With Gaza exploding in violence and the eyes of the world fixed once again on the Middle East, “Waltz With Bashir” may be the most important movie of the season. As an “animated documentary,” it’s also in a genre all its own.

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Gus Van Sant’s “Milk” is a movie to be thankful for. Go see it, tonight if you can, and in a crowded theater. Then open up some merlot and watch the documentary “The Times of Harvey Milk,” by Robert Epstein—because these two films belong together.

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Oakland’s skyrocketing murder rate has experts scratching their heads, but cultural critic Sheerly Avni suggests that one answer lies in plain sight.  Just ask the kids who are likeliest to kill and be killed, and you will learn that a major villain is the “hug drug.”

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Of all the endings that “Sopranos” aficionados may have anticipated, Sunday night’s series finale probably defied almost of all their expectations, for better or for worse.  Judging by the fans’ reactions on the HBO site that night, “for worse” may be the majority opinion.  Contributor Sheerly Avni weighs in on the controversial send-off of Tony and his famiglia.  Warning:  Spoiler alert.

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How do you make the best movie of the year—possibly the decade—and still get pummeled at the box office by Ben Stiller and a CGI dinosaur?  Sheerly Avni, Truthdig’s movie critic, lays it out in 10 easy steps.

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The new Leonardo DiCaprio-starring movie about African diamond smugglers may be a schizophrenic mess, writes Truthdig’s Sheerly Avni, but it’s also one of the most powerful films you’ll see all year.

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Spike Lee’s new four-hour HBO documentary, “When the Levees Broke: A Requiem for New Orleans in Four Acts,” which premiered Monday night (and continues Tuesday night), is a haunting, maddening and expertly told story about the signature event in recent American history that showed how little our government truly cares for many of its citizens.

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Michael Winterbottom and Mat Whitecross have made a necessary and important critique of grave injustices at Guantanamo Bay. But are their storytelling techniques entirely on the level?

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The director who has been called the “Woody Allen of the West Coast” talks about her new ensemble film, Friends With Money,Ӕ starring Jennifer Aniston, Frances McDormand, Catherine Keener and Joan Cusack, which opened last week.

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The prominent black activist and mentor for incarcerated youth in Oakland, Calif. argues that it’s time to hold hip-hop artists accountable for the messages behind their music.

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