Written and directed by Damien Chazelle, Whiplash does a great job with its main storyline but fails to flesh its world out effectively. Though its two lead characters are full of life, the rest feel like afterthoughts.
Critic delights in modern classic “The Secret of Kells”
Despite its lack of a strong ending, The Secret of Kells is a charming story told beautifully – and bravely. Directed by Tomm Moore and Nora Twomey, it may be aimed at a younger audience, but it pulls no punches in content or quality. The film follows “Brendan” (voiced by Evan McGuire), a young boy…
Critic disturbed and fascinated by “Mysterious Skin”
Watching Mysterious Skin is like waking up on a bright, sunny Saturday morning, making yourself a perfect cup of coffee, turning on your favorite cartoon, and finding spiders in your cereal. The nostalgic familiarity of the setting puts us at ease, but the subject matter rips us right out of our comfort zone. Written and…
Critic finds classic “American Psycho” disturbingly good
Almost 14 years after its release, American Psycho still holds up. While its heavy satirization of yuppie culture may not ring quite so many bells with audiences of today, the performances and artful treatment of disturbing subject matter still shocks, horrifies, and utterly captivates. Directed by Mary Harron based on Bret Easton Ellis’ novel of…
Critic disappointed by inconsistency of “Horns”
I used to think that there was nothing worse than a painfully bad movie, but I now know that there is a new circle of movie hell: a good movie that turns itself bad. Horns is one such film. Directed by Alexandre Aja based on Joe Hill’s novel of the same name, the movie follows…
Short film round-up
Move over, Morgan Freeman – there’s a new God in town, and his name is Nick Offerman. In Eric Kissack’s nine-minute The Gunfighter, Offerman plays an omniscient narrator of a Western scene whose speech can be heard by the characters he’s describing. Kissack mixes lowbrow gags and highbrow meta-humor to great effect, and Offerman’s narration…
Short film round-up
Although Hello World :) clocks in at 21 minutes, it feels like directors Rafaël Mathé and Etienne Larragueta tried to cram too much into too short a film. Each individual component of the cyberhacker piece is interesting and incredibly detailed, but when combined, we never get to a chance to fully engage with any of them. The result…
Critic finds cult classic “Dogma” a little dated
Kevin Smith’s 1999 film Dogma was probably groundbreakingly irreverent for audiences in its day. However, much like some of the tenets of organized religion that the movie pokes fun at, it doesn’t feel like it’s stood the test of time. Although the timing and structure of Smith’s writing still hits its mark, the actual content…
Short film round-up
Although Finnish filmmaker Mikko Löppönen’s nine-minute short L4ST doesn’t have much in the way of dialogue or plot or character development, it is an incredible atmospheric thrill ride. Based loosely on video game The Last of Us, the film follows two survivors trying to live through a zombie apocalypse. The short’s biggest strength is its…
Critic finds “Guardians of the Galaxy” a pleasant counterpoint to heavier superhero fare
Guardians of the Galaxy is the perfect reminder of what a good summer blockbuster should be like: witty, charming, full of heart, and above all else, fun. What’s more, it manages to be all these things without pandering to the lowest common denominator, instead keeping the jokes smart and the pace lightning-fast. Directed by James…
Short film round-up
Alan Rickman stars in Dust, a delightfully creepy seven-minute short about a man and his obsession. It’s difficult to say much without giving anything away, but suffice it to say that writer/directors Ben Ockrent & Jake Russell do a wonderful job showcasing both Rickman’s talent and their own skill at creating an atmosphere. To see the film,…
Short film round-up
Despite coming from such a strong animation background, French filmmaker Loïc Bramoullé seems to draw up a rather lifeless character in Space Cat Hob. The six-minute short follows the titular astrokitty Hob, whose spaceship crash-lands on an alien planet. Although the world around Hob is lovingly crafted and stunningly beautiful, the cat’s misproportioned body and face straight out of…
Jim Jarmusch’s vampire movie doesn’t suck
At first glance, Only Lovers Left Alive seems like a stupid movie. The plot summary reads like the back cover of a Stephanie Meyer novel: two ancient vampire lovers, one a cosmopolitan intellectual and the other a sadsack recluse, reunite after years apart, only to be antagonized by a wacky younger sister. However, due to…
Critic frightened and fascinated by ‘No Country for Old Men’
Do not watch No Country for Old Men by yourself. More specifically, do not watch No Country for Old Men by yourself, at night, when the wind outside is howling something like a banshee. If you do – and if you’re a wimp, like I am – you will end up cowering under your covers, because there are parts…
Short film round-up
There’s a Man in the Woods might just be my favorite short of the year so far. The four-minute animated film from Cal Arts student tells the tale of a teacher whose life is destroyed when a rumor told by a selfish child wrecks his reputation. The images are rough and dark, and when paired with…
Critic dazzled by ‘A Single Man’
Tom Ford must make more films. It’s his calling. Though he is best known for his long and illustrious career in the fashion industry, his 2009 movie A Single Man makes it clear that should he continue with filmmaking, he stands to make his mark as a great auteur. Not only is it a stylistic masterpiece, it…
Critic finds major flaw in ‘Silver Linings Playbook’
I very much want to like David O. Russell’s Silver Linings Playbook, but I can’t help but feel that there’s one element that brings the whole film down, and that’s the performance given by Jennifer Lawrence. Though the film itself is quite skillfully crafted, the miscasting of such a vital character knocks the whole thing askew,…
Critic finds great joy in ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’
What with The Amazing Spider-Man 2 scheduled to hit theaters so soon, I thought it would be fitting to revisit its predecessor, if only to emphasize to those who haven’t seen it that they truly must. Vastly better than all three film’s in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy, it brings a fresh new perspective to the franchise that includes a…
Critic underwhelmed by ‘Black Swan’
I will openly admit that I am not the biggest fan of Darren Aronofsky’s particular directorial style. It was with great skepticism, then, that I selected his 2011 film Black Swan for review, though I thought perhaps that its slew of award nominations indicated that it might impress me. Sadly, my hopes were dashed. Black Swan is…
Short film round-up
For something with wit and style in spades, check out Writer’s Block, a five-minute short from Tom Gran and Martin Woolley set in a prison for criminally lousy writers. It’s an exercise in meta-storytelling that uses well-known cliches in a fresh new way, and it’s packed with clever sight gags and expert puns. What’s more,…
Critic disappointed by ‘The Artist’
As a film critic, I obviously watch a lot of movies. Each year, though, there are a few that slip by me, and every so often, I like to make an effort to catch up. This time around, I selected The Artist, and to be quite frank, I wish I had chosen something else. Though…
Short film round-up
I’m always a fan of short films that convey their stories without dialogue, and Life is Beautiful is no exception. The nine-minute animated short from Dutch filmmaker Ben Brand tells the sweetly sorrowful story of Anton, who’s always been smaller than his peers. When he tires of his miserable existence and decides to end it, he discovers…
Short film round-up
I’m a sucker for anything remotely twee, so Helium Harvey is right up my street. The three-minute animated short from Daniel Savage follows a young boy on an imaginative, balloon-fueled journey across the globe. The imagery is gorgeously retro, turning the simple story into something quite magical. If you’re up for something sweet, take a look at…
Critic devastated by ‘Blue Valentine’
Those of you who like happy endings should stop reading this review immediately. Blue Valentine is not for you. In fact, I wouldn’t say it’s “for” anyone, save for those rare few who very much enjoy having their hearts metaphorically torn out and stomped on. However, that doesn’t mean it’s a bad film – on the…
Critic finds glee and bitterness in ‘The Trip’
There’s something uniquely fascinating about an actor playing a version of himself. In 2010’s The Trip, Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon do just that, and the effect is both hilarious and oddly touching. Though it’s hard to say how much of themselves they put into their characters, there’s certainly enough that the final product feels intensely…
Critic takes a look back at a Disney classic
After being wildly underwhelmed by Frozen, I thought it appropriate to take a look back into Disney’s catalogue to see what the newer film might have been missing. I chose Mulan, a movie I loved as a child, and my suspicion was confirmed: Disney used to be much, much better at the musical aspect of its movies….
