Lucy (2014)
Hokey story, hokey characters. This is what Luc Besson does. He goes for cool and intense, throwing logic and real drama out the window and ending up with something that’s cartoonish and silly.
Full Review
Bronson (2008)
The whole celebrity in prison thing was reminiscent of Chopper, the characters in the crazy house reminded me of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, and the confessionals to the camera were similar to the ones in JCVD. There’s no denying Hardy’s intensity. His performance is brutal and raw, and…
Full Review
Zootopia (2016)
Not as smart as some of the other Pixar movies, but cute nonetheless. Yes, these comparisons of Disney/Pixar collaborations to the original Pixar classics will continue. I fear that some of Pixar’s wit and heart is slowly being replaced by Disney’s safer, more generic characters and stories. The sloths are…
Full Review
Vacation (2015)
About as good as you could do, I guess. Helms channels Chevy for his performance, which is fun but a bit weird since he wasn’t a goofball in the original movies.
Full Review
Into the Blue 2: The Reef (2009)
A throwaway thriller with beautiful people, actually not as bad as it could have been. Vandervoort is delicious.
Full Review
Papillon (1973)
Experimental and a little bit awkward, which is owed to the era in which it was filmed. But the greatest flaw is that the story is a bit aimless. I know that anti-heroes were popular around this time, but there’s almost no character development and no reason that we should…
Full Review
Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)
A fine adventure with pretty good pacing and character development for the 1930’s. Was this one of the first real adventure movies? Gable’s good, isn’t he? Laughton is wonderfully horrible and a big reason for the film’s dramatic success. What an amazing story, especially with descendants of the original mutineers…
Full Review
Ip Man 3 (2015)
A worthy sequel. Nice and long and beautifully shot, like the others from the series. An example of how some decent writing and characters can take a kung fu movie to the next level. The relationships are complex, but they work and have real emotion. Dramatically, Wing-sing’s death sometime before…
Full Review
In the Shadow of the Moon (2007)
A wonderful collection of raw footage, b-roll, interviews, and voiceover, all marvelously edited. Perhaps the best documentary or the Apollo program. It’s all really amazing isn’t it? The astronaut interviews are great, humanizing each mission with lots of great details and memories and insights. Collins and Duke are especially likable…
Full Review
Blackfish (2013)
Polished, scary, and tragic. Would have liked to see more interviews with people who were attacked, or maybe their families.
Full Review
The Night of the Grizzly (1966)
Has the charm of the old westerns, but it’s not much more than a monster movie. While this may have played back in the day, the monster here is innocent and hungry. Killing the bear is the happy climax of the movie? The bear action is decent. Walker was quite…
Full Review
Room (2015)
Disturbing and amazing, painful and wonderful to watch. Not sure if it’s the performances of Larson and Tremblay, Abrahamson’s direction, or the subject matter, but it hits home. How is it that no one’s ever made a movie about this? Larson deserved the Oscar, and an argument could be made…
Full Review
Nebraska (2013)
The movie is as confused as Woody is. It’s black and white to imply that it’s an art film and slightly quirky in a Fargo or Napoleon Dynamite sort of way, but if you strip all that away, all we have left is a dumb premise and wooden performances. Forte…
Full Review
Inside Job (2010)
Decent job explaining complex topics, with lots of help from good graphics and Damon’s patient narration. But it’s still pretty heavy. I wonder if there’s a way to simplify things even more. Lots of great arial photography.
Full Review
The Third Man (1949)
War-torn Vienna is an interesting backdrop, and the expressionist lighting and shadows and angles give the film a psychologically interesting feel. One of earliest movies I can remember having a score. The zither music definitely gives the film some life, but it’s used way too much. The happy music starts…
Full Review
Sicario (2015)
Showcases the complexity of the drug problem, like Traffic, and also told in a similarly gritty tone. Despite the grit, Villeneuve has this movie nicely polished. Tension in a few scenes is fantastic. Exquisite photography, with some great night and thermal vision effects. Couple of minorly awkward moments with dialog.…
Full Review
Say It Isn’t So (2001)
I get it, the Farrelly brothers like absurd dark humor. But this is dumb and a big waste of time for a lot of quality actors.
Full Review
Deadpool (2016)
A much needed, refreshing take on the superhero movie. A few really good laughs, and the R rating really helps to add some intensity to a genre that was starting to roll over for the kids. They took a chance here, and I think it worked. Miller, a first time…
Full Review
Blue Is the Warmest Color (2013)
A courageous coming of age story. I appreciate how the exploration of lesbianism is neither superficial nor overdramatic, things these types of movies often fall victim to. The exploration of the lifestyle and sexuality is thorough and interesting, and the relationships between the main characters are real and endearing. But…
Full Review
Big Bucks: The Press Your Luck Scandal (2003)
A little drawn out, but interesting and nostalgic.
Full Review
No End in Sight (2007)
Well-assembled, with just the right amount of narration and text gluing it all together. Anyone who supported the war in Iraq and Bush’s overall agenda should see this.
Full Review
Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015)
Polished and well-shot, but I’m starting to get a bit tired of these movies. I prefer the Bond franchise, which come to think of it isn’t that much different anymore. What REALLY the difference between this and Spectre? All these movies are sort of converging at some generic point, aren’t…
Full ReviewThe Colorful Montreal Expos (2016)
A nice collection of polished and well-paced footage, and Shatner’s narration is pretty good. But having personal knowledge of the subject makes me critical of its accuracy and thoroughness. My take on it, as someone who knows the recent history of the Montreal Expos quite well, is that it is…
Full Review
The Perfect Storm: Story on the 1994 Montreal Expos (2015)
Beautifully polished, though maybe a bit heavy on the music. Would have loved for this to be a part of the more famous documentary, “The Colorful Montreal Expos”.
Full ReviewLes Expos Nos Amours ()
A dated but impressively thorough documentary of the Montreal Expos. Year by year installments chronicle the entire history of the franchise. The collection of footage and interviews is thorough, and the contemporary music for each season really helps take you back. Sutherland’s narration is a little creepy and melodramatic, and…
Full Review
Something the Lord Made (2004)
A pretty interesting story, but the race stuff is a bit on the nose, the passage of time isn’t entirely clear, and interactions between Thomas and Blalock, as confusing as they may have been in real life, are a little inconsistent here. Direction is a little too traditional and safe.…
Full Review
The Big Short (2015)
This is dramatic subject matter, but McKay, a comedy director, is all over the place. Making very complicated economic concepts fun and bouncy with celebrity cameos is irreverent and irrelevant and distracting. And all the in-camera dialogue, particularly the explanations that come out and admit that what we have seen…
Full Review
The Act of Killing (2012)
An unconventional angle on Indonesia’s brutal, genocidal history. Who knew Indonesia was this messed up, this corrupt? Oppenheimer has found dramatic subject matter that has not yet been exposed and exploited. Interesting collection of footage. It’s horrifying how proud these people are of their brutal history, and it’s even more…
Full Review
Vincent (1982)
Vintage Burton. Amazing that, in 1982, he had already established his unique style.
Full Review
The Revenant (2015)
As intense and you can get and beautifully shot, but there’s not a whole lot of story. DiCaprio bleeds for two and half hours and vows revenge. There’s not much else to it. Beautifully composed shots of majestic mountains, big skies, and flowing water give the movie a contemplative feel…
Full Review
Police Story 3: Supercop (1992)
Standard Jackie Chan fare. Action is decent, but it’s not enough. Yeoh was cute.
Full Review
Predator 2 (1990)
Pretty awful. They took the original and added a shitty story, shitty characters, and shitty dialogue.
Full Review
The Apartment (1960)
A wonderful little story, smartly told and well-directed. Long takes and wider shots, which I know Wilder fought for, both work wonderfully. Made during the wonderful transition between the formal 50’s and experimental 60’s. In the themes and performances, you can see the boundaries being pushed a little bit, but…
Full Review
How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966)
Beautiful to see Seuss’ characters and universe come to life on film. Maybe it captured the imagination back in the day, but under a critical eye, the story and animation and songs are all pretty bad.
Full Review
Paths of Glory (1957)
Kubrick makes movies about men victimized by their environments, men who are being disconnected from each other, men who must abandon the formalities of daily life to deal with the pressure and chaos of their personal struggles. This one’s a perfect example. But this one’s made before Kubrick really started…
Full Review
Bridge of Spies (2015)
A story about an important and overlooked period in American history. Beautifully shot, with great effects and period costumes. A touch of light comedy perfectly sweetens the tension of the story. Performances ring true for the period, with everyone looking and feeling authentic. Spielberg, when he’s on, creates a depth…
Full Review
Spotlight (2015)
Not a documentary, but it’s made with a certain straightforwardness and detail that leads me to believe that the facts were heavily researched and few fictional liberties were really taken. That said, as an instrument of social change, I don’t think the film will really change things a whole lot…
Full Review
The Hateful Eight (2015)
As expected, it’s violent, dialogue-driven, and filled with two-faced characters. But for a film this long, I’m just not sure the story is interesting enough. Not a whole lot happens. A stagecoach picks up a black guy, they go to a cabin, and characters spar with dialogue for a while…
Full Review
As Good as It Gets (1997)
Not sure what Melvin’s OCD has to do with anything. He’s clearly an asshole, and that’s what drives the conflict in the story. His OCD is really just a distraction. Nicholson’s pretty good. I’ve always thought Hunt is cute in an unconventional sort of way. Kinnear is fantastic, one of…
Full Review
The Punisher: Dirty Laundry (2012)
Why would they make a short for this? I don’t get it. There’s not much to it.
Full Review
Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief (2015)
A great exposé of one of the biggest shams in recent years. Amazing the Church even allowed it to get made. If they were smart, they would have prevented its production from happening in the first place. Now, it’s too late. It’s scary how seductive this is to some people,…
Full Review
Entourage (2015)
A continuation of the TV series with what must be a record number of celebrity cameos. Osment’s still got it, and I hope he dives back into acting, though I fear he might be relegated to playing fringy characters and villains.
Full Review
Miss Representation (2011)
Sometimes social commentary can be effective vehicles for change, but Miss Representation takes the wrong angle on feminism, perhaps even a destructive one, by a) focusing on a selective and unfair sampling of women being objectified in the media, b) pointing fingers at that studio heads, company presidents, and men…
Full Review
The Cove (2009)
A beautiful, tragic piece of investigative reporting. They did a great job documenting and editing together the mission, though the long, dramatic fades to black a bit much. An amazing turn for one of the driving forces behind Flipper. With the majestic music and romantic footage, the message here is…
Full Review
Godzilla, King of the Monsters! (1956)
Some of the effects campy, but a noble effort for 1956. Looks like they had a few different monster costumes, each of them having slight cosmetic differences. I understand that the suit makes the actor somewhat immobile, but the monster’s movements seem downright spastic and clumsy. Why did Burr take…
Full Review
Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)
I was very excited to learn that Abrams, a quality director, was going to be making a Star Wars movie. I had high hopes, and how interesting that he had just made Star Trek Into Darkness. After decades of debates have divided fans between the two franchises, here was a…
Full Review
Rope (1948)
I agree with Jimmy Stewart when he says he didn’t like this Hitchcock movie. It’s some sort of philosophical statement about social rights and mortality, but I found it pretty darn boring. The novelty with this one is the long takes, consistently edited together with close-ups of bodies walking by…
Full Review
It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
Seems to have become a Christmas tradition, though it’s not entirely a Christmas movie. There aren’t really any Christmas references until about halfway in. The alternate history with a rich asshole taking over the town reminds me a lot of Back to the Future Part II. A polished production. Nicely…
Full Review
22 Jump Street (2014)
Light comedy that makes fun of itself. These two are pretty good together. Great credit sequences.
Full Review
Creed (2015)
A good continuation of the franchise that some would say is tired and jumped the shark years ago. The story and character development help to separate this one from the others. Stallone has milked a lot out of the franchise, and most of his acting along the way has been…
Full Review
To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
A classic mostly due to civil rights era in which it was released, the controversial adult themes of rape and forbidden love, and a courtroom drama storyline that was trendy for its time. Removing its historical significance, it’s a literal screen adaptation of a classic American novel. To me, there…
Full Review
Curse of the Pink Panther (1983)
Comedies of the early 80’s were in a sorry state. Was this ever funny to anyone? Without Sellers, this one is especially hopeless.
Full Review
Casino Royale (1967)
A mess of bad comedy, bad writing, and bad camera tricks. An impressive collection of stars, though.
Full Review
Citizenfour (2014)
A marvelous collection of footage and really well put-together. Poitras captured some poignant moments. The shots of Snowden looking out the window, and even the shot of him grooming himself in the mirror, carries weight. Even the B-roll stuff is great. I’m amazed that Snowden and Greenwald allowed Poitras to…
Full Review
Ong-bak 2 (2008)
Strange how it seemingly has no connection to the first film. Why use the same title? To sucker unsuspecting viewers like myself to see it? Overall, it’s a little slow, with most scenes featuring people in dramatic clothes and dramatic lighting looking at each other dramatically. There’s not a whole…
Full Review
City Island (2009)
Light and fun characters and dialogue, but the dramatic arc to this story is a bit stretched. I get that it was all a big set-up for the dramatic final scene, but most of the movie leading up to that point is a little slow. Surprisingly great performances from the…
Full Review
Be Kind Rewind (2008)
Sort of charming, but a little weird and definitely boring. Gondry’s good at weird. This movie seemed like a bit of a step backwards for him, unfortunately. Recognized some of Gondry’s camera and sound effects from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.
Full Review
Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995)
Why do civilians not know who Godzilla is in any of the movies? Would be great if there was some sort of continuity after 50 years of monster attacks. They are consistent about some things, though. The effects are cheesy and the dialogue is truly ridiculous. After all these years,…
Full Review
Spectre (2015)
Another polished character piece from Mendes. Pacing, score, action, and photography are all top-notch. Shot digitally, the picture was pristine, at least in the theatre I saw it in. It’s too bad Craig is sick of playing Bond because he’s good at it. The broody, cerebral, very physical Bond he…
Full Review
Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014)
Biblical stories are a tough sell these days, but Bale and Edgerton do a pretty good job, and Scott impresses with some great visuals.
Full Review
Wild (2014)
Something tells me the author’s journey was much more personal and dramatic than the movie was. Not sure all the feeling conveyed properly. Witherspoon is great, might be her first real dramatic role and she hits it. Her character seems like a good girl, but it’s hard to feel for…
Full Review
Terminator Genisys (2015)
All of this time travel stuff is starting to be a bit much. We’ve effectively made a pretzel of possible timelines, and things are so convoluted now that I’m having a hard time keeping up. Keeping time travel plots simple and understandable takes a lot of care and discipline, and…
Full Review
The Martian (2015)
After Alien, Prometheus, and this, seems that Scott’s good at making space movies. And like any good space movie, this one’s made more realistic by being a bit heavy on the engineering. I wonder how much of what went on was really viable vs. fictionalized. Damon as abandoned astronaut, again.…
Full Review
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015)
A bit derivative (a mix of Wes Anderson, Election, and Pineapple Express), but touching. Mann has a few good lines. The scene with the limo driver had me laughing. Cooke looks just like a young Rose Byrne. Impressive production by newcomer director Gomez-Rejon. Will be excited to see what he…
Full Review
Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008)
A nice little story, but the ending leaves me unfulfilled. Nothing has really changed. Great cast. Bardem is really great. He can play suave, he can play creepy. Name another actor who can do that. Cruz is stunning, and she cuts the movie in half with a great supporting performance.…
Full Review
Elite Squad (2007)
Bravely tackles the dangerous and double standard world of the favelas in a raw and brutal way, which is to be expected from a Brazilian movie. Good, authentic performances, especially by Wagner Moura in the lead.
Full Review
True Story (2015)
Hill and Franco play off each other marvelously, and the film is beautifully shot. But it’s all a bit slow.
Full Review
Fast & Furious 6 (2013)
Speedy cars and angry people. The movie was almost OK until the ending scene lost me. A plane tries to take off for about 15 minutes. The runway must have been 40 miles long. The Rock is massive. Everyone else is a pretty face with not a whole lot of…
Full Review
Irrational Man (2015)
Another whimsical, existential movie by Allen. I’m liking his more recent work. Phoenix is great as the internally conflicted lead. Whatever they did to his face as he walked away after committing the deed was fantastic. Stone is growing up, nice to see her taking some heavier roles.
Full Review
A Million Ways to Die in the West (2014)
More of MacFarlane’s schtick, which is starting to get a little predictable. But still fun. Lots of cool cameos.
Full Review
Thor: The Dark World (2013)
Another superhero movie. I can’t keep track of who is who or what is what anymore. I do like the tongue-in-cheek humor of supernatural interspersed with the mundane in this one and many of the other Marvel movies. The hammer on the coatrack was a good gag. Turns out that…
Full Review
Inside Out (2015)
Another outstanding offering from Pixar, made with their unique and magical combination of creativity, humor, and polish. They keep one-upping themselves. It’s obvious they did some research into brain anatomy and function. Lots of interesting explorations about how emotions work, like how memories can be happy and sad at the…
Full Review
I Heart Huckabees (2004)
A movie about nothing. Awful. Theatrical long takes, lots of hoity-toity, existential, nonsensical dialogue. It’s dramatic and tongue-in-cheek at the same time, which never works. Is Russell laughing at us? The whole thing feels like a Robert Altman film with the quirky, quick-talking characters and goofy music of a Wes…
Full Review
Your Friend the Rat (2007)
A literal documentary? Combined with a musical number? Who thought this was a good idea?
Full Review
Lifted (2006)
The Pixar humor and emotive characters are there, but why doesn’t the guy wake up? The animation is still a couple of years from being Pixar perfect.
Full Review
BURN-E (2008)
Similar charm as WALL-E. I love how Pixar makes these little tie-ins to their main features, but I love the original material even more.
Full Review
The Fighter (2010)
Quality direction, but something’s a bit off, and I’m not sure what it is. Bale’s quite an actor, isn’t he? He’s a great addict and a great younger brother. Wonderful casting all around, if you look at the real-life people they played.
Full Review
For the Birds (2000)
Cute, but there’s not much to it. Pixar’s animation and sound would get a lot better in the following years.
Full Review
V for Vendetta (2005)
A decent thriller that tries to be something a lot bigger, but it doesn’t quite do it. The whole thing has a 1984, Apple commercial vibe that is a little too familiar. Portman’s accent is not so great. She has tiny hands, doesn’t she? Rea’s a good actor, but here…
Full Review
Winning: The Racing Life of Paul Newman (2015)
Impressive for Carolla’s first quality, polished production. It’s thoughtfully made, but not I’m not sure there’s enough meat for feature-length doc. Great footage, they got some great people for interviews, but like a lot of documentaries that don’t have narrator or at least title cards to guide you through the…
Full Review
Kung Fury (2015)
Pretty darn funny. Lots of jokes that the 80’s crowd will love. Sandberg’s got a knack for this. Fittingly, he looks a bit like Johnny Depp.
Full Review
Serenity (2005)
This is a cheaply made, poorly made TV show. Seemingly just another episode of “Firefly”. I never watched it, but should I have to? There are a lot of things I don’t know, a lot of background I’m missing, and a lot of things I don’t care about. It’s annoying…
Full Review
Tomorrowland (2015)
Bird made a name for himself making some great animated features, and his adventurous style really comes through. Brilliant visuals, whimsical camerawork, fun editing, easy performances by good-looking people. Unfortunately, it can be a little awkward making a live-action movie with the same sort of whim. There are moments, like…
Full Review
The Judge (2014)
Interesting courtroom/family drama about a character with a moral obligation to defend someone who wants to be found guilty. I don’t think that’s ever been done before. Downey’s snappy dialogue makes me wonder how much leeway he has with scripts. His combination of dialogue and diction and expression is unique,…
Full Review
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
More of the same. Heavy CGI action with lots of cute little lines, with layer upon layer of storylines and histories and character names that are difficult to keep straight for the casual fan. The formula is getting old. I’d love to see the superhero genre come up with something…
Full ReviewAbout Me
I'm a photographer, web developer, travel enthusiast, and movie buff living in Alexandria, Virginia, USA.In the summer of 1993, I started writing reviews for every movie I saw and haven't looked back. I'm up to 2,295 reviews now. This makes me cool or a complete dork, depending on your perspective.
Some of these reviews contain spoilers, so if that bothers you, don't read!
Recent Comments