Tag Archives: 2011

All Movie Reviews, Horror, Long Reviews (>400 Words)

Is The Oregonian (2011) an “Unknown Masterpiece?” — Diamonds in the Rough

June 19, 2020 Alex Brannan 1 Comment

Diamonds in the Rough (DitR, /dɪ’tər/) takes some of the most derided, divisive, controversial, financially catastrophic, and meme-worthy movies and tries to find the silver lining. Bad movies don’t always start as bad ideas, and flops aren’t always flop-worthy. DitR seeks to find the good within the bad, because the world could use some positivity. And when all else fails, making fun of bad movies is oh-so satisfying.

In this installment, we look at The Oregonian from director Calvin Lee Reeder (The Procedure). [Caution: Spoilers Ahead]

The Oregonian

Rotten Tomatoes: 44% (9 reviews)
Metacritic: 46 (4 reviews)
IMDb: 4.2/10 (617 ratings)
Letterboxd: 2.7/5 (436 ratings)

Calvin Lee Reader made the fart movie. Two of them, as a matter of fact. Perhaps this is worth mentioning. I dunno.

The second most popular review for The Oregonian on Letterboxd is Continue reading Is The Oregonian (2011) an “Unknown Masterpiece?” — Diamonds in the Rough →

All Movie Reviews, Halloween Horror, Horror, Leave it, Long Reviews (>400 Words)

The Houses October Built (2014) Movie Review

October 1, 2017 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

The found footage horror film The Houses October Built begins with documentary archival footage and inter-titles that describe how dangerous haunted house attractions can be.

This intro is appropriate, given that the film is a restructuring of a 2011 documentary film by the same filmmakers. It is seemingly impossible to find a copy of this documentary, so one can only assume that Continue reading The Houses October Built (2014) Movie Review →

Action/Thriller, All Movie Reviews, Long Reviews (>400 Words), Love It

Fast Five (2011) Movie Review

April 7, 2017 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

Fast Five, the fittingly-titled fifth film in the Fast & Furious franchise, begins where its predecessor left off: a high stakes, improbable break out of Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) by his best friend Brian O’Conner (Paul Walker) and sister Mia (Jordana Brewster).

Following this successful bus flipping, Brian and Mia go into hiding, proving that they are now full-blown, no remorse criminals.

There is a noticeable shift in quality between Continue reading Fast Five (2011) Movie Review →

All Movie Reviews, Like It, Long Reviews (>400 Words), Short Films

Birthday (2016) Short Film Review

October 27, 2016 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

Birthday, the narrative short film from director Chris King, feels stylistically as a documentary. This adds to its weight. In a tightly framed set of reverses, we are privy to a grin-filled conversation between two people over Skype. One, a marine (Chris Gouchoe) 43 days away from the end of his tour. The other, his schoolteacher wife (Mandy Moody) anxiously awaiting his return.

The next three minutes are told in montage over what is perhaps an overly sentimental string score. We see the soldier step on a landmine. We see his wife’s response. We see his slow, grueling recovery.

He returns home on his birthday. As he enters the threshold and surveys the home, as if it is Continue reading Birthday (2016) Short Film Review →

All Movie Reviews, Comedy, Drama, Long Reviews (>400 Words), Love It, Romance

Your Sister’s Sister (2011) Movie Review

January 11, 2016 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

As far as mumblecore goes–a genre defined by its hyper-naturalism–Your Sister’s Sister comes off as one of the most natural.

Unmotivated and perhaps alcohol dependent Jack (Mark Duplass) has just spent a year without his late brother Tom. He has no Continue reading Your Sister’s Sister (2011) Movie Review →