Film Reviews
Tyler Rowe’s review of Guillermo Del Toro’s Pacific Rim. Those kaijus and robots were awesome, but we wanted MORE. Of everything.
Wes Anderson can be an acquired taste. Settling on gathering enjoyment from his films can come after much deliberation as to whether he’s serious about the utterly finicky nature he employs in his chosen colour palettes, set construction, camera movements and scrupulous plot details. But his films carry far more value than the kind of hipster magnetism that seemingly oozes out of them.
Noah is surreal and magical: nothing what you’d expect of a Bible retelling, but everything you’d expect from Darren Aronofsky, and it’s a piece of art.
Kristin Bell is back as Veronica Mars! Kimberly Gamble, a “Mashmallow” herself, reviews the movie.
In this 2013 American “reinterpretation” of Park Chan-wook’s Oldboy – which was itself loosely based on a ‘90s manga by Tsuchiya Garon – a misogynistic, binge-drinking ad exec (Josh Brolin) is mysteriously abducted and held captive for 20 years without any explanation. Then, just as suddenly as he was taken, he’s released back into the world with a stack of cash, a phone, and a hankering for bloody, violent vengeance to help him find out why he was kidnapped in the first place. Full disclosure:
Open Grave has been described as a philosophical journey, but it’s just a story about fear and survival that leaves you in the dark for most of it. Review by Tyler Rowe.
Dallas Buyers Club isn’t just a story about a dude in the 1980’s that got AIDS and built a drugs emporium – it’s much more than that.
Don’t we all love overpriced coffee? For one, The Lego Movie is chock full of adult humor, and makes for an excellent watch for the grown-ups among us, too.
Anyone who enjoys a complex character should see Filth. We discuss the movie’s representation of corruption and explanations for criminal behavior.
Identity is a short film by KJ Adames. The short film criticizes the dominant cultural norms of identity and the self, and beautifully stylized, suggests we be ourselves instead of try to conform to those norms. Although the use of masks is a tad literal, I found it interesting nonetheless.
Oblivion was a movie I’d been looking forward to as I’m a huge (dystopian) sci-fi fan. Unfortunately, it was quite a disappointment. Rarely have I seen a movie as unoriginal as this one.
I had already previewed Prisoners a while ago, and was quite interested in seeing the movie. However, I didn’t have the chance until yesterday due to… life.
I’m honestly not much of a horror fan, especially the ghosts I cannot handle (nor the high-pitched violin shrieking and shots that give me heart attacks). Zombies are something else, though. I’m pretty good with the blood and gore and they’re generally not too scary.
First of all, I was struck by the impressive cast of this movie. Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Mark Ruffalo… That’s quite the list. Now You See Me tells us the story of four street-wise magicians, not afraid to scam a person or two while they’re at it.
Here’s a bit of a darker short film for you (certainly compared to the one I shared last week): the Iranian short film Tonight is not a Good Night for Dying (2011), directed by Ali Asgari. This short is shot from the perspective of a man who just fell from a building.