Archive | September 2016
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The Nice Guys
They had me at the “Airport ’77” and “Jaws 2” billboards. Okay, they actually had me before that. But throughout Shane Black’s “The Nice Guys”, I was consistently enchanted by the film’s superior sense of period and style. And when our main characters were driving through a nighttime Hollywood landscape, dotted with those two giant […]
The Fits
I experienced a fascinating and unique little (72 minutes!) film the other day called “The Fits”. I’d love it if some of you would watch it and comment on your interpretation, but I realize that most won’t see it. That being said, I’m also reticent to recommend it to the mainstream crowd (they don’t always […]
Hell or High Water
Welcome back, Mr. Bridges. I feel like you’ve been gone so long. 2009 FINALLY delivered you that long overdue acting Oscar (for “Crazy Heart”), and then you followed that up with your smashing, Oscar-nominated Rooster Cogburn in 2010’s Coen Brothers remake of “True Grit” (I would’ve switched the winning years, btw…but, whatever). Where have you […]
“The Magnificent Seven” ride?
So, what do you think? Is it going to fly, or not? Oh, I’m not talking about the critics…the better ones will probably rip it to shreds (some already have). But will audiences check it out? To some degree…I bet yes. I mean, look at that cast! Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Vincent […]
Sunset Song
There is really a lot of gorgeous, lyrical, period flavor here–so I certainly want this review to read as a recommendation. If not for an abrupt tonal shift for the last act, I may have considered this amongst the year’s very best. It’s still a rapturous work, from the masterful Terence Davies, who wowed me […]
Maggie’s Plan
One of those Manhattan-based, independent features that gets labeled things like “quirky” and “hipster”, this one is actually a consistent delight, that manages to play better and be more affecting then it deserves. I’ve got to hand most of that credit to an extremely game cast, including a hilariously severe Julianne Moore, as well as the elusively […]
Reviewed by Mark Leonard 