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Alex Bentley

Alex Bentley

Associate Editor

Alex Bentley isn’t a Dallas-Fort Worth native, but with all his experience in the area, he’s the next best thing. He received his bachelor’s degree from TCU, and after a five-year sojourn to work for the Florida Marlins in Miami, he returned to the area to get his master’s degree at UNT. Prior to joining CultureMap, he worked for Pegasus News, helping deliver hyper-local news to the internet masses. He uses that experience to make CultureMap the go-to site for everything to see and do in Dallas.

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Movie Time

Smoldering sex appeal aside, Margot Robbie still plays second fiddle to a hit desperate Will Smith in Focus

By Alex Bentley

02.27.15 | 12:44 pm

When done right, there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a con man movie. It’s pure escapism, as the audience gets to revel in the “heroes” pulling one over ...


Soulful Concert News

Grammy's big winner headed to Houston for big venue concert to accommodate all those new fans

By Alex Bentley

02.23.15 | 11:15 am

Soulful singer Sam Smith has enjoyed quite the breakout year since the release of his debut album, In the Lonely Hour. Now  Houston fans will be able to see him ...


Oscar 2015 Highlights

Birdman soars over Boyhood at Oscars; best moments from the long show

By Alex Bentley

02.23.15 | 1:22 am

Although Boyhood has been an awards season favorite in the run-up to the 2015 Academy Awards, in the end, Richard Linklater's gutsy 12-year experiment was overshadowed by another bravura ...


Running Down a Dream

McFarland, USA transcends sports clichés with charm, thanks to charismatic Coster

By Alex Bentley

02.22.15 | 4:30 pm

If you’re watching a sports movie, especially one made by Disney, you can usually count on several things: a person or team overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds; resistance to said ...


Real Estate Rumblings

Lone Star State sales boom: Texas hits a real estate milestone rarely seen

By Alex Bentley

02.16.15 | 12:58 pm

A surge of single-family home sales in the fourth quarter of 2014 ensured it was one of the best years ever for Texas real estate. According to a new report ...


Line Up the Oscar

Julianne Moore is Oscar worthy in Still Alice, but the real surprise is Twilight star

By Alex Bentley

02.08.15 | 8:30 am

With no specific cause and no cure, Alzheimer’s disease is as scary a diagnosis as one could ever get. That is precisely the premise of Still Alice. Alice Howland ...


Jupiter's Descent

Oscar nominee's pathetic performance keeps Jupiter Ascending from flying high

By Alex Bentley

02.07.15 | 3:30 pm

When last we encountered the Wachowskis, the writing and directing sibling team were making a movie out of what many considered to be an unfilmable book, Cloud Atlas. They’ve ...


Movie Time

New Star Wars star gives an early preview of his real force: Oscar Isaac dominates A Most Violent Year

By Alex Bentley

01.25.15 | 9:38 am

Writer/director J.C. Chandor has had a heck of a rocket start to his career. He was nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for his first film ...


Box Office Stunner

Box Office stunner: American Sniper shatters records with unapologetically pro-American war story

By Alex Bentley

01.19.15 | 11:57 am

There are certain movies you can count on to have big opening weekends at the box office, such as The Avengers and The Hunger Games. But American Sniper? The Clint ...


Movie Time

Bradley Cooper does Texas right in American Sniper: Nothing easy about this movie, war lessons

By Alex Bentley

01.18.15 | 7:34 am

Last we heard from director Clint Eastwood, he was fumbling his way through the adaptation of the jukebox musical Jersey Boys. So naturally he would quickly follow that up with ...


The Review Is In

Michael Mann loses his magic touch: Blackhat fits every horrible January movie stereotype

By Alex Bentley

01.17.15 | 1:33 pm

Every time I go into a film released in January — and I’m not talking about movies like Selma or American Sniper that expand nationwide after limited release in December ...


Lone Star Pride

Oscar surprise: Houston-born director's Grand Budapest Hotel leads nominations

By Alex Bentley

01.15.15 | 9:48 am

A film that no one but Austin-based director Richard Linklater could dream up has now turned into one of the year's most-lauded films: Boyhood was nominated for six Academy ...


Golden Moments at the Globes

Houston-born directors rule at Golden Globes; Tina and Amy's best jokes (including Cosby zingers)

By Alex Bentley

01.12.15 | 1:15 am

Despite being around for 72 years, the Golden Globe Awards have been and likely always will be the redheaded stepchild of awards season. They’re rarely a harbinger for awards ...


History Comes Alive in Selma

Despite inaccurate portrayal of LBJ, Selma makes history come alive with humanizing view of Martin Luther King

By Alex Bentley

01.11.15 | 11:00 am

Whether by chance or due to the sheer enormity of his legacy, not one feature film has been made about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. since he was assassinated in ...


The Review Is In

Stoned movie making bums out audiences: Inherent Vice an incoherent haze of a messy downer

By Alex Bentley

01.10.15 | 3:03 pm

Director Paul Thomas Anderson has always been known for his esoteric films. In fact, he’s probably the most well-known current filmmaker to have trafficked solely in films that aren ...


Best Movies of 2014

Best movies of 2014: Performances by Chris Rock and casts of Birdman, Boyhood and Whiplash stand out

By Alex Bentley

01.01.15 | 9:47 am

Although it wasn't a standout year for movies collectively, 2014 will be remembered for individual performances. These are the 10 best films I saw in 2014.


Worst Movies of 2014

Worst movies of 2014: Hobbit, Spider-Man and a slew of not very funny comedians make the list

By Alex Bentley

12.31.14 | 8:30 am

It may be hard to believe, but as a film critic, it takes a real stinker to make it to the bottom of my list. These are 10 worst movies ...


Fairy Tale Cinema

Meryl Streep is a real witch in fairy tale musical with a clever twist

By Alex Bentley

12.28.14 | 4:00 pm

Translating a stage musical into a movie has never been an easy job. The difficulties most often lie in replicating theater’s intimacy, as even the most grandiose of productions ...


Movie Time

A normal Tim Burton movie? Believe it, underrated Big Eyes surprises by not being strange

By Alex Bentley

12.27.14 | 12:02 pm

Tim Burton’s films don’t normally fly under the radar, but his latest, Big Eyes, certainly has. Perhaps that’s because it has few Oscar aspirations, unlike most other ...


Movie Magic

Keira Knightley proves Benedict Cumberbatch isn't the only smart star in The Imitation Game

By Alex Bentley

12.26.14 | 1:28 pm

Whether we like it or not, movies about World War II continue to be popular for filmmakers because of the myriad stories that can be mined from such rich history ...


All articles by this author.  162 Results. Showing 1 to 20
Page 1 of 9
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