Stuart Klawans

Film Critic

Stuart Klawans was the film critic for The Nation from 1988 through 2020

Shadows and Smog Shadows and Smog

I paid to see Will Smith fight legions of robots, and what I got was a trip back to Wabash Street.

Jul 29, 2004 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

Brief Encounter Brief Encounter

Like many intelligent women of advanced political beliefs, Celine detests the ideology of the soulmate.

Jul 7, 2004 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

By Way of Deception By Way of Deception

Not the judgment of film critics but the passage of time will decide whether Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 can change the world. Change, of course, is the whole purpose.

Jun 17, 2004 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

The Invisibles The Invisibles

When you go to the Human Rights Watch International Film Festival, you expect the screen to be a window onto the world.

Jun 3, 2004 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

Band of Insiders Band of Insiders

I know, you're too hip to see Troy.

May 20, 2004 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

Broadcast News Broadcast News

Most faces can simply be described, but some (like Jean Dominique's) need explaining. When did the lips shrink away, and the light brown skin start clinging to the bones?

May 6, 2004 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

Love and Theft Love and Theft

Antiquarian mishmash lathers the April screen. In Kill Bill Vol.

Apr 22, 2004 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

Chronicle of a Disappearance Chronicle of a Disappearance

A rough but accurate gauge of national resilience: When dictators fall, how soon do filmmakers rise again? In the case of Argentina, the recovery was impressively quick.

Apr 8, 2004 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

Speak, Memory Speak, Memory

Not wanting to curse Charlie Kaufman with too much praise, I'm tempted to say that his nonexistent twin Donald is the best American screenwriter since Preston Sturges.

Mar 25, 2004 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

Adaptation Adaptation

So Mel Gibson has been persecuted all the way to the bank.

Mar 11, 2004 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

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