Urbanite

A small film about a 10-year-old boy from Laos won the top juried and audience prizes at the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival, capping off an impressive 11-day cinematic event where many of the most notable movies could be found away from the high-profile, glamorous spotlight.

“The Rocket,” in which that young boy enters a rocket contest to help his poor, displaced family won three awards in all...

It’s hard to believe now, but there was a time when a high school basketball player from Brooklyn by way of New Jersey named Lenny Cooke was ranked higher than LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and other then-prep stars.

Clearly, things didn’t work out for Cooke, who once seemed to be such a sure thing for the NBA. You’d have heard of him if they had.

The new documentary “Lenny Cooke” chronicles...

At Any Price 3.5 stars Starring Dennis Quaid, Zac Efron Rated R Now playing at the Angelika and Lincoln Plaza

“Expand or die” is the edict handed down to Henry Whipple (Dennis Quaid), the Iowa farmer and seed salesman at the center of “At Any Price.” And in three words, Ramin Bahrani’s new drama perfectly captures the economic pressures at the heart of modern agribusiness, and, really, any...

Jackie Robinson isn't the only iconic sports figure seen in "42," the new biopic about his groundbreaking first season in Major League Baseball now in theaters. Actor John C. McGinley ("Scrubs"), a New York native, plays famed Brooklyn Dodgers and later Yankees broadcaster Red Barber.

amNewYork spoke with McGinley about his pitch-perfect impersonation of the Ol' Redhead.

Growing...

Disconnect 3 stars Directed by Henry Alex Rubin Starring Jason Bateman, Andrea Riseborough, Alexander Skarsgård, Paula Patton Rated R Playing at Lincoln Square and Union Square

"Disconnect" isn't the first movie to consider the downside of the digital age, to explore the way our increasing reliance on technology has come to replace genuine human connections. But director Henry Alex...

42 3.5 stars Directed by Brian Helgeland Starring Chadwick Boseman, Harrison Ford, Nicole Beharie Rated PG-13

Baseball is just a game, of course, but it's also so much more than that. You could argue about whether the sport deserves the title of national pastime, but it is one of the few constants in the last century-plus of American life, a strand that transcends the passage of time to link...

It’s a Disaster 3 stars Directed by Todd Berger Starring David Cross, Julia Stiles, America Ferrera Rated R Playing at the Village East and Nitehawk Cinema

"It's a Disaster" is the story of annoying millennial couples who gather for a Sunday brunch at one of their homes and discover, at some point before the quiche is served, that the world is coming to an end.

When it comes...

The Brass Teapot 2 stars Directed by Ramaa Mosley Starring Juno Temple, Michael Angarano, Alexis Bledel Rated R Playing at Cinema Village

It’s no surprise that “The Brass Teapot” originated as a short story by screenwriter Tim Macy. The film has all the hallmarks of such an enterprise, including a central gimmick that doesn’t stand up to feature length.

In this case, that’s a magical...

Upstream Color 2.5 stars Directed by Shane Carruth Starring Amy Seimetz, Shane Carruth Not Rated Playing at IFC Center

There's a language of cinema that we've grown accustomed to over the years, in which certain rules are followed: Shots are sequenced in a digestible way, narratives develop over the course of three concise acts and filmmakers provide a combination of dialogue and imagery that...

One of the great pleasures of moviegoing is to watch an interesting flick with friends and discuss it afterward. Certain movies linger and expand in the mind and simply demand dissection.

The documentary "Room 237" is the cinematic version of one of those post-movie sessions. The subject in this case is "The Shining," Stanley Kubrick's haunting horror masterpiece about...