Director Bennett Miller’s latest film, Foxcatcher—starring Steve Carell in an against-type role already vigorously generating Oscar buzz—is billed as a psychological thriller.  Continue reading Foxcatcher: Psych 101, Closed Notes →

Even before stepping into the movie theater, I was entertained. The thought of Benedict Cumberbatch voicing a James Bond figure in wolf form was entertaining; the thought of John Malkovich voicing the Bond villain octopus was enough to get my giggle started. And of course, this wasn’t my first meeting with the penguins: in the Madagascar franchise, they are loose cannons with border-line illegal backup plans and crafty tricks up their flippers. They also happen to have their own spin-off television show, so the decision to give them a movie raises some questions about how much penguin adorability audiences can handle. However, I happen to have an unhealthy obsession with feathered flightless birdies, so you can bet your behind that I sat mine down in that theater seat, questions be damned. Continue reading Double 0-Penguin: The Birds are Back and Ready to Save the World →

I was a little skeptical about a romance film based on the love life of Stephen Hawking. Not to be insensitive, but he’s just not exactly the guy I picture when I think of a heartthrob. Ryan Gosling maybe, or that Greek god Hemsworth who’s been seducing me from the cover of People in every checkout line magazine rack. But I digress. Everyone is entitled to a great love story, I suppose, so why not Stephen Hawking? Continue reading A Theory of Everything from Black Holes to Plot Holes →

I tried very hard to like The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 out of respect for its more enjoyable predecessors.  However, as the lengthy title makes clear, the Hunger Games series is the latest film adaptation to split its finale into multiple lucrative parts. Given the result, I am forced to seriously question the decision.  Continue reading The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1: How a Revolution Dies? →

Masked men break into a house and beat up Keanu Reeves. Unusually, this time Keanu is sporting a beard in his guise as John Wick, a lethal ex-mobster that is now on a revenge rampage to kill the people who hurt him and his puppy. The good news? I haven’t spoiled anything: it’s all in the trailer. The bad news? There’s nothing else to spoil. Continue reading When You’re In The John And The Wick Burns Out →

There’s an inherent fairy-tale quality to animated films. They build worlds that are similar to our own, but a step removed. Physical traits appear exaggerated, colors shine with distinctive brightness, and characters challenge and stretch bounds of reality. Perhaps this is why the medium is so often used to tell children’s stories: animated movies create a unique world where anything is possible. Continue reading Big Hero 6: A Child-Sized Step Forward →

There is no shortage of memorable images in Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar. From a dust storm in the ecologically devastated future United States to distant planets circling a black hole, the cinematography is expertly rendered and often magnificent. The frequent use of practical effects gives an effective patina of stark realism to the sci-fi scenery. Yet it’s one of the humbler shots from the beginning of the movie that really captures its wasted potential. Continue reading Interstellar: In Space, No One Can Hear You Yawn →

Birdman is an artistic, intellectual film that does no artistic or intellectual work. It’s an outline, a sketch, a suggestion of an idea, and that idea isn’t even original. Continue reading Birdman Falls Flat →

Although Philip Roth is often cited as America’s greatest living writer, so far no filmmaker has had any real success in transferring his richly observed world of Judaic literary machismo onto film. Continue reading Listen up Philip: Lives Imitating Art →

It is very tempting to begin this review with a food pun: to speak about how tastefully done or how flavorful the film is. But while certain elements of the film were certainly tasteful, the film as a whole was just bland. And despite its name, Chef is less about the experience of being a chef and more about two very broad groundbreaking themes: “Be the person who you want to be” and “Family is always important.”

Continue reading Chef: A Dish Served from the Heart but Without Much Art →

I must confess up front that I seldom get much enjoyment out of horror movies. I decided to watch Ouija on a whim and my opinion hasn’t changed.  Teenagers find and play with a Ouija board, evil spirits get involved, hapless teens suffer the consequences—riveting, huh? Continue reading Ouija Bored →