Category: Movie Reviews

REVIEW: The Wolverine (2013)

Release Poster - 20th Century Fox
Release Poster – 20th Century Fox

The following is a spoiler-filled review of The Wolverine – Directed by James Mangold

X-Men Origins: Wolverine was an unnecessary, bloated mess of a film that managed to – not just butcher the Deadpool character – but also harm the legacy of Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine. In 2013, James Mangold managed to restore Jackman’s legacy with an exciting chapter in that character’s story. So, today, in anticipation of the release of James Mangold’s Logan, I want to do a spoiler-filled review of Mangold’s first film about Wolverine. Continue reading “REVIEW: The Wolverine (2013)” →

REVIEW: I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore (2017)

Release Poster - Netflix
Release Poster – Netflix

The following is a review of I Don’t Feel at Home in this World Anymore – Directed by Macon Blair

One of last year’s most genuine and shocking surprises were Jeremy Saulnier’s Green Room, a violent thriller set in a neo-nazi bar. Green Room was a great little film, which starred Macon Blair in a supporting role, and it made me look back at what Saulnier had made before.

I soon came across Saulnier’s 2013 thriller Blue Ruin, which also starred Macon Blair (this time in a leading role). Both Green Room and Blue Ruin are great, violent thriller films, and I particularly enjoyed Blue Ruin. Therefore my interest was instantly piqued when Macon Blair’s directorial debut – I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore – went on to win the Sundance Festival’s Grand Jury Prize for the U. S. Dramatic competition. Continue reading “REVIEW: I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore (2017)” →

REVIEW: Girlfriend’s Day (2017)

Release Poster - Netflix
Release Poster – Netflix

The following is a quick review of Girlfriend’s Day – Directed by Michael Paul Stephenson

On Valentine’s Day 2017, Netflix released an original film from the mind of – and starring – Bob Odenkirk with a lean runtime of 70 minutes. As I am a fan of Odenkirk, it should’ve been easy to get through. It should’ve been a treat. But, somehow, it took me more than a week to get through and finish. Continue reading “REVIEW: Girlfriend’s Day (2017)” →

Top Ten Films of 2016

2016-top-ten-films-header

It’s time for me to finally let go of 2016 by officially announcing my top ten films of 2016. I’ve said this multiple times at the beginning of 2017, but I just don’t think 2016 deserves to be known as a bad year for movies. I think it was a bad year for blockbuster films, but at the end of the year there were so many great films to watch. Continue reading “Top Ten Films of 2016” →

REVIEW: A Cure for Wellness (2017)

Theatrical Release Poster - 20th Century Fox
Theatrical Release Poster – 20th Century Fox

The following is a review of A Cure for Wellness – Directed by Gore Verbinski

A Cure for Wellness follows Lockhart (played by Dane DeHaan), an overworked and ambitious executive, who is sent to the Swiss Alps to retrieve Pembroke (played by Harry Groener), his company’s CEO, from a wellness center. It was supposed to be a quick retrieval. He didn’t intend to stay there for more than a few hours, but when Lockhart wakes up from a car crash he appears to have broken his leg. Continue reading “REVIEW: A Cure for Wellness (2017)” →

REVIEW: La La Land (2016)

Theatrical Release Poster - Summit Entertainment
Theatrical Release Poster – Summit Entertainment

The following is a review of La La Land – Directed by Damien Chazelle

They don’t make movies like they used to. Cinema is dead. – Odds are that you’ve encountered similar sentiments online or by the water cooler this past year. 2016 was, somewhat unfairly, called a bad year for movies, when it was just a bad year for summer blockbuster films. As is always the case with discovering new films, you have to know where to look.

It is all about finding the right talents, the right studios, or the premises that will pique your interest. Sometimes the right movie for you is one that reminds you of great classics but still isn’t blind to the nostalgia it’s feeding on. With a charismatic and charming cast, a brilliant director, and a genre that people are sometimes turned off by, La La Land is here at the right time to breathe new life into our love of movies.  Continue reading “REVIEW: La La Land (2016)” →

REVIEW: O. J.: Made in America (2016 – Documentary)

Release Poster - ESPN Films
Release Poster – ESPN Films

The following is a review of O. J.: Made in America – Directed by Ezra Edelman

Orenthal James Simpson – a USC Trojans legend, Pro Football Hall of Fame Inductee, movie star, and a convicted felon. In 1985, 5-time Pro Bowl and 1-time NFL MVP O. J. Simpson, a former running back for the Buffalo Bills and the San Francisco 49ers, was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

He had become an actor, and in a few years he would become a movie star with the popular The Naked Gun movie series. Ten years later, in 1995, Simpson was acquitted of the murders of his ex-wife and her friend. O. J.: Made in America tells the story of O. J. Simpson’s tumultuous life leading up to his imprisonment after an armed robbery in Las Vegas in 2008. Continue reading “REVIEW: O. J.: Made in America (2016 – Documentary)” →

REVIEW: Whiplash (2014)

UK Release Poster - Sony Pictures Classics
UK Release Poster – Sony Pictures Classics

The following is a review of Whiplash – Directed by Damien Chazelle

Whiplash was one of my favorite films of 2014, and it is also one of the two 2014 films I rewatch the most (the other film being Guardians of the Galaxy). But I realized – when I rewatched it the other night – that I had actually never officially reviewed it. This may, in fact, be as good a time as any to review the film. Tomorrow, I’ll be seeing Damien Chazelle’s next film La La Land for the first time. So, as a bit of a warm-up to that forthcoming review, I thought I’d finally review one of the true masterpieces of the 2010s – Damien Chazelle’s Whiplash – one of my favorite films.
Continue reading “REVIEW: Whiplash (2014)” →

REVIEW: Sully (2016)

Theatrical Release Poster - Warner Bros.
Theatrical Release Poster – Warner Bros.

The following is a review of Clint Eastwood’s Sully.

Sully, which is based on a memoir written by Chesley Sullenberger and Jeffrey Zaslow, tells the true story of the events surrounding US Airways Flight 1549 – the plane that pilot Chesley Sullenberger (played by Tom Hanks) felt that he was forced to land on New York’s Hudson River. However, in the days that followed, Sullenberger had to defend his decision to the press and to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
Continue reading “REVIEW: Sully (2016)” →

REVIEW: Rings (2017)

Theatrical Release Poster - Paramount Pictures
Theatrical Release Poster – Paramount Pictures

The following is a review of Rings – Directed by F. Javier Gutiérrez

First you watch it, then you die – I guess that is one way to market your movie. The first American remake of the popular Japanese film Ringu (which was an adaptation of a Japanese horror novel) was actually quite successful and effective. Gore Verbinski’s The Ring was absolutely terrifying, but I don’t think anyone will think as highly of Gutiérrez’s Rings. I don’t exactly hate the seemingly pessimistic tagline, but I really dislike the film. Continue reading “REVIEW: Rings (2017)” →