Rating: 5 out of 5 starsThere is a lot going on in Youth (opening today), although there may not seem to be on the surface. It is a contemplative, patient story about aging, one that takes its time to ponder the questions it raises. Many, many films have tackled the same subject, but writer/director Paolo Sorrentino is himself a breath of fresh air. This isn't Grumpy Old Men or Cocoon. It's one of the best films of 2015.
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Rating: 4 out of 5 starsGenre: Western, Mystery, Comedy
Run Time: 3 hours, 2 minutes, Rated R Starring: Kurt Russell, Samuel L. Jackson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Michael Madsen, Demian Bichir, James Parks, Bruce Dern, Walton Goggins, Tim Roth, Channing Tatum, Keith Jefferson Written & Directed by Quentin Tarantino (Django Unchained, Inglourious Basterds, Kill Bill Vol 1 and 2, Jackie Brown, Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs) Quentin Tarantino is a film preservationist at heart: His movies attempt to bottle up the essence of films gone-by. Once bottled, he then shakes it vigorously before letting it forcefully explode all over the big-screen. A "Tarantino" film" now has taken on its own meaning...it comes with its own expectations, of sharp dialogue, innovative story-telling and of course, splatters of blood, gore and violence that borders on the cartoonish. When Tarantino points his salvo at the big-screen and fires, it usually results in a burst of unpredictable exuberance...the shock felt when a cork pops off a fine Don Perignon...the fizz and energy of something that was just waiting to erupt into the world. At times, this approach can, and has, resulted in a huge mess. The Hateful Eight (opening today) is the latest film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, and like every other one of is his films, it is instantly recognizable as such. If you have acquired a taste for Quentin's brew, then you will be fully satisfied with it. But if you were hoping that he would show some restrain following his last, effective but bloated effort, the 2012 Western, Django Unchained, you'll be sorely disappointed. Rating: 3 out of 5 starsGenre: Drama, Sport
Run Time: 2 hours, 3 minutes, Rated PG-13 Starring: Will Smith, Alec Baldwin, Albert Brooks, Gugu Mbatha-Raw David Morse, Stephen Moyer, Luke Wilson Directed by Peter Landesman (Parkland) By now, even non-sports fans have most likely heard about the "scandal" dealing with the NFL and concussions. What seems like common sense - that football players who suffer continual blows to the head over the course of several years end up with life-threatening head trauma over time - has only recently been acknowledged by the National Football League. Much like the big tobacco companies denying the existence of ill-affects related to their product, so has the NFL turned a blind eye to the consequences of theirs. Concussion (opening today) is the story of the doctor who helped bring this issue to the fore-front, and who forced the NFL to take action towards protecting their own. Rating: 4 out of 5 starsGenre: Biography, Drama, Comedy
Run Time: 2 hours, 10 minutes, Rated R Starring: Ryan Gosling, Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Marisa Tomei, Hamish Linklater, Jeremy Strong, John Magaro, Brad Pitt, Melissa Leo, Finn Wittrock Based on the book by Michael Lewis Directed by Adam McKay (Step Brothers, Anchorman, Anchorman 2, The Other) It used to only be Max Bialystock, from Mel Brooks's The Producers, who could see the potential for millions in a failure. In that film Bialystock decided there was much more to gain in a massive flop than in a big hit. It was math that made little sense, but because the entire premise rested on this notion, we went along with it. Sadly, the real-life housing crisis and crash of the big banks in 2008 proved that there was incredible wealth to be gained from failure...failure of the U.S. economy. While many Americans had their savings and pensions wiped away, their houses foreclosed and their lives forever changed, there was a handful of skillful, insightful financiers who saw a way - a legal way - to profit from all of the disaster. The Big Short (opening today) is a film about those who saw this crisis coming, and positioned themselves to profit once the bubble went boom. Rating: 3 out of 5 starsGenre: Biography, Drama
Run Time: 2 hours, Rated R Starring: Eddie Redmayne, Alicia Vikander, Amber Heard, Ben Wishaw, Matthias Schoenaerts Directed by Tom Hooper (Les Miserables, The King's Speech, The Damned United) The Danish Girl (opening today) is the sort of movie that is about something important, without managing to be all that interesting as a whole. Now, it features two great performances - both award worthy - by last year's Oscar winner for Best Picture, Eddie Redmayne, and break-out superstar actress, Alicia Vikander, who has been getting all kinds of award recognition and who was just named Best Supporting Actress and "Breakthrough" performer of the year by the Detroit Film Critics Society. But somehow director Tom Hooper (Les Miserables, The King's Speech) isn't able to craft this story of a transgender pioneer into something relatable or exhilarating. Rating: 2 out of 5 starsGenre: Comedy
Run Time: 1 hour, 58 minutes, Rated R Starring: Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph, Ike Barinholtz, James Brolin, Dianne Wiest, Bobby Moynihan, Greta Lee, John Leguizamo, John Cena, Rachel Dratch, Samantha Bee Written by Paula Pell (SNL Writer) Directed by James Moore (Pitch Perfect) Please don't take this two-star rating to heart: There are a ton of laugh-out-loud, hilarious moments in Sisters (opening today). But comedy titans Tina Fey and Amy Poehler - and a great supporting cast of bit characters - are not enough to save Sisters from being called anything but a bad movie. It's a mess of a movie, actually, without comedic rhythm, without a set tone or style, and it doesn't know what it wants to be. Is it a heartfelt movie about siblings and their love for one another? (No). But it has Tina Fey and Amy Poehler in it. That, in and of itself, is something Rating: 3 out of 5 starsGenre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Run Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes, Rated PG-13 Starring: Daisy Ridley, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford, Oscar Isaac, Adam Driver, Gwendoline Christie, Peter Mayhew, John Boyega, Domhnall Gleeson, Simon Pegg, Lupita Nyong'o, Andy Serkis Written by J.J. Abrams, Lawrence Kasdan, Michael Arndt (based on characters created by, of course, George Lucas) Directed by J.J. Abrams (Star Trek Into Darkness, Super 8, Star Trek, Mission: Impossible III) When asked what he thought about the new Star Wars: The Force Awakens film (opening today), creator George Lucas said, "I think the fans are going to love it. It's very much the kind of movie they've been looking for." Unless you have spent the past two years living under a rock, you know that this new film - Episode VII - is the first in the series to be created without Lucas's influence. His indirect answer to the simple "what did you think?" question definitely veils what might be taken as contempt for this juggernaut film franchise that now promises one new film per year, every year into the foreseeable future (Episode VIII is due in 2017, with "spin-off" canon films due in alternating years beginning with 2016's Rogue One). Had he given it, Lucas's stamp of approval may have been received negatively anyways, considering that people now widely consider his three prequel films to be unworthy garbage when compared to the original trilogy. So his somewhat ambiguous response was not only the best thing he could have said, it's dead-on accurate. Rating: 4 out of 5 starsGenre: Drama, War
Run Time: 1 hours, 53 minutes, Rated R Starring: Michael Fassbender, Marion Cotillard, Paddy Considine, David Thewlis, David Hayman Directed by Justin Kurzel (The Snowtown Murders) Most people who make it through high school are familiar with Shakespeare's famous play "Macbeth," and it seems to be a role that most "serious" actors will attempt at some point in their careers. The tragedy, about a Scottish General who, inspired by a prophecy and goaded by his wife, ascends to the throne, only to become a tyrannical, paranoid ruler himself. It is a story about war, death and the pitfalls of blind ambition, of how power can corrupt any man who does not keep his aspirations in check. Many of the great directors have attempted to adapt Macbeth for the big-screen, including Orson Welles, Roman Polanski and Akira Kurosawa (whose "Throne of Blood" is a Macbeth adaptation). The latest incarnation, Macbeth (opening today), comes to us from Australian director, Justin Kurzel, and he manages to breathe new life into portions of the story, while at the same time leaving large chunks of Shakespeare's original prose on the cutting room floor. |
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