“Just Mercy” is one of those rare movies for me where I actually read the book before seeing the movie. The book is absolutely incredible and my only hope was that the movie would do the book justice–and by extension of that, do Bryan Stevenson justice. The book “Just Mercy” is essentially a memoir from Bryan Stevenson about his life, post Harvard, aiding death row … Continue reading Just Mercy (2019)
I will say it now: if you watch this film, don’t quit until the 90 minutes have expired. Otherwise you will miss the devilishly clever final twists which are well-foreshadowed. In fact it is textbook screen writing. Fiction writers from all genres should take note – this is how you do it. However, it’s easy to change channels when watching 13 Sins. The low budget … Continue reading 13 Sins (2014)
Already drawn to the premise of this film, I had high expectations of it, and was particularly interested in seeing Blake Lively in the lead role as a 107 year old eternally young woman. From only seeing her work in Gossip Girl, which was adequate but not particularly memorable, I was keen to see what her acting range was like. Not only did Lively impress … Continue reading The Age of Adaline (2015)
I was quite surprised at how much I enjoyed watching this film as I heard many positive critical reviews before going into it so I had high expectations to begin with. However I was not let down one bit since “Fracture” more than held its own. It contained a very simple plot structure but also offered a very original take on a different type of … Continue reading Fracture (2007)
“Dance is music made visible.” George Balanchine. Feel the Beat is a shameless pre-teen dance competition musical of the kind that Pitch Perfect recently produced with the same formula for voice. And countless other competitions in film history. What saves it from being the most saccharine, unimaginative film of the year is its unabashed sincerity that these adolescents–one chubby, one deaf, one poor, one boy, … Continue reading Feel the Beat (2020)
This film harkens back to the 1940’s-1950’s WWII films like “30 Seconds Over Tokyo,” “They Were Expendable,” “The Fighting Seabees,” etc. That were very heavy on action with little fuss made over an attached drama. The action was what was central, and “Greyhound” all by disposes of any need to fluff things up with families waiting at home. “Das Boot” is probably the best comparison … Continue reading Greyhound (2020)
Greetings again from the darkness. Learning of the courageous people who found their own way to battle the Nazis during World War II never gets old. Sometimes brain power and courage are more important than gun power. Such is the case in this latest from writer-director Jonathan Jakubowicz, who brings a fascinating story from within the French Resistance to the big screen. This is a … Continue reading Resistance (2020)
The Old Guard is in short a captivating, entertaining and memorable action film. It has all the action you want, along with some nice character moments in between that give everything a bigger purpose. Charlize Theron has to be appreciated for continuing to star in such intense action roles and delivering with finesse. Unlike other superhero movies, this one isn’t vastly high on CGI (at … Continue reading The Old Guard (2020)
There seem to be a lot of negative reviews for this movie because of an apparent mis-telling of the story or true story or hoax or whatever else people have said. As I’m not American, and have very little to do with American events (so hence have no context as to the truth or hoax or conspiracy or whatever of the Boston Marathon) I shall … Continue reading Patriots Day (2016)
Backcountry is a good example how one simple premise can still be thrilling with clever production and a few grisly scenes. Using scenery and only minimum amount of characters, it succeeds on creating the sense of isolation and overwhelming helplessness. The movie doesn’t venture to cheap scare territory and while it can be slow at times, its modest nature delivers what it sets out to … Continue reading Blackfoot Trail (2014)
