“Rise of the Guardians” might appear to be another holiday-themed romp released during a special time of year when audiences are in the mood for such festive distractions. However, one only has to read the credit “Executive produced by Guillermo Del Toro” to appreciate just what type of fantasy experience the feature actually contains. With a taste...
It’s difficult to label “Life of Pi” as soulfully nourishing, but it’s frequently amazing. A 3D adaptation of Yann Martel’s celebrated 2001 novel, the picture comes to life in ways the big screen hasn’t seen in years, taking the potential of a survival film to extraordinary heights of fantasy and spiritual meditation. It’s thrilling cinema, even if...
“Deadfall” is troubling on a variety of levels, with its general ineffectiveness taking a top position of concern. Populated with troubled, violent characters who march their way through slight but intriguing emotional barriers, the feature captures a stimulating feel for a multi-character design of dysfunction. It’s director Stefan Ruzowitzky who ...
There is a lot of talented people involved with the making of the gambling dramedy, “Lay the Favorite,” rendering the non-committal attitude of the piece rather perplexing. Despite a swirling atmosphere of degenerates and jealousy, the material doesn’t spark to life, finding director Stephen Frears strangely powerless when it comes to infusing the ...
“In Their Skin” deserves some amount of credit for even attempting to root its tale of a home invasion in a psychologically troubling place of envy and obsession. It’s an open attempt to understand the headspace of the antagonists, but the effect gradually washes away the longer the feature lingers on its cast to articulate the heightened concern. ...
Remember last year’s “Breaking Dawn – Part 1,” where Bella and Edward got married, had violent, bed-breaking sex on their honeymoon, and conceived a daughter that werewolf pal Jacob went all humuna-humuna-humuna over shortly after her birth, pledging his eternal love to a baby? I’m sorry to report that the ludicrousness of “Part 1” doesn’t carry ov...
It’s interesting to find the new film from Steven Spielberg titled “Lincoln,” when in fact it’s barely about Abraham Lincoln at all. Attempting to transform the 16th President of the United States into an angel, Spielberg loses touch with reality, making a ponderous museum piece about a deeply complex man, focusing so intently on one page of histor...
Over the course of his last four features, director Joe Wright has developed a cinematic style that’s been irresistible to study, creating seemingly infinite screen pleasures in efforts such as “Pride & Prejudice,” “Atonement,” “The Soloist,” and “Hanna.” Masterminding a unique creative challenge with Leo Tolstoy’s celebrated novel, “Anna Karenina,...
“A Royal Affair” commences much like any other costume drama, introducing woe and innocence lost with the arrival of an arranged marriage and a life lived away from the comfort of loved ones. However, instead of a mummification of emotions to portray era-specific conflicts, the feature finds a way to express deep desires and betrayals without expan...
“The Comedy” is a misleading title, especially with deadpan extraordinaire Tim Heidecker in the lead role, while regular co-conspirator Eric Wareheim pops up in the supporting cast. Those expecting something along the lines of “Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!” are going to be in for a rude awakening, with “The Comedy” more of a bleak characte...
Minnie Driver has always struck me as a freshly animated, appealing actress with an interesting range and askew emotional sensitivity that’s helped her to stand out in a crowded field of competition. She hasn’t enjoyed a substantial film role in quite some time, perhaps dating back to 2003’s “Owning Mahowny,” which makes her latest movie, the Engli...
Comparing 1992’s “Universal Soldier” to 2012’s “Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning” is impossible at this point, with the franchise far removed from its original intent, despite the continued participation of stars Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren. The latest round in the UniSol saga (the sixth film in the tattered franchise) is its darkes...
The found-footage experience has been a young man’s game in recent years, allowing hungry filmmakers a chance to tell a horror story on a shoestring budget, using the trendy subgenre to establish themselves. Enter Barry Levinson, the 70-year-old director of such hits as “Rain Man” and “The Natural,” who summons his years of experience and mature ta...
“The Details” marks a return to the screen for star Tobey Maguire, who’s only been seen in two pictures since the 2007 release of “Spider-Man 3.” The feature also welcomes writer/director Jacob Aaron Estes back to filmmaking, with his absence dating all the way to 2004’s muddled drama, “Mean Creek.” This distance between productions is felt in “The...
The opening of “Pusher” swiftly runs through a visual identification of the main players as though the audience is already familiar with this group of strippers, drug dealers, and goons. And maybe they are, with the film a remake of a 1996 Danish production that launched the career of director Nicolas Winding Refn. However, that’s unlikely, with th...
It’s easy to blame Nicolas Cage for his horrible career choices as of late, especially when so many of them seem driven primarily by monetary woes, with script quality and directorial competence secondary concerns to the lure of the almighty paycheck. However, with “Stolen,” Cage is one of the few bright spots in an otherwise offensively dopey thri...
“Nature Calls” hopes to make its audience intentionally uncomfortable, but it’s the unintentional uneasiness concerning certain elements of the picture that immediately jump into view. Released during a time when accusations of pedophilia share headlines with the Boy Scouts brand name certainly doesn’t improve the feature’s comedic aspirations, whi...
The first shot of “Skyfall” is an unfocused image of James Bond approaching the camera. It’s a disorienting view, almost alien in appearance, yet it serves a perfectly appropriate purpose for the spy series as it struts into its 50th year of existence, displaying the character as the stranger that was left at the climax of 2008’s abysmal entry, “Qu...
Cult films are a difficult thing to force on audiences. Typically, cinematic junk needs time to cure in obscurity, developing a fringe appreciation before widespread acceptance arrives, along with all the necessary media attention. "Miami Connection" isn't a DOA offering that's been basting in the juices of bad moviedom for decades now, it's a harm...
It’s not as though the works of Jean Shepherd have been refused numerous radio, television, and movie interpretations over the years, but submitting a direct sequel to the holiday perennial “A Christmas Story” almost 30 years after its initial theatrical release? That seems like a foolish idea, or perhaps an act of loathsome corporate teat-yanking ...
I’m delighted that the RZA received an opportunity to create a valentine to the fantastical kung fu films he enjoyed as a boy, a passion that’s carried throughout his entire life. However, the RZA isn’t an actor, a screenwriter, or a director, making his debut feature as a triple-threat, “The Man with the Iron Fists,” an exceedingly leaden picture,...
Robert Zemeckis took a detour in his directorial career in 2004, electing to build a motion capture industry with the Christmas fable, “The Polar Express.” “Beowulf” and “A Christmas Carol” followed soon after, and it seemed that the man behind “Back to the Future,” “Forrest Gump,” and “Cast Away” would never return to the realm of live-action movi...
Walt Disney Animation is targeting a very specific demographic with “Wreck-It Ralph,” though the feature spends most of its run time attempting to prove its worth to all ages. Despite its splendid animation, with gorgeous colors and touchable details, “Wreck-It Ralph” is going to be appreciated as a video game valentine, working to shower a little ...
“The Sessions” approaches an unusual story with a healthy sense of humor, a commitment to the comfort of faith, and a surprisingly adult appreciation of sex. While it may resemble yet another Oscar-bait melodrama boasting fiery performances and a powerful message, “The Sessions” plays largely low-key, working to create a human portrait of a physica...
Director Alfred Hitchcock built an entire career out of obsessive control, from his unparalleled filmmaking skills to his pop culture persona, creating a literal silhouette that promised a specialized offering of entertainment ahead. Hitchcock the legend is the stuff of books, documentaries, and conversation. Hitchcock the man is another story, rar...
“Vamps” certainly earns points for trying. It’s encouraging to see writer/director Amy Heckerling this creatively animated again, after her last two features, 2000’s “Loser” and 2007’s “I Could Never Be Your Woman” were colossal failures, suggesting an onset of lethargy for a filmmaker who made her name with such spunky hits as “Clueless,” “Fast Ti...
“This Must Be the Place” is a densely atmospheric feature and oddly evocative travelogue of America. It’s a movie with an enticing set-up and a wonderfully committed performance from star Sean Penn, but it always strains to resist obvious directions, preferring to take an esoteric journey into soul of a confused man finally reaching maturity well i...
“Fire with Fire” is a vigilante tale with a butch title (though filmgoers of a certain age will undoubtedly recall a 1986 Virginia Madsen picture of the same name and its screechy Wild Blue theme song), though nothing especially harsh occurs during the movie. Attracting a wide range of talent and celebrity, the effort has the goods to transform int...
Julia Loktev’s “The Loneliest Planet” continues the traditional of observational cinema revived over the last decade by Gus Van Sant, who experimented with screen stillness and improvisational dialogue in pictures such as “Gerry” and “Elephant.” “The Loneliest Planet” elects a travelogue route for its inspection of common behaviors and emotional wo...
Since 2009, there have been four “Paranormal Activity” pictures. The last “Silent Hill” movie came out in 2006, which is practically a century in horror film franchise years. Genre fans have short attention spans, making the delayed appearance of “Silent Hill: Revelation” a real curiosity, especially after the original feature didn’t scare up much ...
