Perfect Sense Review
RATING: (3 STARS) Another year, another apocalypse movie. In Perfect Sense, however, the end of the world comes with a delicious twist. It’s not another planet coming to destroy us (a la Melancholia), nor is it necessarily a Contagion-like epidemic. Rather, it’s the sudden and inexplicable loss of our senses. Director David Mackenzie utilizes an […]
A Better Life Review
RATING: (3 STARS) Chris Weitz, director of The Twilight Saga: New Moon and About a Boy, isn’t a name you’d expect to be attached to a humanistic drama about illegal immigrants, but his A Better Life is about just that, and it’s a very mature piece of work. The film has gotten a great deal […]
Chronicle Review
RATING: (3 STARS) With found-footage movies cleaning up at the box office over quite an extended period of time now, it seemed inevitable that they’d move past their horror roots and into other genres. Chronicle is the found-footage superhero movie, and it’s one of the most unique movie-going experiences in years. Those expecting a low-budget […]
Le Havre Review
RATING: (3 STARS) Aki Kaurasmaki’s Le Havre does for the small French village what Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris does for its titular city. Kaurasmaki presents an uber-romantic view of the kind of community where everyone knows everyone, and baguette and stinky cheese can be bought on every corner. It seems more than a little […]
Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame Review
RATING: (3 STARS) Hold on to your hats, folks. Detective Dee is in town. Part mystical Western, part kung fu epic, Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame is either the most glorious send-up of Asian action films or the most over-the-top foreign film I’ve ever seen. Regardless of which it is, I […]
Albert Nobbs Review
RATING: (3 STARS) It took Glenn Close almost two decades to get Albert Nobbs to the big screen, and for such a talent to dedicate so much heart and soul to something, viewers have a right to expect something truly special, right? Well, if you go in with that mindset, you’ll certainly be disappointed. However, […]
Terri Review
RATING: (3 STARS) I’m not sure “insightful” is the right word to describe Azazel Jacobs’ Terri, but I’d absolutely call it authentic, believable. Little happens in the film that sheds new light on high school students or the difficulties of growing up obese, and that’s fine when these subjects are tackled with such a delicate […]
The Adventures of Tintin Review
RATING: (3 STARS) Though The Adventures of Tintin is breezy fun, one can’t help but think the pairing of Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson should have turned out something more exciting than this. Much has been made of the meeting of the minds of Indiana Jones and The Lord of the Rings, but not a […]
War Horse Review
RATING: (3 STARS) Steven Spielberg’s films are often so recognizable that they could make up their own genre. They’re always impeccably crafted, and you can usually see him trying very hard—sometimes painfully so—to make you feel something. I tend to think part of the reason films like Munich and Minority Report were so admired was […]
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011) Review
RATING: (3 STARS) David Fincher’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is about as good as its nauseatingly dense source material would allow. I’m no fan of Stieg Larsson’s novel, nor the original Swedish film version. Fincher, however, is able to milk this puppy for all its worth. It’s pulp for mass consumption. It hides […]
Young Adult Review
RATING: (3 STARS) I’m one of those heartless individuals still bitter that Diablo Cody won an Oscar for her turgid Juno screenplay in 2007. But honest to blog, her writing for Jason Reitman’s latest is the highlight of the film. This is the work of someone who’s clearly matured over time. Gone is the insufferable […]
Rampart Review
RATING: (3 STARS) Rampart is another in a long line of 2011 character studies focusing on a man or woman on his or her her way to hitting rock bottom. Drive did something similar, as did Martha Marcy May Marlene. Perhaps the most apt companion piece would be We Need to Talk About Kevin. Disregarding […]
Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol Review
RATING: (3 STARS) Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol is hopefully the beginning of a beautiful friendship. It’s hard to say whether Brad Bird needed Ethan Hunt more, or if it was the other way around, but regardless, their first collaboration is one hell of an action movie. Bird is the director of such animated hits as […]
The Muppets Review
RATING: (3 STARS) It’s hard to make the argument that The Muppets is a kids movie. It’s certainly family-friendly, but the film will work best for those, like me, who grew up loving Kermit, Piggy, Fozzie, and the rest of the gang. It’s like a reunion of old friends, and though you don’t have to […]
Tower Heist Review
RATING: (3 STARS) In a post-Bernie Madoff world, it’s hard not to enjoy Tower Heist at least a little. Yes, it’s a heist film with plot holes the size of craters and leaps in logic Evel Knievel and his motorcycle couldn’t jump. But there’s a great deal of pleasure in seeing a corrupt billionaire get […]
Attack the Block Review
RATING: (3 STARS) A few weeks ago, I foolishly turned to Michael Bay and Transformers: Dark of the Moon to satisfy a “mindless entertainment” craving. If only I held off a little longer… Attack the Block is exactly what I hope for from an action movie. It’s fast-paced, witty, goofy in all the right ways, […]
