John Wick is exactly the bullet to the face that the American action picture desperately needed. There’s nothing remotely new to the mostly predictable narrative of this film and that’s totally fine – it’s just lean, mean, and very, very effective. Obviously inspired by the blood ballet that is The Raid and The Raid 2…
Legend is robust, under appreciated genre entertainment, boasting two explosive performances from Tom Hardy as the infamous Kray brothers, twin gangsters who ran the show in swinging-60’s East London. Hardy is simply an actor on fire, repeatedly making it clear in film after film that he is an absolute force to be reckoned with. Written…
I am shocked and confused by how little respect was paid to Peter Landesman’s confident, important, and all together sad true life story Concussion, which documents the mostly futile attempts by the brilliant Dr. Bennet Omalu to wake the NFL up to a massive health issue, played in a nearly career topping performance by Will…
10 Cloverfield Lane is a fun and effective chiller that is disingenuously positioning itself as a sequel or side-quel or whatever you want to call it to Matt Reeves’ multiple genre-busting 2008 film Cloverfield. Much has been made about how Dan Trachtenberg’s 10 Cloverfield Lane originated as a totally separate project, having nothing to do…
I Love You Phillip Morris is so under the radar it almost hurts. It’s a small gem, something unique and special and a film that doesn’t play by the normal rules. This movie crushed me. The less you know about the real-life antics of Steven Russell and the plot of this darkly hilarious movie the…
Triple 9 is my kind of movie. But I expected that. This is a John Hillcoat film. Hillocat has only made movies that I have loved. The Proposition, The Road, Lawless, and now this nasty, 70’s-flavored cop film that has streaks of Lumet while possessing a stylish and modern aesthetic hand. Matt Cook’s hard boiled…
I’m not a horror movie guy. They don’t scare me, I’m always aware of cinematic artifice, and I find most attempts at “scary movies” to be cheap and obvious and boring. The Witch, however, is a cut above the genre competition, despite not really being the film I expected to see and avoiding certain horror…
Straight Outta Compton is robust, vital entertainment, painting a vivid tapestry of one of the most turbulent periods of modern societal unrest, and telling an oversized, extremely engrossing tale that’s distinctly American and part of the greater cultural shift over the last 20 years. In a field of 10 potential nominees, even if I felt…
Brooklyn is a delightful film that had me crying pretty much all throughout. It’s heartfelt, it’s poignant, it’s sentimental (in the best possible way), and it features a performance of exquisite care and radiance by Saoirse Ronan, who in film after film has impressed, but here, genuinely dazzles. And completely steals your heart. And did…
Black Mass is grim, ugly stuff. There’s nothing glamourized here about the familiar crime and mafia ingredients that the well-worn narrative traffics in. Director Scott Cooper does a solid job with a lot of material, but something about this story screamed for epic length; this is the second consecutive picture for Cooper where I felt…
The Revenant, Alejandro González Iñárritu’s aggressively masterful new wilderness epic, is the true definition of a consummate big-screen experience. Comparisons to Apocalypse Now, Aguirre, The Wrath of God, Jeremiah Johnson, Deliverance, and so many others before it are apt and fair; even after only one viewing, I feel confident in saying that this film belongs…
Tangerine is a bold, raw, and deeply felt independent film from director and co-writer Sean S. Baker; it’s the first film I’ve seen of his and now I eagerly anticipate his next move as a filmmaker. This is the often hysterical, often draining story of two African-American transgender prostitutes, played with loud charm by Kitana…
The Walk is an interesting movie from director Robert Zemeckis, who is unquestionably one of the modern pioneers of pure movie magic. After countless entertainments, he’s been one of my favorite filmmakers, someone always interested in pushing the limits of technology while still imbuing his movies with a sense of heart and character. Who Framed…
Joy is a good, inspiring movie, filled with lots of heart and genuine emotion, about something honest and real and tangible, featuring the radiant Jennifer Lawrence in a sensational movie-star performance that easily cements her as THE hottest (both in terms of looks and acting ability) actress of the moment. Seriously…name me one other actress…
Gregory Jacobs’ Magic Mike XXL is a hoot and a holler, and a total 180 from the original, far more ambitious film, which I legitimately feel is great, subversive cinema. With Steven Soderbergh handling the cinematography and editing (under his usual pseudonyms of Peter Andrews and Mary Ann Bernard, of course), the entire tech package…
Make no mistake – this is a bad movie. This is a film about a high school stud who gets murdered, then starts traveling between dimensions, assumes the spirit of a souped up sports car, which then starts extracting bloody and explosive revenge on the people who wronged him by driving them off the road….
