Jeff's Reviews

Thoughts on every movie I've ever seen.

recent product reviews

Mansome (2012)

Reviewed on May 12, 2013

Some comedy, but not enough. Some history, but not enough. If the film had taken the subject more seriously, or gone the other way and made it a big joke, it might have been a lot better. Fanciful graphics and music are typical of Spurlock, but it’s all a bit…

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Oblivion (2013)

Reviewed on May 11, 2013

Visionary sci-fi derived from, or perhaps in homage to, a long list of classic and recent sci-fi movies. We have the familiar plot twists and moral issues of cloning from Solaris and Moon. The pods are reminiscent of David Bowman’s module in 2001: A Space Odyssey, and there’s a creepy,…

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S&M: Short and Male (2008)

Reviewed on May 9, 2013

Are we supposed to be laughing at them? Or taking the subject matter seriously? Can’t be both. On one hand, there are heartfelt stories from a few of the short guys, the surgery segment is insane, and the voiceover seems to beg for sympathy and fairness. But then there’s circus…

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Magic Mike (2012)

Reviewed on Apr 28, 2013

Bold in its subject matter, but shallow in its execution. Weak story, weak characters, weak acting. Seems like a Tatum vehicle that Soderbergh uninspiringly directed for him. Brooke is the most interesting character, but she also delivers the weakest performance. And there’s not much else. Tatum can dance, for sure,…

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Wreck-It Ralph (2012)

Reviewed on Apr 1, 2013

Toy Story for video games. The visuals are nostalgic, but we’re missing some pretty famous characters. Q-Bert makes several appearances, but Pac-Man’s only visible for a single shot. Where are Mario, Donkey Kong, Link, Metroid, Mega Man, and Sonic? How cool would it have been to see Leisure Suit Larry…

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Amour (2012)

Reviewed on Mar 27, 2013

Depressing, boring, and shocking. Watching somebody die in real-time is not fun. “Fin” might have been a more appropriate title. Natural performances all around. An especially courageous performance by Riva, but the fact that she was a snooty bitch makes us less sympathetic for her. Impressively long takes and no…

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Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012)

Reviewed on Mar 27, 2013

Gritty and mystical, but not a whole lot really happens. The girl is cute and good, but her performance is not Oscar-worthy. The emotionally confusing relationship between the girl and her raving lunatic father makes it hard to feel for either of them.

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The Specialist (1994)

Reviewed on Mar 11, 2013

Stallone’s cool, Stone’s hot, Woods is a pretty good bad-ass. But the story, direction, and photography have that glossy sterility of early 90’s movies.

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The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)

Reviewed on Mar 4, 2013

So what did this one give us that the Raimi/Maguire 2002 movie was missing? Nothing. Why was this even made? Same story and characters, bad humor, uninspired direction. Instead of lamely rebooting the series, they should have just made another sequel.

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Happy (2011)

Reviewed on Mar 2, 2013

An interesting look at what creates happiness. Most Americans are so far off course. Would be interesting if a formalized version of this should be taught early in every American school.

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