When his wife dies in a car accident, New York white collar type Davis Mitchell (Jake Gyllenhaal) falls into an erratic depression. At the hospital, after hearing of his wife’s ill fate, Davis uses a vending machine, and gets hung up when the machine disallows him his peanut M&Ms.
After writing the company several lengthy and personal letters, a customer service worker (Naomi Watts) Continue reading Demolition (2016) Movie Review
The first person POV film Hardcore Henry follows the eponymous character (here, the camera is a character) after an unexplained accident renders him maimed. Given cybernetic enhancements to essentially his entire body in a series of jump cuts, Henry must fight to save the wife (Haley Bennett) he doesn’t remember from the corporation that provided the parts that built him.
For the most part, it is your basic action movie plot: the untethered yet reluctant hero, the damsel in distress, the rugged in-the-know guru (or about a dozen of them), and the clearly immoral villain.
The gimmick, then, is the cinematographic choices. The real question, then, is: Is this a gimmick film? Continue reading Hardcore Henry (2016) Movie Review
In Eye in the Sky, a joint security task force between the UK, the U.S., and Kenya plan a combined drone and ground strike on a meeting of high-level Al-Shabaab terrorists in Nairobi. When the operation starts breaking down, the scenario boils down to a political debate over whether or not to utilize a drone strike to take down the targets.
The film attempts topical commentary inside the drama-thriller framework it is working with. What works most readily is Continue reading Eye in the Sky (2016) Movie Review
When deciding what movie to see at the theaters Thursday night, I compared new releases on Google Trends. Of the new releases this weekend, Eye in the Sky stole the show in terms of search traffic proportions, God is Not Dead 2 had meager traffic, and Meet the Blacks was a goose egg across the board. Seemingly off the map of Google searches, I was intrigued, and decided to table Eye in the Sky for my Friday matinee. The question is, then, was it a worthwhile choice?
Meet the Blacks is a horror comedy spoof a la Scary Movie following the Black family as they move into their new lavish home in Beverly Hills. And, of course, they also have to deal with Continue reading Meet the Blacks (2016) Movie Review
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice begins in medias res of The Man Steel climax, showing in this case the perspective of Ben Affleck’s Bruce Wayne. As he runs headfirst into the rubble of a crushed Wayne Enterprises building, he has a number of save the cat moments. This, despite the later scenes in which he brands criminals with the bat-symbol, which pretty much nullifies this initial scene.
18 months later, an alien artifact from the battle of Metropolis washes up on shore somewhere in the Indian Ocean and Lois Lane (Amy Adams) is working with the CIA to catch a suspected terrorist. As Superman (Henry Cavill) flies in to save Lois, he is Continue reading Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) Movie Review
The season four House of Cards finale picks up where the previous episode left off, with President Frank Underwood’s (Kevin Spacey) powerplay in process. A brash ultimatum leaves the fate of the ICO hostages in the balance.
Following the phone call, Frank sends Republican Presidential candidate Will Conway (Joel Kinnaman) on his way, having cornered him in a lie that threatens to Continue reading House of Cards Season Four Finale Recap & Review
Caution: Spoilers for House of Cards season four, episode 12 (and previous episodes) ahead!
House of Cards season four, episode 12 opens on White House covert surveillance guy Aidan MacAllan (Damian Young) blasting loud music as he watches traffic in relation to the dual President-Vice President debate.
The debate, which highlights the major points of contention with the presidential race, is interrupted and Continue reading House of Cards S04E12 Recap & Review
Caution: Spoilers for House of Cards season four, episode 11 (and previous episodes) ahead!
The new Underwood-Underwood ticket is campaign strategizing when Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey) has a medical issue. He is told by a specialist that air traffic should be limited. Given the campaign, this is impossible if Frank is to win. He remains grounded as Claire Underwood (Robin Wright) continues campaigning, not to mention continuing her affair with speech writer Thomas Yates (Paul Sparks).
Doug Stamper’s (Michael Kelly) newfound obsession, the wife of Continue reading House of Cards S04E11 Recap & Review
How else could you possibly start a Sacha Baron Cohen film but with a grotesque sex scene over an R. Kelly track. Not to mention a low-brow Cosby crack.
In The Brothers Grimsby, Nobby (Cohen) is a lowly, dim man who has been waiting for his brother Sebastian’s (Mark Strong) return for 28 years. Sebastian, now an MI6 secret agent, has no intention of ever being found.
The opening credits action scene is surprisingly Continue reading The Brothers Grimsby (2016) Movie Review
Michelle (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), in the process of leaving her boyfriend, suddenly becomes party to a car wreck. She awakens in a concrete room chained to the wall. An effectively desperate Winstead struggles just to reach her phone in a tense scene that culminates in the menacing introduction of Michelle’s captor Howard (John Goodman).
This early standoff between Winstead and Goodman is fascinating, although it would have played better with Continue reading 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) Movie Review
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