Tag Archives: Matt Damon

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

Ford v Ferrari (2019) Movie Review

November 15, 2019 Alex Brannan 1 Comment

In Ford v Ferrari, director James Mangold, working from a script by Jez Butterworth; John-Henry Butterworth; and Jason Keller, aims to capture the euphoria found inside the dangerous world of racing. The opening voiceover from Matt Damon’s car-driver-turned-car-dealer Carroll Shelby expresses a longing for that moment when the car peaks at 7,000 revolutions per minutes. At this speed, the car becomes weightless, a non-existent entity, and the driver simply moves along the open air as if carried forth through pure adrenaline alone.

Mangold eventually gets to a place where his film can attempt to distill that euphoric, high-adrenaline feeling. Certainly, there is Continue reading Ford v Ferrari (2019) Movie Review →

All Movie Reviews, Comedy, Leave it, Long Reviews (>400 Words), Sci-Fi/Fantasy

Downsizing (2017) Movie Review

December 22, 2017 Alex Brannan 1 Comment

Alexander Payne’s latest is a sci-fi comic drama about a man named Paul Safranek (Matt Damon) who decides to engage in the biggest scientific innovation since the Apollo space program: Downsizing.

Downsizing, or “going small,” is the process of shrinking one’s body down to five inches and moving to one of many small communities, a “magical” place where everything is cheaper because the quantity the consumer requires is smaller (although, economy isn’t all about quantity…if there’s a demand for small diamonds, wouldn’t the price of small diamonds go up regardless? But I digress).

Downsizing has a sprawling plot. For a film about shrinking a person and putting them under a glass dome, there is a lot of movement. Too much, to be frank. The first act of the film is firmly planted in Continue reading Downsizing (2017) Movie Review →

Action/Thriller, All Movie Reviews, Comedy, Leave it, Long Reviews (>400 Words)

Suburbicon (2017) Movie Review

October 27, 2017 Alex Brannan 1 Comment

There is a moment in Suburbicon when you realize that the closest comparison to other Coen brother films is Blood Simple, in that it is bleak with few characters to latch onto and identify with. It is at this moment, when you realize that this is not so much a dark comedy as it is merely a dark movie, that it becomes very hard to continue investing yourself in the antics.

The film focuses on a family man named Gardner Lodge (Matt Damon) and his son, who are victim to a home invasion in the faux-idyllic, nebulous ’50s neighborhood aptly-named Suburbicon. You don’t know Continue reading Suburbicon (2017) Movie Review →

Action/Thriller, All Movie Reviews, Leave it, Quickie Reviews (<400 Words), Sci-Fi/Fantasy

The Great Wall (2017) Movie Review

February 19, 2017 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

A pack of mercenaries on horseback take refuge in a cave and are attacked by a mysterious creature. Taking the creature’s severed claw, the two survivors of the attack (Matt Damon and Pedro Pascal) travel to a nearby kingdom on the Great Wall, where they are captured and pulled into a war.

In terms of effects work, the inaugural action set piece that establishes the film’s war of monster versus man is Continue reading The Great Wall (2017) Movie Review →

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

Jason Bourne (2016) Movie Review

July 26, 2016 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) remembers. He remembers everything. He is also doing one of the things that he does most often: hiding. We see him as an underground fighter, ripped and captured in a lot of shots with lens flares.

Meanwhile, Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles) is hacking into the CIA to get documents on their covert operations; documents that include information on Bourne and his late father. When Parsons contacts Bourne, he has to Continue reading Jason Bourne (2016) Movie Review →

2016 Academy Awards, Award Ceremonies

2016 Academy Awards Predictions – Best Actor

January 16, 2016 Alex Brannan Leave a comment

This is a good year for Best Actor nominees. All five actors gave strong performances in their respective films. But the field isn’t as even as it appears.

The questions remains the same as it was two years ago: Continue reading 2016 Academy Awards Predictions – Best Actor →

All Movie Reviews, Drama, Long Reviews (>400 Words), Love It, Sci-Fi/Fantasy

The Martian (2015) Movie Review

October 6, 2015 Alex Brannan 2 Comments

In The Martian, astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is abandoned and left for dead after a storm hits the surface of Mars, forcing the manned mission he is a part of to be scrubbed. On the way to the rocket, Watney is struck by a satellite dish that was blown off of their equipment, knocking him unconscious. As the rocket fires up into space, dwindling shots linger over Watney’s empty seat as the rest of the crew braces against the force of the ascent.

Then, we get an extended, wordless scene of Watney waking and staggering back to the HAB, the only oxygenated facility on the planet. The scene is entirely carried by Damon’s non-verbal acting. He pulls shrapnel out of a wound in his side, whispering pleas under his breath, just hoping that Continue reading The Martian (2015) Movie Review →