Oh, the tale of the blind date. It is always equal parts sad, desperate, and inexplicably sweet. Bernie and Rebecca may take place at the tail end of such a story, but it still maintains these identifiable tones. It begins at Rebecca’s (Brianna Barnes) front door, where Bernie (Kyle Davis) explains that he does not go by the name Bernard. It is an intriguing opening monologue, explaining the personality differences between shorthand vs. formal names.
Two brothers (Ben Foster and Chris Pine) lay waste to rural Texas, robbing banks at sun-up and hightailing it before the police (led by Jeff Bridges) can even get their morning coffee. In the midst of this blur of action that is the opening to Hell or High Water, we can notice a few things: brilliant staging, an adept grasp of setting and atmosphere, an engaging balance of tone.
What is the defining characteristic of humanity? What separates us from the rest? Is it compassion? Love? Pain? Fury? These are the questions many science fiction films have grappled with, from 2001 to last year’s Ex Machina. Morgan is the next in line.
Rob Zombie begins his sixth feature film by somewhat breaking the fourth wall with a monologue of almost poetic sadism. Hired killer “Doom-Head” (Richard Brake) spits acid words in closeup, to invigorating effect. This inaugural scene, with its tight closeups and deliberate cadence, is a truly engrossing intro to a horror film.
Zombie, who takes much of his horror stylings from the likes of Tobe Hooper, delves deeper into the raw maw of this inspiration’s brutal realism with 31. The backroads Americana. The rambling van of freewheelers. The promise of chainsaws. 31 wants to be Continue reading 31 (2016) Movie Review→
Game of Aces is a period piece that doesn’t suffer from that inescapable stench of the period piece. It isn’t stuffy with the air of a different time and place. Many times, a period piece drama, especially those centered around wartime, will have the distinct feel of a re-enactment: heavy-handed, taking itself too seriously, and yet still somehow superficial. Game of Aces, in spite of its clearly tight budget, gets by on its lighter tone.
The improv comedy world is filled with community and “yes-and.” It is about being of one mind. What happens, then, when that camaraderie is put in jeopardy by success, or a lack thereof?
Former New York Rep. Anthony Weiner was a fiery Democrat in the house, pushing back against Republican legislation with gusto. Of course, this is likely not what you remember him for. Instead, he is often remembered for certain lewd photographs that caused a media frenzy and his resignation. Weiner follows the former politician during his 2013 run for mayor of New York City, a bid marked by his fervent and exhausting attempt to shed the demons of his past.
Todd Solondz has made a career out of putting on display the awkwardness of normal existence and the oddities that threaten to make it less normal (or overbearingly so). But the real question is: Can he do the same thing with a dog as a protagonist? One sad, slow tracking shot over a trail of dog diarrhea later, and we have our answer.
Kubo (Art Parkinson) is a child with a lot of responsibility. At night, he sits at the aide of his forgetful ailing mother. During the day, he tells stories in origami at the town square about a magnificent samurai of legend. All the while, his estranged family is lurking in the shadows waiting to take his eye.
David Packouz (Miles Teller) is in his 20s and tired of getting pushed around: by retirement home owners who reject his fine linen get rich quick scheme and by naked massage clients that give him money in the meantime. Enter his junior high best friend Efraim Diveroli (Jonah Hill), a budding international arms dealer. Efraim plucks David from his mundane existence, and, as they work dirty arms dealing with governments, they quickly find themselves over their heads. And…movie.
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