Josh Bell
Story Archive
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Screen
'Zoolander 2' comes up with too little, too late
Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2016 There are so many famous people who pop up for a few seconds, it could have been Celebrity Cameo: The Movie.
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Noise
AC/DC’s live show is a predictable good time
Monday, Feb. 8, 2016 Not surprisingly, the audience left satisfied.
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Screen
Short takes: This week's movie listings
Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016 Everything in theaters this week, plus special screenings and movie reviews.
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Screen
Six programs to see at this year's Dam Short Film Festival
Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016 Head out to Boulder Theatre and take in some sweet shorts.
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Noise
Album review: Lucinda Williams' 'The Ghosts of Highway 20'
Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016 A lethargic, slow-paced slog.
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Screen
The Coens create a muddled Hollywood pastiche with 'Hail, Caesar!'
Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016 The creative duo's latest doesn't live up to their other masterpieces.
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Screen
'45 Years' explores the strains in a lifelong relationship
Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016 Writer-director Andrew Haigh examines love and relationships with intense subtlety.
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Screen
Short takes: This week's movie listings
Thursday, Jan. 28, 2016 Everything playing in theaters this week, plus special screenings and movie reviews.
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A&E
Sia repurposes superstar leftovers on 'This Is Acting'
Thursday, Jan. 28, 2016 The singer-songwriter records pop songs she originally wrote for others as her own, which makes for a fun but generic album.
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Screen
The O.J. Simpson case gets an overheated reenactment in 'American Crime Story'
Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2016 A story that was exhaustively scrutinized at the time it occurred proves just as exhausting two decades later.
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Screen
Film review: 'Kung Fu Panda 3' delivers the expected
Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2016 There’s really nothing new to discover, but it’s still nice to see old friends every so often.
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Screen
Film review: ‘The Finest Hours’ delivers old-fashioned thrills
Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2016 The rescue-at-sea drama takes place in 1952, and much of the movie feels like it could have been produced in the same era.
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Screen
Film review: ‘The 5th Wave’ delivers typical young-adult sci-fi
Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016 The teen leads are all petulant pouts and brooding stares (Cassie’s post-apocalypse hair is never less than lustrous).
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Screen
'Anomalisa' meticulously explores the drudgery of life
Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016 Instead of finding the sublime in the mundane, Anomalisa turns out to just be mundane.
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Screen
'DC's Legends of Tomorrow' gets carried away with its comic-book homage
Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016 Superhero overload!
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Screen
'The X-Files' makes a disappointing return
Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016 The truth is still out there.
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Screen
Zach Galifianakis showcases his irritating side in 'Baskets'
Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016 It’s just a parade of discomfort, for both the characters and the audience.
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Screen
Even Oscar Isaac can’t save pretentious thriller ‘Mojave’
Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016 After a series of acclaimed performances, Isaac finally makes a misstep with the ludicrous thriller.
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Screen
Michael Bay’s '13 Hours' boils Benghazi down to a series of loud noises
Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016 It's mainly interested in blowing stuff up. Typical Michael Bay.
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Screen
Film review: 'Youth' presents a sumptuous but tiring vision
Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016 It ebbs and flows rather than heading in any particular direction.
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Screen
'Billions' turns financial drama into a cheesy soap opera
Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016 Gratuitous sex scenes aside, Billions relies on overwrought contrivances to build up the rivalry between its two main characters.
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Screen
'Mustang' shows the power of sibling bonds
Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016 Too often movies about people living in repressive conditions focus on that misery above all other emotions.
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Screen
Horror movie 'The Forest' squanders its haunting premise
Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2016 A generic haunted-forest story, with a series of banal jump scares and pale apparitions.
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A&E
Jennifer Lopez aims for serious cred in edgy cop drama 'Shades of Blue'
Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2016 Despite her effort's, J-Lo's performance falls flat.
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Screen
Four selections to consider at this year’s Las Vegas Jewish Film Festival
Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2016 Choices range from a comedy centered around people getting high at a bakery to a documentary about Ed Bernstein's Crohn's-afflicted daughter.
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TV
Crass and unfunny: Steer clear of animated comedy 'Bordertown'
Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2015 The jokes that do take on topical issues rely on cheap stereotypes (about both Mexicans and working-class whites) rather than anything insightful.
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Screen
Korean mountain-climbing drama 'The Himalayas' relies on overwrought melodrama
Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2015 There’s a lot of crying and wailing for a movie about hardened adventurers.
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Screen
10 multiplex movies to watch for in 2016
Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2015 Finding Dory, Ghostbusters and more.
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Screen
'Carol' beautifully explores a secret romance
Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2015 Starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara, the film captures the excitement as much as the fear of forbidden attraction between two women.
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TV
MTV’s 'The Shannara Chronicles' gives the fantasy genre a bad name
Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2015 Terrible dialogue, dodgy special effects and tacky visual style.
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Screen
The new ‘Point Break’ makes a dumb thriller even dumber
Monday, Dec. 28, 2015 The stunts, performed by actual extreme athletes, are the movie’s only worthwhile elements.
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A&E
Best of 2015: TV
Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2015 From The Americans to Master of None, Weekly's film and television critic Josh Bell picks his favorite shows of 2015.
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Screen
'Joy' makes for a clever but uneven biopic
Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2015 Jennifer Lawrence plays the titular character, inventor Joy Mangano, with her typical grit.
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Screen
Film review: 'Daddy's Home'
Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2015 An unappealing combination of disingenuous family-comedy lessons and vulgar adult humor, neither of which succeeds.
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Screen
'The Danish Girl' tells the story of a transgender milestone
Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2015 Director Tom Hooper documents Lili Elbe's life with the same tasteful restraint he brought to The King's Speech.
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Screen
'Orion: The Man Who Would Be King' tells the story of a would-be Elvis
Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2015 The movie shines a light on a talented man who was never able to escape the shadow of a legend.
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Screen
Bill Burr voices a clueless 1970s dad in 'F is for Family'
Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2015 Get ready for predictable jokes about angry dads, rebellious teenagers and weird neighbors.
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Screen
Five 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' characters to look for in the future
Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2015 Who will play important roles in future movies?
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Screen
J.J. Abrams fulfills expectations with 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens'
Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2015 It’s hard to imagine any fans coming away from The Force Awakens feeling the anger and betrayal that some expressed after watching George Lucas’ prequels.
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Screen
Adam Sandler brings his typical idiocy to 'The Ridiculous 6'
Monday, Dec. 14, 2015 A lazy, slapdash exercise, with repetitive, stale jokes and a parade of one-dimensional characters based on cultural stereotypes.
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Features
Five things we’d love to see in 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens'
Thursday, Dec. 10, 2015 The Force Awakens could easily coast on nostalgia—but it shouldn't.
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Screen
'Life' explores the creation of an iconic James Dean image
Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2015 Like a good photographer, the two stars' performances capture their subjects while adding their own perspectives.
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Screen
'In the Heart of the Sea' tells the true story behind 'Moby Dick'
Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2015 Stacked up against one of the most celebrated novels of all time, Ron Howard's film looks pretty paltry.
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Screen
With Christmas-themed horror 'Krampus' opening, here’s more seasonal scares
Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2015 How about a little Christmas Evil to get you in the holiday spirit?
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Screen
Mother Theresa biopic 'The Letters' falls flat
Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2015 William Riead could at least make her (or anyone else in the movie) an interesting character.
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Screen
Bill Murray croons and schmoozes in 'A Very Murray Christmas'
Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2015 The show was probably loads of fun for the people involved, but the feeling doesn’t necessarily carry over to the viewing audience.
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A&E
Film review: 'A Royal Night Out'
Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2015 It's a heavily fictionalized story about the adventures of teenage princesses.
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Screen
Spike Lee barrels through Chicago with the messy 'Chi-Raq'
Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2015 Lee handles the topic about as gracefully as a screaming op-ed piece.
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Screen
'Creed' takes the 'Rocky' series in a promising new direction
Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2015 The film features Sylvester Stallone’s best performance in a long time.
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Screen
Film review: 'Trumbo'
Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2015 Dalton Trumbo was a brilliant writer who sacrificed his career and his family life to stand up for what he believed in.