Created Equal: Movie Review

A legal drama with something interesting to say.

Starring Aaron Tveit as a cocky lawyer and Lou Diamond Phillips as the quietly-confident representative for the Catholic Church, Created Equal does the important things right. A name cast to try and garner some interest in this small independent feature, but more importantly, it picks an interesting case and argues both sides. It picks apart the legal and theological arguments both for and against the church’s right to disallow women into the seminary.		2018 Directed by: Bill Duke Screenplay by: Ned Bowman, Joyce Renee Lewis, and Michael Ricigliano Jr Based on the novel by R.A. Brown Starring: Edy Ganem, Aaron Tveit

The Dinner: Movie Review

A long, slow build to a moral dilemma.

The Dinner is described as a moral dilemma thriller. While "thriller" can seem like a misnomer, when paired with "moral dilemma" it should become clear that the suspense is off-key. The suspense comes in the form of wondering if these characters are ever going to say what they are talking about. The film really is a dinner. Husband and wife, Paul and Claire (Steve Coogan and Laura Linney) are meeting Paul's brother Stan (Richard Gere) and his wife Katelyn (Rebecca Hall) for dinner.		2017 Directed by: Owen Moverman Screenplay by: Owen Moverman Based on the novel by Howard Koch Starring: Steve Coogan, Laura Linney, Richard Gere and Rebecca Hall

Indignation: Movie Review

Interesting, fascinating and entertaining story of love, death and beliefs.

Indignation is a story of love, death and faith. It’s a story of college experiences, the Korean War and determination. And it’s told with an eye for detail, and an ear for dialogue, and told through a lead character who is simultaneously completely confident with who he is, and completely unsure what he’s supposed to do. It’s fascinating to watch unfold, even if it never goes far, and it’s almost always entertaining.		2016 Directed by: James Schamus Screenplay by: James Schamus Based on the novel by Philip Roth Starring: Logan Lerman, Sarah Gadon and Tracy Letts

Love & Friendship: Movie Review

Quick and funny romp through Jane Austen’s English countryside.

Love & Friendship is both a Whit Stillman movie and a Jane Austen movie. And while credit-wise, that seems like a rather matter-of-fact statement, it’s actually the marriage of the two that makes it the movie it is. Stillman is known for his deliciously witty dialogue; modern characters that can muse on about life. Whereas Austen movies are postcards from a by-gone era with easily digestible plots of romance and fortune.		2016 Directed by: Whit Stillman Screenplay by: Whit Stillman Based on novella by Jane Austen Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Emma Greenwell, and Xavier Samuel

The Longest Ride: Movie Review

Romantic drama that checks all the right boxes.

The Longest Ride is Nicholas Sparks’ latest romantic drama to make it to the big screen, and I will still continue to watch them despite last year's The Best of Me being the worst one yet. That was unpleasant, but it’s also one of the exact reasons why it’s worth watching The Longest Ride (for fans of the genre only). No punches were pulled. What you see is what you get, and more importantly, what you wanted is what you get. No macabre twists, no deviations from the brand. Doesn’t that sound pleasant?		2015 Directed by: George Tillman Jr. Screenplay by: Craig Bolotin Based on the novel by Nicholas Sparks Starring: Britt Robertson, Scott Eastwood

Brooklyn: Movie Review

Beautiful, well-written, powerful

Brooklyn is a beautiful and simply powerful film about life, love, adulthood and home. It’s a story of immigration that should resonate with everybody. How one girl chose her home, and made it her home and the home for her family and future generations to come. It’s a story of loneliness, true love, and the pull of familiarity. It’s a singular story, that revels in it’s simplicity, to reveal grander implications and a universality to connect everyone.		2015 Directed by: John Crowley Screenplay by: Nick Hornby Based on the novel by Colm Toibin Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Emory Cohen, Domhnall Gleeson

A Long Way Down: Movie Review

A new direction can seem uneven, but the original wit, whimsy, humour and insight is intact.

“A Long Way Down” is a dark comedy because, you know, suicide isn’t supposed to be funny. It’s like a light-hearted drama told straight and seriously. It is told with seriousness but includes characters and dialogue ripe for laughter. The movie makes the story more dramatic, but at the same time, not as dark as the book version it is based on. I’m a huge fan of author Nick Hornby and the same-titled novel.		2014 Directed by: Pascal Chaumeil Screenplay by: Jack Thorne Starring: Pierce Brosnan, Toni Collette, Imogen Poots, Aaron Paul

The Right Kind of Wrong: Movie Review

A typical romantic comedy that loses the comedy and then loses its way.

“The Right Kind of Wrong” features a man, Leo Palamino (Ryan Kwanten), broken and worthless after his ex-wife left him. And then she wrote a blog called “Why You Suck.” And then she wrote a book based on the massively successful blog. Leo isn’t necessarily heartbroken, just annoyed. But then he meets a girl, one who can kick a football. He watched her get married and still decided he was going to win her over.		2013 Directed by: Jeremiah S. Chechik Screenplay by: Megan Martin Based on the novel by Tim Sandlin Starring: Ryan Kwanten, Sara Canning

The Great Gatsby: Movie Review

Famous scenes and symbolism re-imagined beautifully but also problematically.

“In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I’ve been turning over in my mind ever since. ‘Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone,’ he told me, ‘just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had.’” I have been frequently convinced that Baz Luhrmann does not know how to read, but I do have the advantage of literacy. However, I am not Nick Carraway and am not compelled to follow his father’s advice that opens Fitzgerald’s classic novel.		2013 Directed by: Baz Luhrmann Screenplay by: Baz Luhrmann, Craig Pearce Based on the novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Carey Mulligan, Joel Edgerton

John Dies at the End: Movie Review

Ridiculous, funny, philosophical, disgusting and messy – a true comedy-horror film.

Lots of movies like to show you the ending at the beginning, but very few tell you the ending in the title. “John Dies at the End” has that illusive entertaining title and an even more entertaining plot summary: “A silent otherworldly invasion is underway, and mankind needs a hero. What it gets instead is John and David, a pair of college dropouts who can barely hold down jobs. Can these two stop the oncoming horror in time to save humanity? No. No, they can't.” That piece of brilliant writing comes courtesy of the author of the source novel.		2012 Directed by: Don Coscarelli Screenplay by: Don Coscarelli Based on the story by David Wong Starring: Chase Williamson, Rob Mayes and Paul Giametti

On the Road: Movie Review

Disappointing trip to the Beat Generation with drugs, sex and emptiness.

On the Road is an adaptation of Jack Kerouac’s novel, which in turn, is an autobiographic written tale of Kerouac and friends, the fellow Beat writers; scattered but stylish. Life would speed up with drugs and alcohol, slow down for a night with a beautiful woman, speed up when it was time to hit the road again, and slow down as they fail to find themselves where they thought they would be.		2012 Directed by: Walter Salles Screenplay by: Jose Rivera Based on the novel by Jack Kerouac Starring: Sam Riley, Garret Hedlund, Kristen Stewart and Tom Sturridge

Anna Karenina: Movie Review

A beautiful production that transforms Anna Karenina into a modern woman.

Ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats; the play is about to begin. And thus, with the curtains drawn back, the ingenuity, creativity and brilliance of Joe Wright's “Anna Karenina” begins. By taking it out of an unforgiving landscape and placing it inside a theatre to unfold on an infinite stage, but keeping it in 1870s Russia, we have a true-to-source story that can be adapted for our modern enjoyment.		2012 Directed by: Joe Wright Screenplay by: Tom Stoppard Based on the novel by Leo Tolstoy Starring: Keira Knightley, and Jude Law

Cloud Atlas: Movie Review

Three hours with one bad idea and six boring stories does not add up to a good movie.

“Cloud Atlas” is one of those epic movies interweaving completely different vignettes into a seemingly harmonious whole. To me, the big problem comes with the fact that these six stories are not connected by a related, comprehensive story. They are only connected by an idea - a single, religion based, uniformed idea. And that cannot carry an entire movie, let alone a three-hour long movie. And it’s not harmonious. The cutting back and forth of the stories is very uneven.		2012 Directed by: Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski, and Lana Wachowski Screenplay by: Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski, and Lana Wachowski Starring: Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Broadbent, and Doona Bae

Silver Linings Playbook: Movie Review

Showing us the silver linings of life with funny, entertaining and inspirational results.

Pat (Bradley Cooper) has just been signed out of the Karel Psychiatric Facility by his mother in Baltimore, Maryland after an 8-month court-ordered stint from bipolar disorder with mood swings. But it’s okay, he’s good now (at least he insists that he is). He has a plan for his life — his “Silver Linings Playbook”. He thinks he just has to get in shape, read Nikki’s entire high school syllabus, get his job back, and then he’ll get back together with his ex-wife.		2012 Directed by: David O. Russell Screenplay by: David O. Russell Based on the novel by Matthew Quick Starring: Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro, Jennifer Lawrence and Jacki Weaver

Life of Pi: Movie Review

Telling a life story with imagination and visual entertainment.

Life of Pi is better than “this year’s Hugo”. It has a story. A simple story but a global one that pulls you in and then lets you marvel at the epic cinematography and impressive visuals. Pi (Irfan Khan), as a middle-aged man, retells the story of how he became the man he is today, and how he got the name “Pi”. He was named after a swimming pool in Paris, the Piscine Molitar. This has brought him both grief and happiness.		2012 Directed by: Ang Lee Screenplay by: David Magee Based on the novel by Yann Martel Starring: Suraj Sharma, Irfan Khan and Rafe Spall

The Paperboy: Movie Review

In southern Florida where a racial murder case turns into a coming-of-age character study.

“The Paperboy” has received some harsh criticism, not just divisive but mostly negative reviews. I’m happy to provide an opposite perspective but it is worth mentioning that most critiques seem to come from a superficial point-of-view. Anita (Macy Gray) as the narrator takes us down to small town life in Florida in the late 1960s where she worked as a maid for the white, upper class Jansen family. Nothing is as it seems.		2012 Directed by: Lee Daniels Screenplay by: Lee Daniels, Peter Dexter Based on the novel by Peter Dexter Starring: Zac Efron, Matthew McConaughey, and Nicole Kidman

The Perks of Being a Wallflower: Movie Review

Uplifting teenage drama with humour, heart and soul.

“The Perks of Being a Wallflower” is self-adapted from Steven Chbosky’s novel of the same name. While I frequently like reading the novel first to gain more insight into the art of the adaptation, and also to read good books, I stayed clear from this one since it was written as a series of letters. The protagonist writes one letter after another and such works can seem choppy at best. As a film, letter writing can be a useful tool to understand the inner turmoil of characters and here Perks feels very fluid.		2012 Directed by: Steven Chbosky Screenplay by: Steven Chbosky (Based on his book) Starring: Logan Lerman, Ezra Miller and Emma Watson

Goats: Movie Review

 

A quirky comedy turns into a coming-of-age dramedy and gets a little lost on the way.

What starts out as a silly comedy quickly descends into a fairly average coming-of-age dramedy. But after reading an interview with the director, “Goats” is very clearly a coming-of-age dramedy; it’s just the marketers that would like to pretend that it’s a quirky comedy – usually an easier sell for indies. The change in genre is both good and bad news for the audience.		2012 Directed by: Christopher Neil Screenplay by: Mark Poirier Based on the novel by Mark Poirier Starring: Graham Phillips, David Duchovny, Vera Farmiga and Ty Burrell

We Need to Talk About Kevin: Movie Review

 

We could talk about Kevin but nobody knows what to say.

“We Need to Talk About Kevin” is about a young boy who is exhibiting serious behavioral problems and then as a teenager is most likely responsible for some pretty heinous actions. It’s also about his mother. The recent excellent film “Beautiful Boy” follows similar relationships but takes the stance that it isn’t always the fault of the parents. This film seems to say to forget about that morality tale, it is the mother’s fault.		2011 Directed by: Lynne Ramsay Screenplay by: Lynne Ramsay and Rory Kinnear Starring: Tilda Swinton, John C. Reilly and Ezra Miller

The Descendants: Movie Review

 

Scaling the Hawaiian country-side with tears and laughter.

"The Descendants" is set in Hawaii but Matt King (George Clooney) and his family are not on vacation. Far from it. King is actually in a line descended down from an old Hawaiian princess and has inherited a wealth of land. That's only the secondary plot. The primary plot is that his wife is in a coma and he has to learn how to be a parent to his two unruly daughters. Cue the laugh track.		2011 Directed by: Alexander Payne Screenplay by: Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash Starring: George Clooney, Shailene Woodley and Amara Miller