Tag Archives: romance

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

Love (2015) Movie Review

November 15, 2015 Alex Brannan

Gaspar Noe’s Love opens on an intimate sex scene. The couple is splayed on a bed, engaged in fervent foreplay. It is a single, long take of the two. They do not move. They do not speak. They just do. All the while, orchestral music rises and falls to the tempo of their rhythm.

We cut to the man, Murphy (Karl Glusman), waking, the soundtrack a voiceover narration lamenting his current life and the choices that got him there. He was high the night before. He is worried that Continue reading Love (2015) Movie Review →

Halloween Horror, Horror, Romance

The Dark Truth Behind The “Let the Right One In” Ending

October 15, 2015 Alex Brannan

Caution: Major Spoilers for Let the Right One In ahead!

let-the-right-one-in-swedish-horror-film-top-ten-best-movies-2015 — Eli: sweet vampire girl or evil monster?

The Swedish horror film Let the Right One In is a multi-faceted vampire story that revolves around romance, bullying, and growing. It is a beautiful film. It is beautifully shot, wonderfully acted, and brilliantly paced.

But I take issue with the ending.

Continue reading The Dark Truth Behind The “Let the Right One In” Ending →

All Movie Reviews, Comedy, Halloween Horror, Horror, Lists

Top 10 Horror Movies You Haven’t Seen

October 12, 2015 Alex Brannan

October is upon us, and the tidings of the season are centered on one glorious, oh-so-beautiful word: Horror.

To pay homage to the genre that dominates the Halloween season, here are 10 horror films that you may have never heard of. In my opinion, these movies are under the radar and deserve a higher viewership.

Trick ‘r Treat

There are plenty of anthology horror films out there, and some are better than others. What hinders most of them is the jerky narrative structure in which the segments do not have a cohesion to a larger arc. Trick ‘r Treat is different. Taking place in a small residential town, each segment of the film involves characters in the town on the night of Halloween. The characters’ stories overlap with each other, and the viewer is able to see Continue reading Top 10 Horror Movies You Haven’t Seen →

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

Trainwreck (2015) Movie Review

July 20, 2015 Alex Brannan

Trainwreck is written by comedian Amy Schumer and directed by comedy melodrama behemoth Judd Apatow. In it, Schumer plays Amy Townsend, a promiscuous journalist who has adopted a lifestyle similar to her alcoholic father (Colin Quinn). When she is assigned to write a piece on Aaron Conners (Bill Hader), a surgeon for athletes, they become romantically involved, but Amy’s lack of faith in monogamy threatens to ruin their potential future together.

The film brings Schumer’s familiar raunchy brand of comedy to the big screen. It is a sexually charged style of humor that could Continue reading Trainwreck (2015) Movie Review →

All Movie Reviews, Drama, Horror, Indie Films, Like It, Quickie Reviews (<400 Words), Romance

[Quickie]: Felt (2015) Movie Review

April 12, 2015 Alex Brannan

Felt is an independent romance-horror-drama from filmmaker Jason Banker. In it, Amy (Amy Everson), an artist who has experienced an unknown sexual assault trauma, hides her identity in her artistic creations. She is distant and reluctant to connect with people.

I will be brief with this review only because I have not let it sink in to the point where I can elaborate on many of my reactions with adequate conviction. What I can say is that Continue reading [Quickie]: Felt (2015) Movie Review →

All Movie Reviews, Drama, F Movies, Leave it, Long Reviews (>400 Words), Romance

Fifty Shades of Grey (2015) Movie Review

February 14, 2015 Alex Brannan

Fifty Shades of Grey is an erotic romance film adapted from E.L. James’ novel of the same name. In it, nervous lip-biter Anastasia Steele (Dakota Johnson) is subbed in to interview billionaire playboy Christian Grey (Jamie Dornan) for a graduate school newspaper. During the interview, sparks fly (I’m using this phrase loosely) and they become romantically involved. But Mr. Grey is oddly distant and afraid of commitment. Ana soon finds out Grey’s secret: a hidden life of playing out a sexual domination fantasy. Virgin innocent Ana doesn’t know how to handle this news at first, but soon becomes wrapped up in the “taboo” world of BDSM, falling for Christian in the process.

From the title sequence, we are immediately flooded with exorbitantly sleek mise-en-scene, namely with shots of Christian’s wardrobe. We are also given beautiful landscape shots of the Seattle skyline. All the while, Annie Lennox singing “I Put a Spell On You” fills the scene with soulful body. This lush opening is enticing and inviting. It is only when characters begin to speak that problems arise.

Continue reading Fifty Shades of Grey (2015) Movie Review →