NYFF51 Day14: 'All Is Lost' With 'Only Lovers Left Alive'

HEAD’S UP: The 51st New York Film Festival is off to the races, and so are we. This year, we borrow a page from Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week New York coverage, which borrowed a page from Twitter (http://www.ow.ly/pmqvr). To that end, all film reviews / comments will be 100 words or less. Yes, 100. Or less. Ready? Lights. Camera. ACTION! ...

PERHAPS with too much time on his hands (and too little imagination), Jim Jarmusch decided to share his thoughts on the wildly popular vampire genre.

His contribution is “Only Lovers Left Alive. Starring the winning duo of Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston, it makes it U.S. debut this evening at The 51st New York Film Festival.

TS and TH are likable as an attractive, centuries-old couple, especially when they recall associates such as Darwin and Faust – wink, smirk. Alas, the vampire genre has been done to death. Nothing here is particularly interesting.

Not so for “All is Lost,” J.C. Chandor’s sophomore effort starring Robert Redford. It has the second screening of its North American premiere tonight. (See trailer at top).

It has been many a moon since RR undertook a role worthy of his acting prowess. Here is one that he sinks his teeth – and seemingly every other body part – into. He is a lone man stranded on the Indian Ocean in a battered boat. Anguish and a determination to live are palpable in his every twitch. The Sundance film festival founder has virtually no lines, yet this is one of his best roles ever.

“All is Lost” is proof-positive that acting is far more than speaking lines.

Visit http://www.filmlinc.com/nyff2013 to learn more about The 51st New York Film Festival, including tickets and showtimes.

Intriguing Cast of Characters in 'The Company You Keep'

IT has a marquee name director-producer and a high-voltage cast.

These are the two most interesting aspects of “The Company You Keep.” The film opens today in New York and Los Angeles before rolling out elsewhere. It had its world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival.

Robert Redford is not only one of the producers and the director, he is the star among stars of the film. When was the last time RR had a major role as a director or actor? Long time ago. Also onboard in “The Company You Keep” are Julie Christie, Chris Cooper, Sam Elliott, Terrence Howard, Richard Jenkins, Nick Nolte, Susan Sarandon and Stanley Tucci.

That’s a lot of starpower for this little thriller based on Neil Gordon’s book of the same name. The plot centers around a former Vietnam-era radical Nick Sloan (RR) who went underground after he was accused of some lawbreaking he may or may not have participated in. He’s guilty of something, but not the crime that the FBI wants to put him away for. Smart guy that he is, Nick remakes himself as Jim Grant. (See video above).

Jim had been living a good, quiet life until overly ambitious and ethics-challenged reporter Ben Shepard (Shia LaBeouf) outs him. Now Nick/Jim is on the run from the FBI while he searches for a former flame, Mimi (JC), who can clear his name.

During the chase and search, many characters in the guise of the aforementioned names figure in the mix. So often, films with too much star power turn out to be a big mess. No so for “The Company You Keep,” but it is not a great film either. It is a middling affair that is made all the more bearable because one can gawk at the stars, even if only in a cameo role.

“The Company You Keep” is rated R. Visit http://www.sonyclassics.com/thecompanyyoukeep/ to learn more about the film. Rx

Possible Injustice in 'The Conspirator'

Robin Wright as Mary Surratt in "The Conspirator." Photo from Roadside Attractions.

IN the week (Tuesday, 12 April) that marked the 150th anniversary of the start of the War Between the States aka Civil War and Emancipation Day (moved up one day this year to today) comes “The Conspirator.”

The film opens nationwide today.

Directed by Robert Redford, “The Conspirator” revolves around the trial of Mary Surratt (Robin Wright nee Penn). She is the proprietor of the boarding house where John Wilkes Booth&Co. hatched the plan to kill Abraham Lincoln, as well as his Vice President and Secretary of State. Though her guilt is in doubt, Surratt is tried and convicted and would become the first woman in the United States to be sentenced to death. She was hanged.

More on "The Conspirator" later. See trailer: http://www.conspiratorthemovie.com/?source=gaw&gclid=CPGl0LaOn6gCFQ2O5god3lJwHw#videoposition

“The Conspirator” is rated PG-13 for some violent content.