The Avalon II is on a 120 year course to a second Earth: Homestead II. 5,000 passengers sleep in hibernation pods until four months of the voyage remain. Except, Jim Preston (Chris Pratt) wakes up 90 years too soon.
Passengers wants to be a lot of things. A Castaway story. A Titanic story. A 2001: A Space Odyssey story. What it fails to be is Continue reading Passengers (2016) Movie Review
Zsofi (Gasparfalvi Dorka) is a new student at school, and her experience is less than comfortable. The hall monitors hover over class authoritatively. The teacher barely stops to introduce Zsofi. And the teacher of Zsofi’s favorite subject, choir class, pulls her aside and tells her to mime the words instead of sing them.
Mindenki is a film about the simple cruelty of childhood, coming mainly in the form of a choir teacher. Rarely does cinema capture Continue reading Mindenki (Sing) (2016) Short Film Review
The opening number of La La Land, the new musical from Whiplash director Damien Chazelle, is the appropriate first impression of Los Angeles: a gridlocked freeway of cars sitting idle. Only, instead of the frustration and cynicism that would arise from this situation, people burst into hopeful song and dance among the stalled cars. In a rush of agile choreography, a rainbow color scheme, and immense depth staging, a flurry of people dance on hoods and sing of the wonder of Hollywood sunshine.
At the culmination of this tune, we are introduced to Mia (Emma Stone), another hopeful going over audition sides in her car as she waits, and Sebastian (Ryan Gosling), who honks aggressively at her when she refuses to move once the congestion breaks up.
With the first few scenes, La La Land presents itself as a
In 1977, the groundbreaking science fiction film Star Wars was released, featuring an opening text crawl describing a period of civil war in which a Galactic Rebellion has won their first victory. “During the battle, Rebel spies managed to steal secret plans to the Empire’s ultimate weapon, the Death Star.”
In 2016, Disney and director Gareth Edwards give us a visual representation of this event, the inception of the Galactic Civil War. Jyn Urso (Felicity Jones), the daughter of a reluctant Imperial engineer (Mads Mikkelsen) who is forced into the creation of the Death Star, is sprung from Imperial prison by the Rebellion. Jyn and an unlikely band of anti-Empire figures are tasked with finding Saw Gerrera (Forest Whitaker), which leads them on the trail of the Death Star plans that jump-started the original Star Wars trilogy.
Rogue One is the first “non-saga” Star Wars film, and it does feel distinctly Continue reading Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) Movie Review
I have never heard of a film called My Life as a Zucchini, although I’m sure it’s good. Let’s look at the nominees for the 2017 Golden Globes – Best Animated Motion Picture.
Continue reading 2017 Golden Globes Predictions – Best Animated Motion Picture
Elizabeth Sloane (Jessica Chastain), a take-no-prisoners Washington lobbyist, comes under scrutiny by Congress for potentially illegal dealings. The film opens on a Congressional hearing, then jumps three months back to establish how Sloane ends up in this situation. As the film jumps back and forth between temporal locations, an intricate story of morally gray political competition emerges.
Miss Sloane paces with the snappy dialogue of an Aaron Sorkin drama. It is no wonder that the film sports Continue reading Miss Sloane (2016) Movie Review
Office Christmas Party. No synopsis required.
Except, the film presents itself as if there needs to be a thorough plot for this raucous party comedy. A struggling tech company faces layoffs due to sibling rivalry, the newly divorced CTO (Jason Bateman) is…yadda yadda yadda.
Office Christmas Party is slow to get started. The premise and characters are Continue reading Office Christmas Party (2016) Movie Review
Susan (Amy Adams), an art gallery owner, receives a novel manuscript from her ex-husband Edward (Jake Gyllenhaal). The twisted work, a thriller involving characters not dissimilar to Susan and Edward, proves to be an added hindrance to Susan’s already strained life, a life of lavish emptiness and a philandering new husband (Armie Hammer). As she progresses through the novel, she begins an introspection into her own life that could prove to change her.
Director Tom Ford, a fashion designer by trade, brings his talents to this film, and his touch becomes clear on the Continue reading Nocturnal Animals (2016) Movie Review
Lee Chandler (Casey Affleck) lives a mundane existence as a building handyman. Cold and blunt, he works all day and drinks all night, isolating himself into a bubble. When his brother (Kyle Chandler) dies, Lee is asked to take custody of the man’s son (Lucas Hedges).
Affleck plays Lee bristly, but not icy. In an extended conversation sequence in a hospital following his brother’s death, Lee reacts with Continue reading Manchester by the Sea (2016) Movie Review
Love, time, and death. The three abstractions that connect every human being on Earth, according to ad exec Howard (Will Smith) in a rousing speech to his colleagues. Three years later, Howard returns to work after the death of his six year old daughter. Cue domino tower cascade.
Howard, in his grief, sends letters to ideas: love, time, and death. He has, for all intents and purposes, an eccentric depression. The type of depression that is Continue reading Collateral Beauty (2016) Movie Review
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