Addison Wylie We’re halfway through the year, and I’m confident movies are “back on track”. 2014 had some admirable features, but it seemed like everyone collectively decided to focus on technical achievements. As far as award darlings are concerned, our minds have yet to be blown by this year’s selections. However, 2015 has given movie goers wonderful experiences. Killers made me feel queasy, but in a good way. Its story about two serial murderers was…
By: Addison Wylie Movie goers will recognize Alex Winter as Bill S. Preston, Esq. from the time traveling cult classic Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure and its sequel Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey. I was one of those people, but then I was exposed to Winter’s directorial efforts. Now, I’m someone who instantly recognizes the actor-turn-filmmaker as one of the best documentarians working today. Downloaded, Winter’s chronicling of the rise and fall of Napster, was sensational. It…
By: Addison Wylie Mary Dore’s She’s Beautiful When She’s Angry is a solid film, and joins the ranks of other docs that remind us of how unbalanced the past was through. The documentation stuns and embarrasses, but Dore sticks with professionalism and avoids turning her film into a shame project. Dore reinforces the power of communication in critical times. Before feminism was taken seriously, women who felt discriminated were often ignored. A female character type was established…
By: Addison Wylie The vaguely titled Assassin has the ability to be cool, but instead settles on being “cool”. There are cool shots of hitman Jamie (played by Danny Dyer) on his motorcycle as he zips to a hired job and zooms off to collect his earnings, and I quite like what filmmaker J.K. Amalou can do with the correct lighting. Then, there are those “cool” moments where popular songs ineffectively crash into a scene while…
By: Shannon Page Adam Scott has been around for a while and his latest project, the indie sex-comedy The Overnight, is certainly not his first attempt at acting or producing. Though he is probably best known for his work as Ben Wyatt on the television sitcom Parks and Recreation, Scott has also appeared in movies such as Step Brothers, The Aviator and Our Idiot Brother. The Overnight stars Scott as Alex and Taylor Schilling (of…
By: Shannon Page In a lot of ways, Patrick Brice’s The Overnight is a very rare film. With a small cast and fairly straightforward plot (the entire movie was shot in only twelve days), The Overnight is a sex-comedy about parenthood and relationships that avoids the usual clichéd pit falls. When thirty-something parents Alex (Adam Scott) and Emily (Taylor Schilling) move to L.A. and are eager to meet new friends, they jump at a dinner…
By: Trevor Jeffery If you walk in to Eden with little understanding of electronic dance music (EDM), there won’t be much of an issue because you’ll be left feeling about the same as when the movie started. In 1992’s version of Paris, teenager Paul Vallée (Félix de Givry) sits in the woods as he hallucinates on some sort of rave drug. Over the next 20 years, Paul will: start a EDM duo who brings in…
By: Addison Wylie You’ve got to hand it to Josh Lawson. He quickly informs movie goers of his invisible boundaries in his dark comedy The Little Death. There’s no second guessing. The problem is he sets the tone with a sour scene starring a belle, her beau, and her rape fantasy proposal. The Little Death prominently displays sexual fetishes – some you’ve heard of, some you haven’t heard of, some you wish you never heard of…
By: Addison Wylie I didn’t think it was possible for a film to be spoofed, and then be turned back into the po-faced material the parody was making fun of – then, I saw Fifty Shades of Grey. The movie feels like someone picking up the pieces to a dated romance, and trying to glue them back together to make something even more manipulative. Sam Taylor-Johnson’s film is so misinformed and shallow, you would think the filmmaker was making…
By: Addison Wylie A familiar rule of thumb states that one should stick to what they know. Comedian Adam Carolla has used that guidance to establish his filmmaking career. It’s how he created some big laughs with his cathartic comedy Road Hard, a film featuring Carolla playing a cranky stand-up comic. Fans of the Aceman know that Carolla is also quite knowledgable about cars, racing, and the days of classic Hollywood. It makes complete and…