recent product reviews
Wreck-It Ralph (2012)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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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American Reunion (2012)
A nice follow-up. We have most of the original cast, and The comedy still works. Even Stifler’s schtick doesn’t get old. Just the right amount of T+A, including a surprisingly bold penis shot from Biggs.
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Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
Bigelow does a great job making a man’s movie. Perhaps it’s a woman’s touch that makes it so good. In this movie about brutality, military strategy, and political maneuvering, Maya’s emotional journey is in the forefront. While the final action scene was dramatically motivated and suspenseful, it took away some…
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Life of Pi (2012)
A fantastical story with whimsical editing and wonderful special effects, though some are definitely better than others. Just not sure how I feel about the fact that 95% of what we watched was ultimately bullshit. I don’t mind that it’s a fable, but not knowing that from the beginning is…
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Side Effects (2013)
Soderbergh gives us another film that’s contemplative and polished, with a deftly woven plot. His message that drugs are over-prescribed and bad for you is a bit heavy-handed, even if it is masked by a complicated story. Jude Law delivers a solid performance, he’s always appealing. Mara is good, too.…
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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 2,387 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!
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