Brent Northup

1 week ago | helenair.com | Brent Northup

"Penguin Lessons" (PG-13)At The Myrna LoyGrade: BA pint-sized penguin waddling along behind its master is cute. The first time. But there is such a thing as too much sugar in a dessert, and too much cuteness in a movie. “Penguin Lessons” needed to turn down its comic rheostat a bit. The opening half-hour of “Penguin Lessons” suffers from sitcom-itis. The script milks chuckles from every line of dialogue. All that’s missing is a laugh track.

2 weeks ago | helenair.com | Brent Northup

"On Swift Horses" (R)At the Myrna LoyGrade: C+Funny things can trigger memories, yes? When the movie “On Swift Horses” arrived, my heart shifted to the Rolling Stones singing “Wild Horses.” No connection, really, but sometimes we dream when we’re awake. Guitarist Keith Richards says he heard the song in a dream, and said it was his ode to his newborn son whom he hated to leave behind when he left on tour.

3 weeks ago | helenair.com | Brent Northup

"Ballad of Wallis Island" (PG-13)At the Myrna LoyGrade: A-Our lives are spirals, slowly circling back to places we’ve been before. Each time around we see things – and feel things – we missed the last time we passed by. Once upon a faded decade ago Herb and Nell were a popular folk duo who made beautiful music together both on stage, and at home. All was well until Herb snipped their guitar strings and went off on a solo career.

1 month ago | helenair.com | Brent Northup

"Warfare" (R)At the CinemarkGrade: A-War films walk a precarious tightrope as they try to capture battle in meticulous detail, without glorifying the death of the soldiers. The fallen must be remembered, and we must mourn them, but without romanticizing or exploiting their sacrifice. Gen. Eisenhower, supreme commander of Allied Forces, shared that lesson with us when he returned to France in June 1964 to remember D-Day.

1 month ago | helenair.com | Brent Northup

"No Other Land"At the Myrna LoyGrade: A-Helena’s law-abiding moviegoers are blessed with the opportunity to go to jail to see fine films. The Myrna Loy occupies a building that once served as a prison. Some of the original iron bars are still in place to remind us to behave when we visit. The Cinemark books mostly mainstream films, while The Myrna’s mission is to bring us “high-quality, culturally significant films.”The Myrna will risk low attendance to reward its viewers with high art.