'Couples Retreat' disaster Oct 10, 2009
Whether by accident or design, "Couples Retreat" does such a good job exposing what selfish, insensitive jerks these guys are, the contrived and conventional ending actually has a feel-bad undertow. You've got to suspect that back home in suburbia, these couples are doomed to live unhappily ever after. (CNN -- Showbiz)
'Zombieland' Oct 2, 2009
Fleischer considers it "Midnight Run" with zombies and it's closer to "Shaun of the Dead" than "Dawn of the Dead," but there's an undertow about living in social isolation and the peril and pleasure of friendships and makeshift families. The writing is witty -- taking full advantage of a celebrity in a small role and dropping in current references such as "Facebook status updates" -- the comic chemistry strong and the pacing brisk. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA)
Brown, Crichton: Big names in big fall Sep 3, 2009
Edward Kennedy (True Compass, Sept. 14), (True Blue, Oct. 27) (Ford County, Nov. 3), Stephen King (Under the Dome, Nov. 10), (I, Alex Cross, Nov. 16) and Sue Grafton (U is for Undertow, Dec. 1). FALL'S TOP PICKS: CALENDAR. (USA Today)
Some weeds in the garden Aug 15, 2009
The cold undertow of middle age is probably enough to prompt some boomers to smile upon the Woodstock anniversary once again. Let it go. (Albany Times Union)
Sherlock Holmes’s staying power Jul 19, 2009
It s this undertow of moral division. Rathbone s Holmes comes across as being nicer than Conan Doyle s - he s friendlier, more solicitous, more human - but he s also darker. (Boston Globe)
Studying War Some More Jul 10, 2009
There is an undertow of testosterone and racial animus in the way James and Sanborn consistently clash. But it never colors the story. (Slate)
The inheritance: A Father’s Day meditation on the invisible costs of war - and their family legacy. Jun 21, 2009
He had come home to a woman caught in an undertow of grief and depression so deep and enduring that it flowed beneath the surface of their lives ever after. They argued, and in the first of their many lifelong clashes, she lashed out at him with words that would haunt them for the rest of their lives: Why have you come back, and Howard didn t. (Boston Globe)
Buffy Casting Couch Jun 4, 2009
Former child star Kristen Stewart made her name with mature turns in the likes of Panic Room, Cold Creek Manor and Undertow, proving that even in her early teens she was a talent to be reckoned with. The last 12 months has seen her stock soar as Bella Swan in the phenomenally successful adaptation of teen vampire novel Twilight. (IGN FilmForce)
Still more DVDs you should have seen (but didn't) May 28, 2009
"The Hairdresser's Husband" (1990) seems at first like a minimal, almost plotless fable of erotic fascination and its aftermath, but offers a curious undertow that will stick with you long afterward. At age 12, Antoine (Henry Hocking) becomes besotted with the local hairdresser (Anna Galiena), and once he grows up (as Jean Rochefort) he meets her again with unexpected consequences. (Salon)
Ex-Wilco member Jay Bennett dies May 26, 2009
"Jay was a beautiful human being who will be missed," said a message from the Undertow Music Collective. Bennett filed his legal action against Wilco lead singer Jeff Tweedy at the beginning of May, claiming $50,000 (33,160) for five albums he made with the group. (BBC News -- Entertainment)
Dawn Upshaw resumes her artistic journey May 3, 2009
Her voice has a pure-toned radiance and earthen warmth, a certain empathic timbre, and often a palpable undertow of yearning. Of course, the classical music world has many singers with magical voices, but Upshaw's rare gift as a performer is an ability to inhabit a work on the most profound levels, to live the music on stage rather than sing it at you. (Boston Globe)
McDonald arrives on a Rocket May 2, 2009
Jungle Rocket has had only four races, and takes on tough and seasoned three-year-old fillies, ridden by some of Australia's best jockeys, on a circuit regarded as one of the most difficult for riders, with more ebbs and flows than the undertow on nearby beaches. Seven of the eight races on the corresponding program last year went to local riders, with Rod Quinn on El Cambio, going around this year in the Prime Minister's Cup, being the only exception. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Sport)
Hilton Als: How Katherine Anne Porter perfected herself. Apr 14, 2009
Enameled Lady: A Critic at Large: The New Yorker (New Yorker)
* FEATURE : Taiwanese taking to Indian culture after hit movie Apr 1, 2009
Although the finer details of Indian culture can make many Taiwanese feel all at sea, there seems to be an undertow that is attracting people toward the South Asian country. This is evident not only from the sold-out screenings of the award-winning hit movie Slumdog Millionaire, but also from the packed Bollywood dance classes, yoga classes and the growing market for Indian clothes and accessories. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- Taiwan)
It's Not Me, I Swear! Feb 27, 2009
Though the darker emotional undertow in the film is always present, the visual playfulness helps keep the story buoyant. Recommend this article. (Globe and Mail -- Entertainment)
Hollywood votes -- and the world complains Feb 20, 2009
Ari Folman's amazing animated war-memoir cum psychological exploration, was the one film released in 2008 that had the irresistible narcotic undertow of visionary cinema, and that also explored new possibilities for the medium. If I were running the Academy, it would be up for this prize along with best animated feature (where it was eligible but not nominated), best documentary (not technically eligible) and, hell, best picture and best director too. (Salon)
Love in Brooklyn; death in Naples Feb 12, 2009
The two young female characters are more tenuously sketched than Leonard, but both of them still have personality undertow beneath the surface. Michelle is a damaged narcissist who inflicts and suffers needless pain, while Sandra seems like a borderline obsessive, overly eager for romantic martyrdom. (Salon)
Katherine Heigl To Leave 'Grey's' In Blaze of Ghost-Humping Glory Feb 11, 2009
The undertow shall kill them all. Heigl the Ever-Irritating will be one of those actresses we'll no longer see ten years from now. (Defamer Australia)
