connie britton – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

THE LIFE LIST – Review by Lynn Venhaus

March 28, 2025March 28, 2025 Lynn Venhaus Adam Brooks, connie britton, Kyle Allen, Lori Nelson Spielman, Sebastian de Souza, Sofia Carson, The Life List

Subtle, it’s not. But The Life List works on several levels – as a romantic comedy, a nudge to put your relationship with your mother in perspective, and as an evaluation checklist on your life so far – where you were, where you are now, and where are you going. It’s not as if the filmmakers wave a magic wand and everything’s hunky-dory – after all, this is not a fairy tale — but the sweet story is satisfyingly wrapped up with a big bow. It has appealing elements, most notably its winsome heroine, who unearths some gumption and gets back on the path to self-fulfillment.

Reviews

WINNER – Review by April Neale

September 7, 2024September 8, 2024 April Neale biopic, connie britton, Emilia Jones, Espionage Act, Kerry Howley, Reality Winner, susanna fogel, Winner, Zach Galifianakis

Winner, is a fascinating and entertaining look at Middle Eastern language savant Reality Winner’s (Emilia Jones) unlikely trajectory from Texas schoolgirl to imprisoned veteran accused of espionage during the Trump reign. Ultimately, the film is a thought-provoking exploration of the consequences of challenging authority. It reminds us that while fighting for justice is important, it’s crucial to pick our battles wisely and consider the potential impact on our lives. Reality did the time, and now we can relive the crime by watching a former president wiggle around our country’s laws.

Reviews

LUCKIEST GIRL ALIVE – Review by Valerie Kalfrin

October 17, 2022October 17, 2022 Valerie Kalfrin Chiara Aurelia, connie britton, Finn Wittrock, Jennifer Beals, Jessica Knoll, Luckiest Girl Alive, Mike Barker, mila kunis

The Netflix film Luckiest Girl Alive is secretly a drama tucked inside a mild thriller about how one woman’s traumas affect her years later. While this is a worthwhile topic, its creators seemed to think no one would pay attention without flashbacks of assault, knives dripping blood, and the soundtrack zinging in place of suspense.

Reviews

LUCKIEST GIRL ALIVE – Review by Martha K Baker

October 13, 2022 Martha K. Baker (Archived Contributor) Chiara Aurelia, connie britton, Finn Wittrock, Jennifer Beals, Jessica Knoll, Luckiest Girl Alive, Mike Barker, mila kunis

Female as victim, with emphasis on rape, has served Hollywood well. While pretending to inveigh against such violence, these films have glamorized assault and added filmic battery with fragmented images of the victim. Thankfully, Luckiest Girl Alive is not that trite trope. The title is ironic. The multi-layered plot is trussed with conflicts. The last 15 minutes of Luckiest Girl Alive tie a beautiful ribbon of retribution on this gift of a film.

Festivals Reviews

892 (Sundance FF 2022) – Review by Leslie Combemale

January 21, 2022January 23, 2022 Leslie Combemale 892, Abi Damaris Corbin, connie britton, John Boyega, Kwame Kwei-armah, Lance Corporal Brian Easley, Michael K Williams, nicole beharie, Olivia Washington, Selenis Leyva, sundance film festival 2022

Premiering at Sundance is director Abi Damaris Corbin’s feature film 892, based on the true story of Marine war veteran Brian Easley and the series of events that left him at the brink of homelessness, leading him to walk into a Wells Fargo in Atlanta, declare he had a bomb, and hold two women hostage for 3 hours. This tension-filled gut-wrenching tale unfolds with the intimacy of a chamber drama. It is as much an indictment of the Veterans Administration and its failure to support veterans, the lack of services for the mentally ill in this country, and the dangers of being a Black American, as it is a story of one man’s struggle and pain.

Reviews

THE WHITE LOTUS – Review by Martha K Baker

August 23, 2021August 24, 2021 Martha K. Baker (Archived Contributor) connie britton, Jennifer Coolidge, mike white, Murray Bartlett, natasha rothwell, Steve Zahn, The White Lotus

Set in a luxurious Hawaiian resort, The White Lotus is about entitlement, or “enwhitelment,” as a comedian labeled it, with people of color at the beck of white people as described by creator Mike White. But it’s also about political correctness, parenting, and complicity, about secrets and stealing and sex. The White Lotus satisfactorily delivers, just remember that “Aloha” means both “hello” and “goodbye.”

Reviews

THE WHITE LOTUS – Review by Susan Granger

July 22, 2021July 25, 2021 Susan Granger connie britton, hbo, Jennifer Coolidge, mike white, Murray Bartlett, natasha rothwell, Steve Zahn, The White Lotus

As the plot of Mike White’s new HBO series unfolds, it’s as if Fantasy Island merged with The Love Boat. In the opening shot, a casket is being loaded onto a plane. It’s a mysteriously ominous beginning that soon shifts to a tropical island where smiling Armond , the smarmy resort manager, and his newly hired assistant Lani prepare to welcome new guests as they arrive at the luxurious White Lotus Hotel.

Reviews

PROFESSOR MARSTON AND THE WONDER WOMEN – Retroview by Susan Granger

December 23, 2020December 23, 2020 Susan Granger angels robinson, connie britton, luke evans, professor marston and the wonder women, rebecca hall, truth-based

This is, undoubtedly, the most kinky, provocative comic-book superhero ‘origin’ story – and it’s true! It begins with a public burning of Wonder Woman comics and the stern interrogation of Harvard psychologist Dr. William Moulton Marston (Luke Evans) by Josette Frank (Connie Britton) of the Child Study Association of America, who grills him about his subversive obsession with bondage, which Marston maintains symbolizes his motivational theory.