Liars and Saints

  One of the nicest touches in "Tony" is Mrs. Bourdain, who pounces when her son mispronounces the word "Bildungsroman." She trashes a bag of records that her husband has left in the living room -- then disingenuously says that a bag on the floor is always, categorically, just a piece of trash. When her son goes missing, she quickly gets lost in a marital fight; somehow, she forgets to keep her eyes on the prize, which is the chance to locate her son. The script doesn't "dig in" to Mrs. Bourdain's standard-variety misery. It just lightly touches on a few odd moments -- and this is enough to let us know that we have certainly met (and maybe lived next door to) someone very much like Mrs. Bourdain. There are other surprises. In an American coming-of-age movie, we might expect the flawed main characters to have hearts of gold. But Leo Woodall's character is mostly reprehensible. He seems to be cruising close to "self-destruction" territo...

  My favorite Oscar-nominated film, currently, is "Puss in Boots: The Last Wish." (It's not in the main competition, but it's up for Best Animated Film.) Like Cinderella, Puss in Boots comes from the pen of Charles Perrault. Both characters are plucky, resourceful, resilient, and kind. Puss has nothing, at the start--but he acquires boots, then he talks his way into a job, and he finds ways to earn promotions for his master (again and again). He uses misleading clothing, harmless half-truths, and flattery to remake the world in a savvy way; he improves on God's work. "Puss in Boots II" begins with film icon Antonio Banderas; he is the titular puss, and he struts across the stage, asking, "Who is your favorite fearless hero?" He uses his sword to "liberate" free drinks for the commoners; we see kegs spewing out their contents, and the kegs are labeled "Leche." The film only improves from here: We watch as Puss does battle wit...