The 20 Best Performances of 2014
It was a great year for acting, and I still haven’t seen some of the year’s most acclaimed performances. If David Oyelowo (Selma), Julianne Moore (Still Alice), Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game), J.K. Simmons (Whiplash), Timothy Spall (Mr. Turner), Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Beyond the Lights), or anyone else bowls me over the way they have so […]
Two Days, One Night Review
RATING: (3.5 STARS) Two Days, One Night might be the Dardenne brothers’ best film yet. That’s a big statement considering the filmography in quesiton: La Promesse, Rosetta, L’enfant, The Kid with a Bike—not a dud in the bunch. But it’s a complex, rich film that earns such a label. Anchored by a phenomenal turn by […]
Blood Ties Review
RATING: (2.5 STARS) Though the film that couldn’t be more representative of a specific place (New York City) and time (the 1970s), Guillaume Canet’s Blood Ties deals with themes that are timeless. An intense sibling rivalry, one between a cop and criminal, takes center stage, but there’s more—arguably too much—going on in this story co-written […]
Rust and Bone Review
RATING: (2.5 STARS) It begins with a rush of dreamlike imagery before cutting to a pair of feet, running in sandals. Our male protagonist scolds his son for obnoxiously kicking the seat in front of him while riding a train. The first thing we see of our female protagonist is her feet, after she’s knocked […]
The Dark Knight Rises Review
RATING: (3.5 STARS) With The Dark Knight Rises, the stirring finale to the wildly successful post-millennial Batman trilogy, director and cowriter Christopher Nolan laughs in the face of staggeringly high expectations and gives us perhaps the grandest of all superhero movies. The movie itself is this big, hulking monster—not unlike its main villain—but its flaws […]
Contagion Review
RATING: (4 STARS) By staying away from the familiar conventions of most thrillers, Steven Soderbergh’s Contagion manages to reach a level of believability and natural tension that I thought impossible out of a film like this. There are no chases, nor are there any heroes and villains. In fact, the characters in Contagion take a […]
Midnight in Paris Review
RATING: (4 STARS) Filming Midnight in Paris was probably the most fun Woody Allen’s ever had. His joy is evident from the moment the film begins to the moment it ends, and the film is so quintessentially him that I can’t believe it took this long for him to make it. He’s clearly been inspired […]
Inception Review
RATING: (4 STARS) The hype had been building up for months, years even—ever since “The Dark Knight†blew people’s minds in 2008. With the keys to the kingdom, just what was Christopher Nolan capable of? “Inception†answers that question—he’s capable of creating an absolutely wild world in which anything is possible and everything is believable. […]
Nine Review
RATING: (3.5 STARS) I watched Fellini’s “8 1/2,†the inspiration for “Nine,†a few weeks ago in preparation for Rob Marshall’s big and bold musical. It was a heady trip into a film director’s fantasy. “Nine†proves to be a worthy follow-up, and it improves on Fellini’s film in one important way. As interesting as […]
The Best Performances of the 2000s
In descending order: 10.) Hilary Swank (Million Dollar Baby) – Most of Clint Eastwood’s films this decade have featured a lead character who, for better or worse, dominates the screen. Sean Penn in Mystic River, Angelina Jolie and Changeling, and Eastwood himself in Gran Torino all demonstrate this. They might not be captivating figures, but […]
