A little girl (Mackenzie Foy) is strictly structured by her all-business, all the time mom (Rachel McAdams). It’s summer time, and instead of playing she is to spend her days studying so she can impress her authorities at her oveestigious academy school, so she can get into a prestigious high school, so she can get into a prestigious university, so she can spend her adult life working hard and forcing her children to do the…
Filmmaking is certainly an important form of self-expression, but not all films are created equal; sometimes a film comes out that serves no purpose, makes no impact and leaves no impression. Gerard Barrett’s Glassland is a perfect example of such a film. His film completely lacks any purpose other than to be a series of images giving an illusion of motion on a screen. Glassland never rises above a TV-movie-of-the-week, and its attempts at slow and…
Ethan Hawke (Before Sunrise, Boyhood) stars as east-coast jazz legend Chet Baker in Robert Budreau’s biographical drama Born to Be Blue, which focuses on the musician’s comeback during the 1960s and his struggle with addiction. The film, which was written, directed and produced by Budreau, chooses to examine a specific period of Baker’s career rather than the entirety of his career – a decision that results in a more intimate experience than one might expect…
I feel like a meanie for disliking Bryn Evans’ sweet doc Hip Hop-eration, but alas, the film is a missed opportunity and about as deep as a viral video.
Before Blue Mountain State: The Rise of Thadland, Blue Mountain State was a thing – a considerably big thing. I admit, I had no idea. To my understanding: Blue Mountain State was a television show that aired on the Spike Network for three seasons. When the prospects of a film spin-off were mentioned via Kickstarter, 23,999 fans swarmed the campaign and raised $1,911,827. Blue Mountain State: The Rise of Thadland deals gratitude towards its fan base…
The girlfriend dramedy Miss You Already is a fitting follow-up for Thirteen filmmaker Catherine Hardwicke. It just so happens to arrive late in her career after Lords of Dogtown, The Nativity Story, Twilight, and Red Riding Hood.
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny is okay, which would be tolerable if it wasn’t associated with such an imaginative predecessor.
Mountains May Depart is the type of work that sets a high watermark for cinema. It’s a film that portrays the cause and effect of our decisions, and how those results can carry through years – even decades – with growth and regret. Jia Zhang-Ke’s film is reminiscent of the equally exceptional The Place Beyond the Pines, only Zhang-Ke is less interested in suspense and more focused on psychology.
Robert Carlyle has proven to be an astonishing actor from his memorable work in The Full Monty, Trainspotting, and California Solo. Though The Legend of Barney Thomson allows the actor to return to his Trainspotting-esque wildness, it’s unfortunate that his first attempt at directing a feature film isn’t quite so flawless.
In 2013, audiences were treated to two movies involving hostage situations in the White House: Antoine Fuqua’s Olympus Has Fallen and Roland Emmerich’s White House Down. The former performed well enough at the box office to merit a sequel, while the other languished in obscurity, likely due to its director’s notorious incompetence. And yet, much like its predecessor, London Has Fallen shows that in terms of quality, White House Down triumphed where Olympus had fallen.