Jan Wahl Reviews 'Amy' & 'Woman In Gold'
You can hear KCBS Entertainment Editor Jan Wahl's movie reviews on KCBS All News 740AM and 106.9FM Fridays at 8:53am & 4:53pm.
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) - KCBS Entertainment Editor Jan Wahl reviews the documentaries "Dying To Know," about the relationship between Ram Dass & Timothy Leary, and "Amy," which highlights the life of the singer Amy Winehouse.
WOMAN IN GOLD (PG-13) 109 min
Studio: Origin Pictures
Director: Simon Curtis
Screenwriter: Alexi Kaye Campbell, E. Randol Schoenberg & Maria Altmann
Starring: Helen Mirren, Ryan Reynolds, Katie Holmes, Charles Dance, Elizabeth McGovern & Frances Fisher
About The Movie:
WOMAN IN GOLD is the remarkable story of a woman who overcame great odds with the help of an improbably young lawyer, and righted a wrong that had stood for decades.
Sixty years after she fled Vienna during WWII, an elderly Jewish woman Maria Altmann begins a journey to reclaim family possessions seized by the Nazis. Among them, Klimt's famous painting the 'Lady in Gold', a portrait of her beloved Aunt Adele, which has become an Austrian national treasure akin to the Mona Lisa.
Together with her inexperienced but plucky young lawyer Randy, she embarks upon a battle which will span more than 8 years, taking them all the way to the heart of the Austrian establishment and the US Supreme Court.
Source: originpictures.co.uk
AMY (R) 128 min
Studio: A24
Director: Asif Kapadia
Appearances by: Amy Winehouse, Yasiin Bey, Mark Ronson, Tony Bennett, Mitch Winehouse & Janis Winehouse
About The Movie:
From BAFTA award-winning director Asif Kapadia (SENNA), AMY tells the incredible story of six-time Grammy-winner Amy Winehouse – in her own words. Featuring extensive unseen archive footage and previously unheard tracks, this strikingly modern, moving and vital film shines a light on the world we live in today.
A once-in-a-generation talent, Amy Winehouse was a musician that captured the world's attention. A pure jazz artist in the most authentic sense, Amy poured her heart and soul into her music, expressing personal struggles and pain through intimate lyrics. The combination of her raw honesty and virtuosity resulted in some of the most unique and adored songs of out time.
Source: amy-movie.com
DYING TO KNOW: Ram Dass & Timothy Leary (NR) 95 min
Director: Gay Dillingham
Appearances by: Lama Tsultrim Allione, John Perry Barlow, Dean Chamberlain
About The Movie:
"Dying to Know" is an intimate portrait celebrating two very complex, controversial characters in an epic friendship that shaped a generation. In the early 1960s Harvard psychology professors Timothy Leary and Richard Alpert began probing the edges of consciousness through their experiments with psychedelics. Leary became the LSD guru, challenging convention, questioning authority and as a result spawned a global counter culture movement landing in prison after Nixon called him "the most dangerous man in America". Alpert journeyed to the East becoming Ram Dass, a spiritual teacher for an entire generation who continues in his 80's teaching service through compassion. With interviews spanning 50 years the film invites us into the future encouraging us to ponder questions about life, drugs & the biggest mystery of all: death.
Source: dyingtoknowmovie.com