Cole's Film Reviews

Figured I should just start chronicling all my reviews over here since I post far too much in the Rate The Last Movie You Saw thread. If you're interested stick around and hopefully you jive with my taste .

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1. Smashed (2012) - James Ponsdolt



I've been keeping tabs on James Ponsdolt ever since I first saw the film Spectacular Now (2013) which was also my gateway into Miles Teller. He's got a great film sense and I really enjoy a lot of his writing, especially in his latest movie, End of the Tour (2015). Smashed interested me because I'm always a fan of watching a debut film because its usually when directors are getting their barrings and coming into their own as filmmakers, which I think is cool. You can really tell that this is a first effort and in some ways thats a bad thing, but in others its a positive. To start with positive, he crafts a very intricate and semi-broken character in Kate who is an alcoholic who's relationship with her husband lasts because they are always getting drunk together. Winstead plays her very subtly and I buy that she had a legitimate problem, which is hard to do. The fault is, I think she is the only interesting character in the film, which is a damn shame since there was a lot of potential. I didn't buy her and Paul's chemistry and I can't tell if that was the point or not, but it just never felt like they could have ever been together. I also think the side story about the vomit got ridiculously out of hand, but I did enjoy her story with Offerman even though it was very strange. I can't help but think with a longer runtime and less emphasis on the vomit side plot it could have used more time to develop characters, thus giving the ending much more of an impact on the viewer. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the ending just not as much as I could have if stakes were higher. Overall, a really fun debut indie film with quirky writing, but is lacking in some fields that Ponsdolt has excelled at later on.

2. Deadpool (2016) - Tim Miller



Such a fun film to watch that you get lost in the entertainment and lose sight of some of the minor problems. I really loved watching this movie and I actually saw it around 2 months ago because I got to visit Fox Studios at a screening. Ryan Reynolds does a hell of a job playing one of the most interesting comic book characters around. All of Deadpool's interactions with the side characters are all really entertaining, but some of the comedy didn't really hit me in the right ways, although I did laugh a fair amount. I actually really enjoyed the villain to this movie even though he is a really one dimensional character, but the torture scenes are brutal and you can really feel the pain thats being inflicted. The love interest in the film played by Morena Baccarin is also a really well done side story were you actually feel for the characters involved. The biggest problem I have with this film is that the story is just so basic, there really isn't much too it which makes it feel very copy and paste. Some of the scenes are really well written, but other characters besides Deadpool just aren't that interesting and detract from me giving this film a higher rating. I did enjoy myself a lot though so it's still in the positive.

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3. Blue Ruin (2014) - Jeremy Saulnier



I really like the premise to this film, it's not a super original idea, but its still interesting enough to get you to possibly check it out. I think there is a lot of good to the film, but there is some bad too. To start with positives, the raw tone this film took was really refreshing and it kept itself grounded in realism in most scenes other than one. I also think the main character is pretty interesting and his intentions are real and you understand why he is doing these things. I think the cinematography at times was good, but it began to fade later on in the film and got a tad more generic. The lighting was the same way that at some scenes its really well done and others not so much. You can tell that this is an indie film from the first scene, but that isn't really a bad thing. Some of the negatives, I feel, is the acting didn't really feel true to how the characters would actually react. I didn't buy the main actor in all the scenes especially toward the ladder end of the film. I also wasn't a fan of the writing as I didn't really get to know the characters too well. I feel if this idea was spun in a darker way and kept the realism it could've been a lot better. The climax to the film also felt uneventful for the amount of build up it made and how slow burn the whole film was. That's another problem, the film is way too long for the script that was probably around fifteen pages. Overall, it has some memorable scenes and it's a decent first effort, but in the hands of a better writer it could have been something magnificent.

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4. The Myth of the American Sleepover (2010) - David Robert Mitchell



Let me preface this by saying I'm a huge fan of Mitchell's second film, It Follows, so I had some high expectations for what this film would achieve. Sadly it disappointed me because I didn't really feel it was that realistic. Its got the same fatal flaw that I felt Boyhood (2014) suffered from, the teenagers don't act like real teens. There are only a few key moments in the film where I feel like teenagers are accurately represented and its so few and far between. The writing is very awkward and it has so many pauses that it's hard to believe the character chemistry at all. Even though, I did buy into the pixie cut girl and the lifeguards chemistry because I felt like for the most part they were both pretty good actors, but the rest aside from the older male were terrible. The sideline that stands out the most to me is the pixie cut girl because her character was the most believable. The other one I didn't hate was the college guy because he also had some dimensions to his character. The other problem is the first half of this film is such a drag to watch, it just wasn't really that interesting. The direction was very amateur and it didn't feel like he had ever directed actors before, which is why there are so many awkward pauses. The cinematography for the most part is rather bland along with the editing. The locations in the film were cool though and some of the end kind of hit me with a weird nostalgic vibe as I'm pretty sure this tale is set in the past. Overall, wasn't what I thought it would be with such a great concept and a very strong second film, I wouldn't call it bad, but just mediocre.

I really loved Blue Ruin for all its indie simplicity, but of course the story could have been tighter and the character arc more well written. But I was taken by surprise by it and I really enjoyed this dark little small scale revenge flick.

I'm looking forward to more reviews, haven't seen the other films in your thread so far.

Me too,^^ I really liked Blue Ruin a good bit.

I guess something about it didn't really hit with me. He was just a strange character that I didn't connect with and his longing for his parents didn't feel real enough.

5. Rabbit Hole (2010) - John Cameron Mitchell



This is a sad tale about a family who has lost their son in a freak accident and it chronicles how they live their lives after such a tragedy. The main character is played by Nicole Kidman who does a good job with what she is given even though I didn't fully buy into her character. Her husband is played by Aaron Eckhart, another tragically underrated actor in my opinion, who does a great job at playing a man who can't get over his son's death. The writing for the most part is rather well done aside from a few minor gripes I found some scenes to be very impactful. Mitchell does a great job at making you feel the sadness that seeps through everyones life in the film, and how some move on and some don't. He didn't quite nail the tone at all times, but that is due to the major script flaw that bothered me. I don't fully feel like Nicole Kidman's character would be so forgiving of Miles Teller (who also does a great job with what he is given), it just seemed too quick for me. She also would have gotten more angry at Other than that, the only other problem I had is the basement scene between Kidman and her mother could have been handled with a bit more grace and impact-fulness. It just could have been a little better written. One of the other things that might hold me back from loving this film is that a very similar film, Little Children (2006) handles this tone much better and you should check it out if your a fan of this film. Overall, a solid film that deals with large themes and has some great scenes throughout.

6. Frances Ha (2012) - Noah Baumbach



Not a huge fan of Noah Baumbach in general, even though I haven't seen a lot of his early work which is much more acclaimed, he just doesn't seem to jive with my style. This however is a major exception because I absolutely loved this film and its so enjoyable to see Gerwig travel through New York City with this oddly lovable character. The side characters she interacts with are all interesting and you can clearly tell they are common characters from Baumbach's wheelhouse of hipster stereotypes. A story like this has been done many times before, but they really at least I felt switch it up here and Gerwig's character is so interesting it's hard not to fall into the rabbit hole that is her life. The score is brilliant and although it's not very grand it fits the film so well and is used in a lot of scenes that got me emotionally. The choice of black and white is a very good touch, it seemed like everyone was at their best during the making of this movie because this is by far he has ever done. The writing at times is brilliant and at others a little too new wave for me, but then again it's just preference since I don't tend to like a lot of his work, so his writing falls flat for me in some places. It's just cool to see everything happening in her life and her relatable struggles as a person trying to find herself. The best way I can describe this film to others is it's a love letter to old Woody Allen films and it feels very much in that same vain.

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7. I Origins (2014) - Mike Cahill



This is a very interesting film because its idea I feel is one that is rarely been touched on before thus making it fairly original. The way it uses science and religion is fascinating to watch as Mike Cahill challenges the viewer to pay attention to the large themes he is juggling throughout the films plot. Michael Pitt works very well in this film alongside the other lead Astrid Frisbey who I haven't seen before, but I bought her playing this character for the most part. There is a very big problem with this film though and that is some of the ways it connects all these ideas that Cahill has thought up in his mind. The film very sloppily connects all the main plot points, so it is hard for the viewer to figure out how Cahill leaped to the next point in the story. There are also a lot of cheesy scenes between characters where the writting is just very sub-par to put it best. Cahill's ideas are solid, but sadly the film is not and it falls short of all of the potential it had in this fascinating concept.

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8. Dredd (2012) - Pete Travis



Why did anyone say this is a good film? It's so bad, not all of it, but most of it. Like always, Karl Urban plays a lifeless character, in which he brings no charisma to the role whatsoever and his other lead Olivia Thirbly does an okay job with the atrocious dialogue that she is given. This story is a very interesting concept, but from what I heard it's a lot like The Raid (2011), which if so makes me less okay with it. The only thing that I really enjoyed from the film is the settings. It's filmed in this very industrial building and it's interesting to watch them make their way through this dingy atmosphere. This film had far too much of a small budget to do the scale in which the script was written. The CGI is so bad in this film you can practically see the green screen in some shots. The villain is lazy and not interesting, which is to be expected when the writing is this bad. The only character that has any depth is Thirbly who is just trying to seek justice on her training day for the job. The action for the most part is very lackluster and poorly shot; there is a twist toward the end, however, that did surprise me. The only saving grace scene in the film is the mind reading scene in which the editing is well done and it's actually fairly well written. This film lacks any solid characters for me to really embrace anything that is going on, I could care less if the Judge just died, it really wouldn't matter to me. The other problem is Urban tries to be gruff and use one liners, but it doesn't work at all, it's so amateur. Overall, the film is a waste of time and there are only a couple of moments that are worth watching.

9. The Witch (2016) - Robert Eggers



This is a film that probably won't appeal to wide audiences due to it being such a slow burn. At least that was my experience with the film, I also would hardly call this a horror film, but more a psychological drama. That might sound very strange, but I feel that most indie horror films now are usually dramas and don't really scare many people, at least the ones I have seen. This film never scared me or my audience at all through the whole runtime. Most people were laughing while the "horror" moments were happening and that's a really bad thing. The concept for this film is ripe to make a great horror film and also have it be original. The story isn't bad I would say, but I think most people who were interested in the concept won't be satisfied with the actual turnout. There are still good horror ideas in this movie, but they don't pan out and are pushed aside for character development. I did like the characters in the film, writing wise, but I could have liked them so much more if they were just put in more terrifying scenarios. The best thing about this film is easily it's cinematography, which at times is even mediocre, but for the most part it's very well done. The acting from the parents are good, but from the kids it's kind of cringe worthy at times as well, especially from the boy in this film, who at one point has to give a pretty convincing monologue and fails to do so. The lighting is a problem for me in this film as well because I think the director thought if he made the film darker it would create a better atmosphere, which is not the case. Instead, the audience has to try and see through all the darkness in order to get any shock value. The direction was decent, but I don't really feel like I said before that he created any dread during the scenes that should have been full of it. This film's ending could also really bother a lot of people, since it's kind of comes out of nowhere and just felt like someway to end it quickly. I wish I could agree with all the critics and say this satisfied my need for a scary film, but it just didn't and it was just so much missed potential.

10. Like Crazy (2011) - Drake Doremus



I walked into this thinking that it was going to be a love story and at times it is, but it's mostly about the inevitable struggle of long distance. The leads are played by Anton Yelchin, who I haven't seen much of, but from what in this he is decent and Felicity Jones who I always find to be gripping on screen. I'm not sure how to feel about the romance in the film because although they are both good actors I never bought that they could be together, but I'm not sure if that was supposed to be intended. Don't get me wrong there are some great moments in the film especially the things that involve the chair representing their relationship. These characters spend a lot of time away from each other and I think this is where the film excels and differentiates itself from your standard run of the mill love story. It captures how it is hard to forget about love when you are torn apart from someone and how it's hard not to fall back on it, like these characters do. This film also builds up unintentional drama and it becomes hard to keep watching these two fall back in love so many times, it's far too tedious. Ultimately the film takes some directions that I don't really like and after awhile it began to annoy me watching these two. In some ways I just don't think these characters were as deep as the director thought they were. I don't really understand why they ever got together in the first place. This film has a very sour ending as well in which it reaches for something that it truly isn't and it felt undeserved. I would check this out if your a fan of the actors and or the director, but don't go in with high expectations.

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11. Zero Dark Thirty (2012) - Katheryn Bigelow



I like a lot of Bigelow's work so I was looking forward to it and I can't say that I was let down. This film is like you probably know about the people involved with tracking Osama Bin Laden after 9/11. Jessica Chastain plays the lead and she does for the most part a good job, but sometimes her acting bothered me. Jason Clarke is basically the second bill and he was great in this, probably the best thing he has ever done. Some of the torture scenes are very brutal and it paints a good picture of the struggle in finding the truth about Bin Laden. The writing is good in this film, but I kind of feel like some of the scenes could have been cut for a shorter runtime. I also wasn't really that attached to Chastain till about half way through because I didn't feel like there was much development from her. Bigelow did a good job as well and I think she brought good performances out of most involved, but I did think there should have been more tension in some scenes that could have been full of it. I have to give it to her though for crafting a perfect ending to the film, it was beautifully shot as you see the silhouettes move through the dark house searching for Osama. Overall, I wasn't in love with everything about it and I would still probably say Argo (2012) deserved Best Picture more, but still this a really good film.

I probably give The Hurt Locker a small edge over Zero Dark Thirty, but both are pretty awesome.

Yeah same, I didn't feel the same connection to any of the characters in Zero Dark that I did with Renner. The scenes when he as at home in the end are oscar worthy in my opinion.

12. The Drop (2014) - Michael R. Roskam



This film interested me because I am a huge Hardy fan, he's always so good, and it's also I believe the last major role of late actor James Gandolfini. I can't say I was disappointed because this film is really enjoyable. Hardy and Gandolfini are both very good in their roles although just so people who haven't seen it know, Gandolfini isn't in this as much as you would think. The storyline to this film is something I haven't seen before, but I didn't really enjoy the B side plot with the dog, it goes to places I don't really think are realistic. I feel the same way with some of the dialogue in this film as well, it just didn't seem right coming out of the characters mouths and it was a tad awkward at times. Just to give a shoutout to an actor that always goes unnoticed, John Ortiz, he's got a small part in this, but I wish this guy would get more work. He is great in a lot of the same roles he gets, but I always wish directors would give him a meatier role. Another thing I heard walking into this was that the ending was spectacular and while I think it's good, it didn't blow my mind or anything. Surprising? Sure, but great I don't know. Noomi Rapace's storyline in this kind of bothered me towards the end too because what ends up happening to her and Hardy, just really doesn't make much sense to me. Nonetheless, The Drop is a solid flick and it has some really subtle, but really honest performances with some cool twists and turns here and there.

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I loved The Drop; there was some great tension at the end.

Yeah, I liked the ending, but