At about the halfway point in the new remake of “Total Recall,” I thought, “Wow, this is pretty good.”

But pretty good is all it managed. (More…)

The second film of the summer inspired by Arthur Schnitzler’s “La Ronde,” Fernando Mereilles’ “360” is an intriguing jigsaw puzzle of a movie, less schematic than Schnitzler’s play (or “30 Beats,” the dreadful film of a couple weeks ago). Still, it’s more interesting for its individual pieces than what it has to say as a whole.

Written by Peter Morgan (‘Frost/Nixon,” “The Queen”), “360” does come full circle, at least in a couple of cases. When it doesn’t, well, it still offers compelling slices of life, wedges of the circle, as it were, that come complete with deep feeling and, at times, real suspense. (More…)

America’s love affair with the stars of big business should have come to an end with the greed-driven crash of our financial system in 2008. Yet, somehow, Donald Trump remains not just a celebrity but one who was actually considered seriously as a presidential candidate – for about a minute.

Mostly, his candidacy seemed to be about promoting the latest round of “Celebrity Apprentice,” a show whose willingness to indulge Trump’s colossal ego (and ridiculous hair) continues to astound (even more than the shameless spotlight-seeking of third-rate has-been stars). (More…)