May 22nd New Releases
22 May 2012 Leave a Comment
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“The Grey” is a solid survival movie starring Liam Neeson. He plays a man hired by an oil company to protect pipeline workers from attacks by predatory animals. After a plane crash leaves him and six others stranded in the Alaskan wilderness, he attempts to lead them to safety while a pack of wolves pick off the men one at a time. It’s a fairly bleak movie, which turned off some of the critics. But I quite liked it for the way it stripped down the “man vs nature” theme to its bare essence.
This Means War is a pretty average action-comedy, not unlike recent movies like “Knight and Day” and “Mr. & Mrs. Smith”. The banter between the main characters was entertaining enough, but a bit predictable. It’s a formulaic movie, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Anyone who is a fan of this genre will find lots to enjoy here.
Woman in Black is a gloomy, things-that-go-bump-in-the-night gothic thriller starring Harry Potter, I mean Daniel Radcliffe, who is using this movie to break his past connection to the mega-franchise. It’s a kind of ghost story, with a fairly authentic rural setting in the UK. Suspicious townspeople and plenty of fog add to the tension. People who don’t normally go in for horror movies would probably like this anyway, as it’s more story and character driven than your average slasher.
Red Tails had mixed results. The story, about the Tuskeegee airmen who became the first black fighter pilot squadron during WWII, could have been fleshed out a bit more, rather than glossed over with sub-plots like a silly love story involving one of the pilots and an Italian girl named Sofia (we never really learn much more about her). The action sequences are top notch, but unfortunately wander a bit too far into the Michael Bay school of blowing-stuff-up. I’m sorry, but any scene where a P-51 fighter blows up a destroyer with nothing more than .50 cal guns is absurd. They need to pull back the reins a bit more when it comes to this stuff. Your average 12 year old might enjoy it, but most moviegoers are going to roll their eyes. Still, the film is a decent enough watch if you can overlook some of this.
May 8th New Releases
08 May 2012 Leave a Comment
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The Vow looked like one of those movies guys go to grudgingly on Valentine’s Day, pretending to like in hopes of getting a kiss at the end of the date. And yes, there are plenty of romance cliches to be found. However, I actually found myself enjoying it more than I thought I would. I credit Channing Tatum for this. He’s one of the better male leads of his generation, and the charm and self-deprecating humor he brings to the screen (along with hunky good looks, my wife informs me) always elevate his films above the bar.
Underworld Awakening is one of the weaker entries in this franchise. Kate Beckinsale is the only returning cast member from previous films (even Scott Speedman is AWOL). There’s really no way to review movies like this. They’re like comic book movies: fans will lap them up (even as they pick them apart), and most everyone else will be modestly entertained for a few hours, then promptly forget the movie ever existed. Lots of scenes of Kate fighting in spandex suits, a surprising amount of violence and gore, and CG effects that do nothing but remind you of how silly the whole premise is.
April 24th New Releases
23 Apr 2012 Leave a Comment
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Contraband was a pretty decent crime flick based on an original film called Reykjavik-Rotterdam (an Iceland-Germany-Netherlands co-production). Pacing was good, and overall it had a gritty feel to it. The details surrounding smuggling through the Panama Canal seemed well researched. This is a solid rental movie for anyone who like crime stories with a bit of action. Excellent performance by an ensemble cast.
In The Land of Blood & Honey, directed by Angelina Jolie, is a pretty grim story about the sexual enslavement of women during the Bosnian war. Anyone who remembers the conflict knows it was pretty horrifying, and led to the worst use of ethnic cleansing since World War II. Jolie doesn’t hold back on the details, which can be pretty disturbing at times. But the film features actors from the region, and uses a Bosnian / Croat language track, giving it a real sense of authenticity. There’s nothing “Hollywood” about this production. Some critics complained that it’s far too bleak, and while it’s difficult to like a movie that deals with topics like genocide, I thought it was extremely well done.
April 17th New Releases
22 Apr 2012 Leave a Comment
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M:I Ghost Protocol is the fourth film in the franchise, and by that point, most franchises have become a near-parody of themselves. Not this time. I would go as far as saying this is the BEST movie of the series, mostly because of a fantastic support cast. Recruiting both Simon Pegg and Jeremy Renner to suit up with an aging Tom Cruise was a genius move, and it pays off. This was a great movie.
Shame, on the other hand, has mixed results. It’s a well-shot piece of work, with a deep sense of place, but the story itself has a few frayed edges. It got a lot of press mostly because of Michael Fassbender’s full frontal scenes, but these are actually pretty tame compared to European standards. Another case of the North American press getting itself in a tizzy after seeing a penis. I think there’s actually a lot going on in the subtext of this movie, and I found that conversations about it with customers actually revealed much more than I realized was there. It’s very much for the art-house crowd, and even though I think reactions will be mixed, it’s worth a watch.
April 10 New Releases
22 Apr 2012 Leave a Comment
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Although I enjoyed The Iron Lady, especially Meryl Streep’s performance, I couldn’t help thinking there was something missing. The film seemed to dwell for an unusually long time on Thatcher’s later years, when she struggled with dementia, and using flashbacks to her “power” years. I would have liked to have seen a bit more info on her rise to politics.
The Divide was a relatively unknown movie with a cast of character actors and unknowns. It was compelling in the same was as a car accident. You slow down to check it out, but brace yourself for the unpleasantness that’s sure to follow. A movie about survivors of a nuclear war who turn on each other in unimaginable ways doesn’t exactly scream “Disney”. It was bleak, and didn’t have much good to say about humanity. I think that’s why I liked it. I’d never watch it again, but it was pretty riveting.
April 3 New Releases
22 Apr 2012 Leave a Comment
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War Horse was a great historical film. I was a little wary of it because I had seen a few preview clips involving the use of horses in battle (not real big on seeing animals hurt in film). However, in the context of the story, the scenes were well done and not gratuitous. The story is very old-world, hearkening back to the golden age of Hollywood lore.
We Bought a Zoo was another surprise. I’m a fan of Cameron Crowe’s work anyway, but this was a bit of a departure for him. Essentially, it is a family film, but neither as vapid nor maudlin as so many other kid-friendly movies that come down the pipe these days. Kids should love it, and I suspect lots of parents will also enjoy the story.
Toast is a hidden gem. A coming-of-age story set in 1960′s Britain, it’s a quirky and clever comedy with a mix of popular and unknown actors. Anyone who loves film-festival movies should find this one to be a treat.
