Remember when film criticism relied upon a simple “Thumbs up” or “Thumbs down”? This was an extraordinarily powerful way to gauge a movie’s quality and it was through this method that film critics and journalists ever since have adapted to their own ways of judging cinema. Roger Ebert was one of the pioneers of the “Thumbs up” approach and he was not just a talented writer and critic but a force for good in American pop culture. His intelligence and supreme wit have made him a cultural icon and the new documentary Life Itself beautifully sums up the man’s life.
They Came Together
In Hollywood’s endless endeavor to churn out likable romantic comedies, many of them fall through the cracks, landing into film obscurity. There are comedies, satires, and parodies. The new rom-com They Came Together seems to blend all of these descriptions together into one mixed bag of quirky, goofy fun. The film’s humor is unorthodox with narration that references the ridiculously predictable rom-com formula. The two headlining actors, whose chemistry is predictably on point, are Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler and with their cute flirty relationship and history making America laugh in the past, they definitely share the screen well.
Snowpiercer
The end of the world is a very common theme in science fiction films. Dystopian futures seem to breed colorful characters and gripping plots. Sometimes these type of films succeed in providing fictional fun but other times, they fail miserably. In the dreary, sometimes enjoyable Snowpiercer, a select group of people not only struggle to survive in a less than desirable situation but struggle to achieve balance in a very rigid and bizarre class system.
The Jungle
Since 1999, the found footage film category has grown to great heights. It is an entity which manages to take well-known film genres and put a spin on them by making them seem like riveting documentaries. The Blair Witch Project started it all and since then, numerous films have capitalized on this shaky, sometimes gripping film technique. The Jungle is the latest production in the found footage machine and it is a direct-to-DVD film which isn’t exactly great but then again, not completely terrible.
Third Person
Paul Haggis is a man of many talents. He is a prolific filmmaker who writes, directs, and produces. He has won Academy Awards for his work on Million Dollar Baby and Crash, both films which were released back to back (2004 and 2005 respectively). He is known for his raw human dramas and for interconnecting multiple storylines and characters. Crash is famous for this type of storytelling and so is his latest film Third Person, a psychological drama highlighting the very subtle nuances of human interaction, love, and trust.
Jersey Boys
American music history has had its fair share of notable moments. The 1950s and 1960s in particular, were an era in which catchy songs and talented performers reigned supreme. One such group was Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons. These gifted young men were responsible for hit after hit including but not limited to “Sherry”, “Walk Like a Man”, and “Big Girls Don’t Cry”. A highly entertaining Tony Award-winning Broadway musical was created to detail the rise of The Four Seasons and it ran and continues to run, selling tickets to this day about a decade after its debut. It was only a matter of time until a big Hollywood film adaption would follow and it did. Helmed by veteran filmmaker Clint Eastwood, Jersey Boys is now in theaters and ready to transport you back to a time when music was not only highly enjoyable but extremely memorable.
The Rover
A dystopian future is a solid foundation of any interesting film. Bleak surroundings and despicable characters comprise these future worlds and their stories explore the very raw and basic instincts of man. Australian export The Rover is no exception and the results are pretty solid. The talented Guy Pearce turns in an intense, fully believable performance here and Robert Pattinson isn’t half bad in an unconventional role. The film can be described as an Aussie crime thriller and while a bit on the depressing side, it’s chock full of entertaining action and very gritty and realistic performances.
The Signal
Whether or not we are alone in the universe is an age old question that has racked the brains of mankind for millennia. Extraterrestrial life has been explored and researched countless times over. We have not received a definite answer to the question of whether aliens exist or not but it seems that motion pictures and other forms of art have attempted to answer that question for us. Science fiction allows us to create creatures and worlds that reach out into deep space. The Signal attempts to continue this eternal quest for knowledge and present alien life in a believable, sometimes scary fashion. Unfortunately, the film doesn’t do a very good job at answering the questions it asks.
The Moment
Mental illness has long been a subject wrought with stigma and social taboos. Though even today those stigmas remains people are now more accepting of those troubled with emotional problems. The mission of psychiatric care mission is to learn why people think and behave the way they do. In the new drama The Moment, Jennifer Jason Leigh plays a woman who is struggling with a very personal and internal battle. While the performances in this film are above average, the film as a whole is severely lacking.
Rigor Mortis
Asian horror cinema is one of the most original and frightening forms of storytelling around. Films like Ringu and Ju-on: The Grudge are solid proof that the far east offers exciting new platforms for supernatural creatures (like ghosts) to scare and entice. A slightly interesting but overall mediocre new film, Rigor Mortis continues this trend, but, sadly, the results are somewhat disappointing. This horror-action hybrid from Hong Kong is actually a tribute to the 1985 horror-comedy Mr. Vampire, and contains some of the same actors from that film.
Unger the Radar 