Indie
Frozen River - Movie Review
Frozen River won 24 awards and was nominated for 16 others (including two Oscars). Still, I can pretty confidently say that even you — someone who has taken the time out of their day to read a completely unadvertised movie blog — didn’t see it in theaters. I can say this because Courtney Hunt’s brilliant film had a criminally low domestic gross of $2.5 million.
Wendy and Lucy - Movie Review
In whole, Wendy and Lucy is an excellent film. It’s worth seeing for Michelle Williams’s performance by itself, but I really think that it succeeds on a number of levels. It’s not fast paced, and the story isn’t grandiose, but, as Film Threat’s Don Lewis said in his review, “Unless you’re an antsy movie-goer or have a cold heart, by the end of Wendy and Lucy, you’ll be engrossed, hoping for the best possible outcome.” So, check it out; I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Funny Games - Movie Review
MetaCritic Score: 41
On MetaCritic, Funny Games received seven ratings of 80 or higher (which is really good), and six ratings of 20 or lower (really bad). It’s very rare to see critics as polarized as they were about German writer/director Michael Haneke’s remake of his own 1998 film by the same name. Now, what kind [...]
Towelhead, Wanted, and Snow Angels - Mini Movie Reviews
I’ve got to stop letting myself get behind on reviews. Anyhow, here are three brief reviews of movies I’ve watched recently.
Towelhead
I don’t remember hearing about this film when it was in theaters, but I recently saw a preview for it on another DVD and was intrigued. Towelhead is the story of Jasira, a 13-year [...]
Transsiberian - Movie Review
MetaCritic Score: 72
I think Ben Kingsley deserves some sort of an award. Yea, I know, he already has an Oscar, but this is different. According to my research, Kingsley has now played a character of every ethnicity in the world except for African-American and Japanese.
Okay, I made that up, but seriously, his range is really [...]
Four Mini Movie Reviews
So, I’ve seen several movies recently, but have been way too busy to do reviews of all of them. Here are four brief reviews of films from four different genres, there is something for everyone in this post so be sure to keep reading after the jump.
The Strangers
I, along with most other moderately serious [...]
The Visitor - Movie Review
MetaCritic Score: 79
The Visitor is the second movie from Thomas McCarthy, the writer/director of the critically acclaimed film The Station Agent. You may also recognize McCarthy’s name from some of his various low-profile acting roles, including a stint on the final season of the greatest TV show ever made (The Wire).
Much like The Station Agent, [...]
The Band’s Visit (Bikur Ha-Tizmoret) - Movie Review
MetaCritic Score: 80
I’ve been a bit hesitant to rent many independently released foreign language films recently. After my debacles with 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 days and Bamako, I started to second guess the festival awards and excessive critical praise that adorns the boxes of many of the movies I’ve never heard of at [...]
The Last Winter - Movie Review
MetaCritic score: 69
An Inconvenient Truth won two Oscars. Some people may even have found the implications of its message to be frightening. Even still, the consequences of our actions that are outlined in Gore’s film seem abstract because they don’t threaten our immediate future and may not necessarily affect each of us individually. The Last [...]
Paranoid Park - Movie Review
MetaCritic Score: 83
“No one is ever really ready for Paranoid Park” - These words are spoken to Alex, the film’s main character just before his first trip to Portland’s famed haven for skateboarders, street kids, and punks. This warning, though seeming innocent enough, ends up vastly understating Alex’s unpreparedness for, not only the events surrounding [...]
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