Action/Adventure
The Adjustment Bureau/Unknown/The Eagle
In 2004, there was a surprisingly competent thriller released to theaters. Unfortunately it had a title that was not all that memorable, The Forgotten, and it was amidst a glut of “my child is missing” films, one of which also starred Julianne Moore, Freedomland. It had a premise that sounded familiar, Moore remembers her child, […]
Drive Angry/Faster/My Soul to Take/I Spit on Your Grave (2010)
When will disreputable nihilism become boring? Hopefully never. But there comes a point where self-satisfied nastiness taken to an extreme needs a little bit of flavor to distinguish itself. Patrick Lussier’s Drive Angry tries to spice things up with its effective use of 3D and by cobbling together as many exploitation clichés as possible: the […]
The Mechanic (2011)
Oh straight-faced stupidity, how I adore thee! While you’ve recently taken a hit with the advent of ironic violence and such confused projects as The Green Hornet which can’t decide if it means business or is only kidding (how about a 9 minute fight between our heroes that’s preoccupied primarily with property destruction), I sense […]
Tron: Legacy
My first memory of seeing a movie in the theater was when I was 4 years old. The movie was Steven Lisberger’s Tron and though I can’t recall my initial reaction to the film, I’d assume that I enjoyed it, seeing as that’s the level the movie is pitched at. I didn’t see the movie […]
Unstoppable
If you tend to dislike a filmmaker’s work, if he puts less effort into doing those things that annoy you, either because he can’t afford to or is unable to, does that mean you’ve learned to enjoy his films, or just that you’ve convinced yourself that he’s suddenly tolerable? With Tony Scott, who made Top […]
Really, I’m fine with you watering it down: Part II: Blue Valentine, A Film Unfinished, and Red
Continued from here: Sometimes the watering down of a movie is not from within, but the film gets punished for its honesty and direct emotion. Such is the case with Derek Cianfrance’s Blue Valentine which received a bewildering NC-17 from the MPAA for, well, because Michelle Williams has a realistic orgasm on screen. The MPAA […]
Winner: BEST ONLINE FILM CRITIC, 2010 National Veegie Awards (Vegan Themed Entertainment)
Nominee: BEST NEW PRODUCT, 2011 National Veegie Awards: The Vegan Condom