John Fink

[Review] Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star

The good news about Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star is that it’s not half bad! It’s not half good either, and perhaps I’m feeling a sense of good willing to...

[TIFF Review] Whores’ Glory

Concluding a trilogy that goes places even Mike Rowe of Dirty Jobs could never go (not on a basic cable anyway), Michael Glawogger’s Whores' Glory is lucid,...

[TIFF Review] God Bless America

In the age of American Idol, My Super Sweet Sixteen and the Jersey Shore, Natural Born Killers, Oliver Stone’s 1994 film looks quaint. Fred (Joel Murray), t...

[TIFF Review] Into the Abyss

I’m not sure Werner Herzog, Jean-Luc Godard or even Errol Morris would agree the role of film is to expose the truth. The truth varies. The truth is not on ...

[Review] Our Idiot Brother

Social critique and satire is rarely charming, however Our Idiot Brother, directed by Jesse Peretz, is a relaxed tight-rope walk. Structurally the film is a...

[Review] Over Your Cities Grass Will Grow

Opening with long meditative, carefully composed tracking shots through tunnels, passages and man-made caves, Over Your Cities Grass Will Grow is a portrait w...

[Review] Autoerotic

Joe Swanberg and Adam Wingard’s Autoerotic reaches new heights in depravity, especially in its closing moments. A skillful director with comedic chops such ...

[Review] Monte Carlo

Monte Carlo is a good-natured throwback to romantic comedies that took place in exotic locations for no reason other than for escapism. Here is a film that’s pu...

[Review] The Art of Getting By

Gavin Wiesen's The Art of Getting By is an independent film for those that consider Olive Garden to be authentic Italian food. It’s palatable enough but you...

[Review] Jig

There are certain conventions all sports movies must require. In documentary it’s considerably more difficult, as a filmmaker must make choices on who to follow...

John Fink

John Fink is a New York City area-based critic, filmmaker, educator and curator. He currently serves as the Artistic Director of the Buffalo International Film Festival.