— by MARIUSZ ZUBROWSKI — Sri Chinmoy once said, “You hate someone whom you really wish to love, but whom you cannot love. Perhaps he himself prevents you. That is a disguised form of love.” The same idea is present in Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani’s Oscar-nominated[...]
Archive for the ‘Reviews’ Category
Under Review: ‘Shutter Island’
— by JOEL CRARY — There have been a number of films of late dealing with the effect of war on the psychologies of those who experience it, plots built around the chaos that manifests in post-war American mentalities, presenting us with protagonists who are altered in some way. So[...]
Review: Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths
— by KENNETH DAVIS — With several successful movies under their belts, DC comics and Warner Bros. bring us yet another excellent film with “Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths,” co-directed by Sam Liu (of “Superman/Batman: Public Enemies”) and Lauren[...]
Under Review: ‘Valentine’s Day’
— by ALEXA MILAN — Remember how “Love Actually” made the ensemble rom-com seem like such a good idea? That movie was charming, heartwarming, funny, sensitive and had a long list of prominent actors (Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Hugh Grant, Keira Knightley, Billy Nighy, Colin [...]
Under Review: ‘The Last Station’
— by ALLISON HIGGINBOTHAM — Leo Tolstoy is famous for his stance on passive resistance and belief that all men should be equal. In “The Last Station,” however, the path to these things is not easy. “The Last Station” takes place during the last few days of[...]
Under Review: ‘Terribly Happy’ (aka: ‘Frygtelig lykkelig’)
— by MARIUSZ ZUBROWSKI — Unknowingly walking into a screening of “Terribly Happy” may disappoint. Despite its seemingly cheery title, this Danish picture has nothing resembling candy or smiley faces, but those willing to indulge in the film’s bleak themes are sure to[...]
Under Review: ‘The Wolfman’
— by JOEL CRARY — I’ll say this for Joe Johnston’s “The Wolfman”: It spares us the hyperbole and gets down to brass tacks. There are no needless scenes of exposition informing us that a lycanthrope can only be assassinated by the use of silver bullets, that the full moon brings o[...]
Under Review: ‘Planet Hulk’
— by JOSUE SANCHEZ — The Hulk has had the privilege of having been the subject of more DVD movies than any other Marvel character. With “Hulk vs. Thor” and “Hulk vs. Wolverine” just released last year, it is impressive that they have now released “Planet[...]
Under Review: ‘Dear John’
— by ALEXA MILAN — Anyone who sees a movie based on a Nicholas Sparks book should know exactly what they’re getting into: a sappy love story set on the beach in which the couple experiences a montage of happy moments and lots of drama-filled trials and tribulations that prevent[...]
Under Review: ‘Smallville: Absolute Justice’
— by JOSUE SANCHEZ — I remember being 6 years old and visiting a friend with my mom. I was sitting in their living room, and a movie they were watching before we arrived was playing on the TV set. What I saw next changed my life forever. On the TV appeared a man, wearing […][...]
Under Review: ‘From Paris with Love’
— by JOEL CRARY — My girlfriend and I had a discussion about white heteronormativity after seeing “From Paris with Love.” She raised a valid point about the tendency of mainstream American films to promote white heteronormative values and turn heteronormative fears into[...]
Under Review: ‘White Lightin”
— by MARIUSZ ZUBROWSKI — Most people don’t know much about mountain dancing or “clogging.” I don’t even know much about this style of dancing apart from what I’ve read on Wikipedia while researching the movie “White Lightin.'” Taking this[...]
Under Review: ‘Red Cliff’
— by JOEL CRARY — John Woo’s “Red Cliff,” the first project of the now permanently Hollywood-ized director to be set in China and written exclusively in Mandarin in 16 years, clearly reveres Sun Tzu’s ancient “Art of War” treatise in the way it portrays war as a universal[...]
Under Review: ‘When in Rome’
— by ALLISON HIGGINBOTHAM — The title of the film “When In Rome” is taken from the saying “when in Rome, do as the Romans do.” With this film, however, it was more like “when making a romantic comedy, do as all other romantic comedies do.” “When In Rome” centers[...]