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Garden State 2004
(review coming soon)
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Star Trek Into Darkness 2013
(review coming soon)
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The English Teacher 2013
If you had told me five months ago that at this time this year, my second-favorite film of the year so far would be a teeny tiny indie comedy called "The English Teacher", I would've laughed you right out of the room. But you'd've been right. A style of writing that directly appeals to me--strong, ambiguous characters (played beautifully by Julianne Moore, Greg Kinnear, Michael Angarano and Nathan Lane), David Mamet jokes and strong scenes centered around two people talking…
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Iron Man 3 2013
Pretty freaking awesome. Excellent writing from Shane Black & Drew Pearce, and I was able to forgive the movie for its lackadaisical attitude toward logic, which is always a plus. Fun with interesting themes and smart twists, Iron Man 3 delivered all it was asked to deliver, and more, considering its focus on the character of Tony Stark (the sequences with the kid were absolutely, bar-none, best of the year for me so far). The more I think about the film,…
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Mean Girls 2 2011
Why did I watch this? Oh, right, my roommates. Damn you, Ty. No Fumblerooski for you.
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Pain & Gain 2013
Yeah, just look at Gus Bendinelli's review. But I give it an extra half-star for its ambition to intelligence, however misguided that aspiration might have been executed.
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42 2013
On the nose? Yeah. Who cares? Not this guy. Amazing cinematography by Don Burgess, a solid Mark Isham score and excellent performances from Chadwick Boseman, Nicole Beharie (proving once again that there are a slew of talented, underutilized black actresses bouncing around Hollywood with no roles to play), and legend Harrison Ford elevate a decent script to an awesome, uplifting tale of having the guts not to fight back. Great character work from everyone involved--the attention to detail is magnificent. Could have been funnier, but that's nitpicky. Still got a great laugh out of the shower scene.
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Compliance 2012
Fuck me, this movie is amazing. Now that I've gotten that out of my system, I hope I can objectively present to you seven reasons why you should watch this film (which, by the way, is currently free on Netflix):
1) It's bound to be polarizing, and that's the point. The debate this film inspires is both necessary and incredibly interesting.
2) It's basically a names-changed, production-value-upped true story, with few to no alterations at all to the basic story… -
The First Time 2012
CUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTECUTE.
I hate how cute this movie is. Hate. Hate. Hate... but really totally Love. Come at me, bro.
Yes, it has its flaws. While the realistic parts of the film are incredibly realistic, the rare, but not infrequent unrealistic parts of the film stand out like a pimple on a bad date. The acting is hit and miss, as is the writing, which sometimes relies on high school film clichés when it doesn't necessarily need to. But with significantly…
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Phil Spector 2013
Two powerhouse performances by Al Pacino and Helen Mirren and a script by David Mamet working at his usual level (a level most other writers will never come close to reaching, unfortunately) elevate what could've been a cheesy trial law procedural into an intelligent, beguiling meditation on the nature of celebrity, self-deception, denial, social dynamics, jealousy and the difference between guilt and reasonable doubt. Is it the truth of what happened? No. But then, who said it was a good idea to let the truth get in the way of a good story?
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Evil Dead 2013
WARNING: This is a little 1AM ramble.
Pretty okay for what it is. Disclaimer: I'm not the biggest fan of movies like this, personally. But Fede Alvarez managed to wrest a few solid scares and neat setpieces from a relatively 'meh' script (the rumored Diablo Cody polish feels imperceptible, which was disappointing, at least to me). Though the film has a good setup, interesting, if predictable structure, and Jane Levy giving it her very all (it's quite wonderful to watch…
