The movie is a metaphor for the power of delusional hype--a metaphor for itself.

Every year, I'm depressed that so few of the documentaries I've loved break through.

Russell Crowe is normally an actor who disappears so far into his characters you'd swear his DNA has been altered.

As a critic, I try to stay neutral about movies before I see them, but I really wanted "Whiskey Tango Foxtrot" to be great. It's based on a barbed memoir by Kim Barker called "The Taliban Shuffle: Strange Days In Afghanistan And Pakistan." And its stars Tina Fey, out of her comfort zone, just as Barker was a fish out of water when, in 2004, she began covering the Afghanistan occupation for the Chicago Tribune.

I think I can safely call 2012 average. Overall, it was a stronger year for nonfiction than fiction - a situation that would've surprised me back in January, when I was looking forward to big new novels from several authors I really love.

The English have a wellspring of comedy that will never be exhausted: the combination of bestial urges and excellent manners.

The movie is a metaphor for the power of delusional hype--a metaphor for itself.