Evil Dead

My View:   Evil Dead (2013)  R    A group of friends want to get away and decide to go to a remote cabin in the woods. There they find a mysterious book called, The Naturom Demono, and, despite warnings written on the book, they decide to read it anyway. It’s a mistake that could cost them their lives. This is the bloodiest film I have seen in a long time, maybe the bloodiest ever. I won’t be surprised to hear people passing out or throwing up due to the ultra-violence. I liked the setup of the film, but because it's  is such a “Gorefest," it starts to lose its punch near the end. I wanted the film to be scarier, and I also wanted just a little more humor. Also, it doesn’t seem to have the catch phrases that were so prevalent in the original film.  Evil Dead fans, stay through all the credits for a little treat at the end.     My Rating: Bargain Matinee   Evil Dead Website

My Take: The Place Beyond the Pines (2013)  R   Luke (Ryan Gosling) is a daredevil motorcycle rider on the carnival circuit who encounters Romina (Eva Mendes), a woman he had an affair with the last time he was in town. Now he finds out that he has fathered a son with Romina, and Luke wants to do right by his new found family, but he may have to turn to a life of crime to get ahead. Do not be fooled by the trailer, which makes it look like the whole film is about Ryan Gosling’s character. It’s equally Bradley Cooper’s film, as he plays a cop that is on a collision course with Gosling’s character. I felt the film was too long with the storyline giving us way too much information about the films characters. This is a film that some  critics will fall in love with, but I felt it missed the mark by a long shot.    My Rating: Bargain Matinee    The Place Beyond the Pines Website

Indiefest:   The Sapphires (2012)  PG-13   An Australian film about four Aboriginal girls who form a singing group and travel to Vietnam to entertain the troops. Chris O’Dowd plays Dave, the man who convinces the girls’ families that they will be safe on the tour that changes all their lives. I saw this film last year at the Austin Film Festival and just loved it. Chris O’Dowd is perfect as the boozy, scamming Dave who sees, at first, the girls as a meal ticket, then actually begins to care for them. The singing in the film is amazing, and the storyline reels you in from the start.    My Rating: Full Price     The Sapphires Website

Forgotten Film:    Waking Ned Devine (1998)  PG   Ned Devine lives in the small Irish town of Tulaigh Mhor, population 52. Well, it was 52, but Ned dies due to shock after winning the Irish National Lottery, and now the population is 51. Town Leaders Jackie O’Shea (Ian Bannen) and Michael O’Sullivan (David Kelly) decide that since Ned has no living relatives, the town should reap the rewards of the winning ticket and fool the National Lottery official that Ned is still alive and kicking. This is a brilliantly funny film, full of characters that make it so enjoyable to watch.     My Rating: Full Price    Waking Ned Devine Info

In Case You Missed It (A Film Just Released on DVD):   Lincoln (2012)   PG-13  An incredible, Oscar winning performance is given by Daniel Day-Lewis as the title character. The film has a great cast and is beautifully shot, but I think it’s one of those films where the performance is much better than the script. I wanted the film to be more about Lincoln’s whole life as opposed to the last few months.    My Rating: Full Price     Lincoln Website

Weird Credits: From the credits of Beyond the Pines: Body double for Mr. Gosling

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You:  Oblivion (2013)  PG-13   I am not a big Tom Cruise fan, but this Sci-Fi film’s trailer makes it look really good. This film, about how Earth is no longer inhabitable after an alien invasion, will be Cruise’s only film released in 2013. My guess is that it’s going to be a winner.   Oblivion Website

Until Next Time!

Jack the Giant Slayer

My View:    Jack the Giant Slayer (2013) PG-13   Jack (Nicholas Hoult) accidentally discovers a long, lost way to the land of the Giants, a race that the humans had fought and defeated long ago. Now Jack is forced to defend his family and those in the kingdom from a group of super-beings hell-bent on recovering land that, they feel, belongs to them. The biggest problem with this film is that it can never figure out if it's a film for kids with humor and romance or is it an adult action film with people dying left and right. I liked Nicholas Hoult in the role of the everyman Jack, Ewan McGregor is brilliant as the dashing warrior Elmont and Stanley Tucci is perfect as the slimy, scamming Roderick, but they can’t overcome a clunky script that takes way too long to get to any action sequences and an ending that is almost laughable. The film really isn’t worth paying extra to see it in 3-D, as there wasn’t one scene that stood out from use of the technology.    My Rating: Cable    Jack the Giant Slayer Website

My View:    21 and Over (2013) R    Jeff (Justin Chon) is a straight-A college student with a very promising life ahead of him. It’s the night before an important interview with a prestigious medical school, and Jeff just wants to stay at home and sleep. But, his two buddies (Skylar Astin and Miles Teller) convince Jeff to go out to celebrate his birthday. It’s a birthday he will never forget, but only if he survives it. If you think a scene where a person throws up in slow motion while on a spinning mechanical bull is funny, then this film is for you. For most of us, the film will seem long and tedious, as the funny scenes are few and far between. Sarah Wright, playing the love interest is the one character in the film that I liked, but the three main characters are all jerks to each other.  They claim to love each other like brothers, but they are willing to sell each other out at a moment’s notice.    My Rating: Cable    21 and Over Website

  Indiefest:    Phantom (2013) R   Set in the late 1960’s, Demi (Ed Harris) is the captain of a Russian missile submarine, and he’s embarking on his last mission before he retires. But, the mission is classified, and Demi must deal with a KGB agent (David Duchovny) who won’t say what the mission is about or where the sub is going. Demi soon discovers that it’s a mission that just may drag the world into another war. This is a film that works a lot like a mystery.  As the story develops, we learn more and more about not only the mission the sailors are on, but also about each character. Ed Harris gives a multilayered performance as the Submarine commander whose past comes back to haunt him. Duchovny is brilliant as the KGB agent who may have a hidden agenda, an agenda that could have deadly consequences. Overall, this is an interesting film that has more substance to it than the latest Hollywood CGI spectacular.     My Rating: Bargain Matinee   Phantom Website

  Indiefest:    West of Memphis (2013) R    West of Memphis (2013)   A documentary exploring the attempts to free three men known as the West Memphis Three who were convicted of murdering three eight year-old boys in the early 90′s. The film gives the audience extraordinary access into the lives of the three men in prison and the men and women who have been working to free them. This is a film that will make you both mad at the justice system and amazed at the dogged persistence of the people who worked to free the three men. One of the best documentaries of the year - this film is worth seeing.     My Rating: Full Price    West of Memphis Website

 Forgotten Film:     Next Stop Wonderland (1998) R      Erin (Hope Davis) is a nurse who has recently been dumped by her longtime boyfriend. Her mother, Piper (Holland Taylor) decides to place a personal ad for her daughter and throughout the film we see Erin go on one disaster date after another. On the other side of town, Alan (Alan Gelfant) is a plumber who dreams about becoming a marine biologist and is also unlucky in finding the right girl. Are the two people who would be perfect for each other ever going to meet or are they destined for unhappiness? This is a fun romantic comedy with a twist, and Hope Davis is absolutely amazing as the headstrong, determined Erin, who refuses to give up her dream of finding the one guy perfect for her.    My Rating: Full Price    Next Stop Wonderland

Weird Credits:   From the credits of Jack the Giant Slayer:   Pantomiming consultant

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You:    The Sapphires (2012) PG-13     An Australian film about four Aboriginal girls who form a singing group and travel to Vietnam to entertain the troops. Chris O’Dowd plays Dave, the man who convinces the families of the girls that they will be safe on their tour, a tour that will change all their lives.   The Sapphires Website

Until Next Time!