first run features

New Film Pays Homage to Gospel Quartets and Their Evolution Into Rock ‘n Roll

Ben Friedman

Its subject matter is endlessly fascinating, and the interviews Clem captures are special relics of musical history. The stories provided are engrossing. Clem has a clear adoration for the subject and his passion transcends the screen.  The biggest issue with How They Got Over is simply that Clem’s scope is far too ambitious for such a short runtime. In covering everything, nothing feels particularly significant.

City Dreamers: How Four Women Architects Took on the World

Sandra Bertrand

Based in Philadelphia, their projects have included campuses and museums here and abroad, such as the University of Pennsylvania, the Seattle Arts Museum, as well as the Sainsbury Wing of London’s National Gallery and the Nikko Hotel in Japan.  Revered as a teacher, Scot Brown's students and notables such as Frank Gehry and Rem Koolhaas petitioned to give her the prestigious Pritzker prize retroactively after Venturi unfairly became the sole recipient. The effort was denied. (She has said the petition is her prize, a better reward.)

How One Grieving Artist Turned Tragedy Into Art

Sandra Bertrand

Before the September 11, 2001, attacks, before the current pandemic, grief of such cataclysmic proportions seemed unimaginable for many.  But when sculptor Suse Lowenstein’s son Alex, along with his schoolmates, was lost in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, on December 21, 1988, unimaginable grief became a tragic reality for her.  The question was, how to survive it?

Mourning the Loss of an Icon: The Disappearing Comic Book Store

Christopher Karr

“My hope is that the documentary inspires its viewers to reflect on the places and rituals (comic shops and otherwise) that have given them a sense of belonging, as my comic shop did for me,” Desiato said in a statement. And to the extent that the movie prompted me to reflect on my own experiences at a comic shop, it’s successful. The problem is that reflection isn’t necessarily the most engaging response to elicit from a viewer.

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