About me

I began as a film critic for The Patriot Ledger in suburban Boston in 1988, and became the senior film critic there in 2001. My reviews also appeared in newspapers associated with the nationwide Gannett chain. I’ve been a member of the North Carolina Film Critics Association since 2014 and have twice been honored by The New England Associated Press News Executives Association for outstanding feature writing. I transplanted from Boston to Raleigh in 2013 but remained on staff at the Ledger until 2023. I’m now striking out on my own in hopes of drawing attention to autism and putting it in a positive light. I was diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum in 2020, and it has given me a whole new perspective on life, as well as in how I analyze movies.

One Response

  1. Hi Al,

    I’m writing on behalf of the film THE AMERICAN (titled JOIKA in certain territories), written and directed by James Napier Robertson and starring Diane Kruger, Oleg Ivenko and Talia Ryder. It is currently being released in theatres and is also streaming worldwide, and we were wondering if you might be interested in reviewing it!

    A little more info about the film below:

    THE AMERICAN is based on the true story of ballerina Joy Womack, the first American to penetrate the upper echelon’s of Russia’s prestigious Bolshoi Ballet. It stars Talia Ryder (NEVER RARELY SOMETIMES ALWAYS), Oleg Ivenko (THE WHITE CROW) and Diane Kruger (INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS), and is written and directed by James Napier Robertson (THE DARK HORSE).

    Please let me know if this sounds of interest, if so we would love to provide you a screener link of the film!

    Many thanks,

    Sharon

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