by Quendrith Johnson, Los Angeles Correspondent Only Clint Eastwood could take the story of slain US Military Sniper Chris Kyle, who was mysteriously shot and killed at age 38 last year at a Texas gun range by a fellow vet, and make it a hit as well as a memorial to the man in question. The surprise screening of this highly anticipated feature film last night at AFI Fest presented by AUDI was a crowd-thriller, especially in its subtlety, its restrained sound design, the whoosh of wind, the cr...

Tuesday, February 27-----While current social, economic and political issues are prominently featured throughout the Miami International Film Festival program (which is truly international in its scope and concerns), several special programs have been dedicated to the issues of immigration and its sometimes related cousin, homelessness.Among the most anticipated is what the Miami dubs its Big Picture program, which for the past several years have highlighted films that tackle world issues and th...

Monday, November 27----Nick Broomfield has won or been nominated for every award in the book in his varied career. He won a BAFTA Award for SOLDIER GIRLS (1981). His unforgettable portrait of serial killer Aileen Wuornos in the celebrated AILEEN WUORNOS: THE SELLING OF A SERIAL KILLER (1992) and its follow up AILEEN: LIFE AND DEATH OF A SERIAL KILLER (2002) were nominated for prizes from the European Film Academy, the International Documentary Association and the Sundance Film Festival. The l...

Friday, June 16----In commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Soweto Riots, a tipping point in the decades-long struggle of black South Africans to end the abusive system of apartheid, the SILVERDOCS festival is hosting a special program of films by South African documentarians, who have turned their probing camera eyes on their homeland. Seven films (five features and two shorts) are being presented, including the world premiere this evening of SOWETO BLUES, a musical documentary that re...