Hollywood hasn't always been entirely sure how to adapt comic books onto film. So much of the source material strived for social relevance by addressing the issues of its day, but people can be forgiven for concluding that fun escapism should be the chief goal of any adaptation. Who wants to take civics lessons from a guy bitten by a radioactive spider, afte... ...READ REVIEW
Common wisdom has it that today's comedies have become increasingly crude. Though not bad in and of itself, this crudity is rarely accompanied by any redeeming factors. It has all too often become an end in and of itself. The most notable holdout is Judd Apatow, who has written, directed, or produced an incredible number of comedic gems over the last several years. Count Forgetting Sarah Marshall among them.
Anyone reading this review is surely familiar with the setup, which is relativ... ...READ REVIEW
I read Scott B. Smith's second novel as a tome of hope for the horror genre which, as of late, seems to be filled with throwbacks, wannabes and shortcomings. Smith, as you may remember, thrilled audiences back in '98 with his runaway hit A Simple Plan. When I heard that The Ruins had been optioned and that a film project had been committed to, I couldn't have been happier as the novel version of the story was definitely one of the creepier and more unique works that I had read with... ...READ REVIEW
"God help you if you use voiceover in your work, my friends. God help you!"
These are the words of the maybe-possibly fictionalized version of Robert McKee in Charlie Kaufman's Adaptation. The McKee character is giving a seminar on screen writing and angrily explains that "any idiot can write a voiceover narration to explain the thoughts of a character." Well, any idiot did.
There really isn't any way to critique this film with the kind of wordplay and wit... ...READ REVIEW
Movies that are schmaltzy or sappy are often said to have a "heart." In movie reviewer speak, this simply means that it knows where the heartstrings are, and makes a point to tug them. Be Kind Rewind may choke you up, not through crude emotional manipulation, but through genuine earnestness. In this sense, it doesn't just have a heart; it has a soul.
The movie begins, like so many others, with a legend: the legend of a Jazz musician named Fats Waller. Fats, it is said, was bo... ...READ REVIEW
We may never know exactly what went wrong with Jumper. All the elements of an interesting, original film were in place. Director Doug Liman, behind such efforts as Go and The Bourne Identity, has the right pedigree for such a film. Co-writer David Goyer penned Batman Begins and the modern-day sci-fi classic Dark City. Yet, somehow, some way, Jumper manages to disappoint.
Set in modern times, Jumper stars Hayden Christensen as David Rice, a youn... ...READ REVIEW
If you're reading this review, you probably already know a few things about Cloverfield. You probably know it's shot from a first-person point of view via camcorder. You probably know that it's supposed to be "found" footage, rather than an actual film. And you probably know that it documents an attack on Manhattan by an enormous monster. But none of this really conveys the film, which flaunts convention and possesses an elegant restraint unheard of in its genre.
Juno is a film which, on paper, would seem rather pedestrian: a coming-of-age tale about a young girl who accidently becomes pregnant, and has to grapple with the responsibilities that result. But it diverges from the typical in subtly important ways, and relies on superior execution and wonderful performances to set it apart.
Starring Ellen Page as the title character, the film opens with Juno drinking heavily from a jug of orange juice in order to take a home pregnancy test; for the ... ...READ REVIEW
