Rating: 4 out of 5 starsGenre: Science Fiction, Action, Adventure
Run Time: 1 hour 58 minutes, Rated R Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt, Paul Dano, Jeff Daniels, Piper Perabo, Pierce Gagnon, Noel Segan Written & Directed by Rian Johnson (The Brothers Bloom, Brick) Twice in Looper, characters on screen tell us not to over-think time-travel, or it will just "fry your brain." That may be good advice, because as you leave the theater scratching your head as to what you just saw, you may not want to apply any logic to the incredibly inventive premise, lest be disappointed.
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Genre: Comedy, Music
Run Time: 1 hour 52 minutes, Rated PG-13 Starring: Anna Kendrick, Skylar Astin, Brittany Snow, Anna Camp, Rebel Wilson, Adam DeVine, Elizabeth Banks, John Michael Higgins Written by Kay Cannon (TV’s 30 Rock), based on the book by Mickey Rapkin Directed by Jason Moore (feature-film debut) They say never to judge a book by its cover. Pitch Perfect is a refreshing reminder to never judge a film by its trailer. Rating: 5 out of 5 starsGenre: Drama, Romance
Run Time: 1 hour 43 minutes, Rated PG-13 Starring: Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, Ezra Miller, Dylan McDermott, Kate Walsh Written & Directed by Stephen Chbosky, based on his novel (feature-film debut) It is nearly unheard of for an author to adapt his own work for the big screen, and then direct the film as well. Stephen Chbosky pulls this feat off with The Perks of Being a Wallflower, based on his 1999 novel. And who better to handle the material than the person who originated it? Rating: 3 out of 5 starsGenre: Drama
Run Time: 2 hours 1 minute, Rated PG Starring: Maggie Gyllenhaal, Viola Davis, Oscar Isaac, Holly Hunter, Rosie Perez, Lance Reddick, Marianne Jean-Baptiste Co-written & Directed by Daniel Barnz (Phoebe in Wonderland, Beastly) Won’t Back Down is an inspirational film from the point of view of a parent. From the point of view of a teacher, and depending on your personal opinions towards teacher unions and/or charter schools, this film may leave you outraged. Rating: 2 out of 5 starsGenre: Drama
Run Time: 2 hours 16 minutes, Rated R Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, Jesse Plemons Written & Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson (There Will Be Blood, Punch-Drunk Love, Magnolia, Boogie Nights) It is a head-scratcher, when the parts don't add up to the sum of the whole. In the much-anticipated and ballyhooed The Master, you get gorgeous film-making from Paul Thomas Anderson, whose previous films - including There Will Be Blood and Boogie Nights - are considered by some to be examples of master storytelling. His latest film also features an A-list cast turning in award-worthy performances. Yet somehow, someway the end result - The Master - is a confusing jumble of statements and ideas that is occasionally boring and wholly unfulfilling. Is it too much to ask to be entertained? Rating: 2 out of 5 starsGenre: Comedy
Run Time: 1 hour 40 minutes, Rated PG-13 Starring: Dave Annable, Katharine McPhee, Kathy Bates, Rob Schneider, Mena Suvari, Ken Davitian, Tia Carrere, Kevin Dunn Written & Directed by Rob Hedden (Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan, Boxboarders!) It's hard to imagine exactly what Kathy Bates is doing in a movie that also features Rob Schneider as a Latino named Ernesto, but then again it's hard to imagine why anybody would sign on for You May Not Kiss the Bride. The film is in limited release (only playing at the AMC Forum 30 here in the Detroit area) and rightly so: It's amateur schlock posing as screwball comedy that is more suited for bargain bins than it is a movie theater. Rating: 4 out of 5 starsGenre: Comedy
Run Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes, Not Rated Starring: Mike Birbiglia, Lauren Ambrose, Carol Kane, James Rebhorn Directed by Mike Birbiglia & Seth Barrish (feature-film debut for both) Writers, artists, or otherwise, are always given the great advice: To draw on that from which you know. The best comedians, for example, usually reveal small slices of their lives that are so funny to us simply because they are so universally real. To stretch the point even further, the best authors tend to effect us with realism drawn on personal experience. Rating: 3 out of 5 starsGenre: Drama, Thriller
Run Time: 1 hour 40 minutes, Rated R Starring: Richard Gere, Tim Roth, Brit Marling, Susan Sarandon, Written & Directed by Nicholas Jarecki (feature-film directorial debut) The word “arbitrage” is defined by Merriam-Webster as “the nearly simultaneous purchase and sale of securities or foreign exchange in different markets in order to profit from price discrepancies.” The film Arbitrage is just about as equally exciting as the definition. Rating: 3 out of 5 starsGenre: Documentary
Run Time: 1 hour 30 minutes, Not Rated Directed by Heidi Ewing & Rachel Grady (Jesus Camp, Freakonomics) Detropia is the sort of documentary that is just as compelling as it is frustrating. It shows the once-flourishing city of Detroit for what it is now - a man-made disaster site whose remaining citizens are fighting desperately to pick up the shattered pieces of what once was. It offers an unflinching glimpse at Detroit's abandoned houses, buildings and residents. But for a film trying to act as a cautionary tale for the rest of the nation, it offers very little in the way of answers, or even a clear message as to what exactly went wrong. Rating: 4 out of 5 starsGenre: Documentary
Run Time: 1 hour 31 minutes, Rated R Written & Directed by Alison Klayman (feature-film debut) Art always seems to be at the forefront of change. In the documentary Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry, we get a fascinating glimpse into the artistic and socio-political culture of China. The film focuses on Ai Weiwei (pronounced “Eye Way-Way”), an internationally renowned artist and activist, who literally flips the bird at the repressive Chinese Government responsible for squandering their freedom of expression. |
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October 2024
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