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson. She does the same with “Confessions of a Shopaholic,” but it’s a petty theft at best.

Away We Go

What hath “Juno” wrought? That indie charmer seems like the spiritual forefather of “Away We Go,” director Sam Mendes’ attempt to tap that film’s breezy spirit. “Away We Go” even draws on a similar cartoon-style ad campaign as “Juno." Read more...

The Hangover

"The Hangover” survives the curse of a great red-band trailer. Remember the raucous teaser for last summer’s “Pineapple Express?” The movie paled in comparison to those killer clips. “The Hangover” suffers no such letdown. It’s a dizzying array of bawdy set pieces buoyed by an eclectic cast. Read more...

Drag Me to Hell

What horror needs right now - desperately - is for an A-list director to bring his or her genius to the genre. Sam Raimi is just the man for the job, but his new film “Drag Me to Hell” packs only a fraction of his sublime vision. You could argue the most inspired part of this half-baked horror is its title. Read more...

Terminator Salvation

Turns out a Bat can’t replace The Governator after all. “Terminator Salvation,” the fourth entry in the sci-fi franchise, relies on Christian Bale to offset the absence of the big robot himself, Arnold Schwarzenegger. Read more...

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Features

Dyrk Ashton on the Art of Screenwriting

There may not be a more experienced person to talk to about the aspect of screenwriting in all of Northwest Ohio than Dyrk Ashton.

NEW ON DVD

American Swing

IN THEATERS

Away We Go

CLASSICS

Down by Law

When it comes to writer/director Jim Jarmusch, it’s not really about the destination. It’s not really about the journey, either. It’s more about the little moments along the way. After all, life really doesn’t have a plot, no real through line, and it seems that Jarmusch sees no reason to impose that kind of device on his films.