The Angels’ Share is a movie about drinking that never touches on alcoholism. Instead, the story focuses on a group of spirits-loving criminals who were given second chances when they received community service sentences instead of prison time. Unpredictable but
If you’ve ever been at a dining room table with a friend or family member who won’t get off their phone, you know the importance of the word “disconnect.” It seems that more and more often, we are sadly seeing
“No piece of art is worth a human life.” So says the man charged with protecting million-dollar paintings in the new psychological drama Trance. James McAvoy stars as a man who understands the value of self-preservation and security when it
In the first scene of the new drama The Place Beyond the Pines, the camera follows the character portrayed by Ryan Gosling along a route to his day job. The film isn’t judging the character’s actions but embracing them and
Many–if not most of the movies about Vietnam–focus on the war itself, seeing the conflict from the perspective of the soldiers in combat. The new inspiring film The Sapphires takes a new and distinct look at the bloody conflict. It
For those who grew up with G.I. Joe action figures, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009) seemed like a perfect vehicle for revitalizing the brand and bringing the story to the big screen for a new generation. Such hopes were
There are two ways to judge the new James Franco drama Spring Breakers–by what’s on and off-screen. To judge what’s onscreen is to view the film as a ridiculous, repetitive and shallow drama that leaves little to the imagination. To
In the film that garnered her an Oscar nomination, Abigail Breslin played a girl whose life was changed because of a phone call. In Little Miss Sunshine, a phone call–and the consequential message that followed– informed her character that she
A person’s 21st birthday can lead to drinking, partying and self-introspection. Well, maybe just the first two, but the new movie 21 & Over attempts to incorporate all three ideas into its story of one wild night experienced by three
There are few sure things in life. The sun will rise tomorrow, Katherine Heigl will make another terrible romantic comedy and Daniel Day-Lewis will win his third best actor Oscar tomorrow are the closest things we have. If the latter
There will always be anxious teenagers who long to run away from their small towns in search of a better life. Like Dawson in Dawson’s Creek and countless others before him, the main character in Beautiful Creatures dreams of leaving
We’re all familiar with commercials that note the side effects of various drugs. If you take a heartburn medication, a headache may ensue. If you take a sleeping pill, you might sleep longer than you wish. Neither consequence is as
It’s tough to remember now, but Sylvester Stallone is an Oscar-nominated actor. Honored for his title role in Rocky (1976), Stallone helped us forget that nod by starring in so many mediocre action films that fail to challenge him or
There’s an old argument that the release of a tasteless film a few weeks before the Oscars can dramatically damage a nominee’s chances of winning. The best example of this occurred when the comedy Norbit hit theaters in 2007– a
“Every forum’s the proper forum. Act accordingly,” the contemptible mayor (Russell Crowe) says to his calculating wife in the new film Broken City. Subtly threatening her, he informs her she should sing his praises at every event where she speaks.
Yesterday’s Oscar nominations gave us a few major surprises. From the snub of Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow (“Zero Dark Thirty”) to the exclusion of Ben Affleck (“Argo”) in the directorial race, many critics were wondering what the Academy was thinking.
In “Zombieland,” director Ruben Fleischer took a well-known movie subject (zombie attacks) and turned it on its head. The film embraced the lunacy of poor civilians being hunted by the undead. In “Gangster Squad,” the director once more takes a
“This is unbelievable,” Alice (Marisa Tomei) cries out in the new movie, Parental Guidance. Truer words have seldom been spoken in a film. It is unbelievable that such great comedic talent–Tomei, Billy Crystal and Bette Midler, to name a few–have
It’s been about eight years since a massive tsunami devastated muchof the Asian continent. The tsunami hit the day after Christmas in 2004 andkilled more than 100,000 people. It also affected millions of otherfamilies who were in the area or
It’s been more than a decade since the Pixar animated film “Monsters, Inc.” first arrived in theaters. And like many of its fellow Pixar classics, this idealistic family film remains as wonderful today as it was back in 2001. This
The choice to cast former “Ghostbuster” Bill Murray as Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd President of the United States, was a clever one indeed. Murray, known predominantly as a comic actor whose quirky roles have made him a must-see star
A novelist (Rafe Spall) is promised a story that would make him believe in God at the beginning of “Life of Pi.” The writer was told by a friend to visit a man named Pi whose life story is so
There is something innately human about the three main characters in “A Royal Affair.” Despite the inarguable fact that all three greatly influenced the future of Denmark, these characters are all presented as relatable and fully-dimensional people who – sometimes
The new movie “Fun Size” is one of the strangest film concoctions I’ve ever seen. Like candy corn eaten with ketchup, the film attempts to combine two disparate genres–family drama and raunchy comedy– and comes up short in both areas.
There is something noble about Jay Moriarity, the main character in the new film, “Chasing Mavericks.” Jay is eight when the story begins but despite his youth, he fervently wants to learn how to surf. He insists. He starts surfing
