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Spectacle film-making with a purpose, Everest is a welcome throwback to the testorone-heavy adventure flicks of past decades. Based on the true story of the tragic May 10-11, 1996 excursion to the summit of the world’s highest peak that resulted in the deaths of eight mountaineers, it’s an epic man-versus-nature story that reminds us of what happens when … Continue reading
If there was ever a movie that didn’t need a sequel it was Steven Soderberg’s Magic Mike. That’s not to say that Soderbergh’s 2012 film was a failure or a flop; quite the opposite in fact. A pseudo-biographic dramedy loosely based on its lead actor Channing Tatum’s brief career as a male stripper, it caught viewers off-guard with … Continue reading
It’s slickly packaged, but below its surface Brad Bird’s Tomorrowland is a preachy, chaotic jumble of themes and style at odds with itself from the get-go. Its message of fighting for the future while we still have one is certainly admirable, but its ideas on how to are so vague they seem to boil down to … Continue reading
Rupert Goold’s adaptation of Mike Finkel’s true crime novel/memoir, True Story is tepid that serves as a sobering reminder that while truth can be stranger than fiction, that’s not enough to make it interesting. At its core it is a genuinely bromance, but that conceit is soft-pedaled and ignored in favor of anemic characterization. Jonah Hill … Continue reading
Maybe it’s best that Liam Neeson has declared his impending retirement from action movies. Some of them have been damn fine B-grade cinema — namely the cult classic Taken and oft overlooked The Grey — but the lion’s share are dull, repetitious, and formulaic. Case in point: Run All Night. It has a good gimmick and noir … Continue reading
A disarmingly effective blend of “a night on the run” thriller and historical/political drama, ’71 is one of those rare movies that catches viewers almost completely off-guard and leaves the rattled to the core. Writer Gregory Burke and director Yann Demange, both television veterans making their feature film debut, stick with the notion that less is more and … Continue reading
Neill Blomkamp (District 9, Elysium) is the closest thing to a cyberpunk filmmaker working today, blending a fascination with emerging technology with a gritty social awareness while asking some uncomfortable philosophical questions. Unfortunately, his ability to explore that territory has only grown more unfocused over the course of his career to date. With his third feature film, … Continue reading
Apocalyptic ticking-clock thrillers/buddy road movies are nothing new — Miracle Mile, The Road, and Seeking a Friend for the End of the World are stronger examples — but they’re rarely done with the kind of fearlessness, originality, or emotional honesty that writer-director Zak Hilditch delivers with These Final Hours. No cheap thrills or hollow romantic … Continue reading
When you think about it, the ocean depths are an even more terrifying environment than the void of space. In the far reaches of the cosmos one can at least see the stars; underwater, there’s only pitch-black darkness waiting to crush you to pulp. It’s a great setting for putting a group of people under intense mental … Continue reading
Let’s face it: Hollywood has yet to make an effective cyber-thriller. The black art of hacking works great on the page, but actually getting it onto the screen in a compelling way has so far proven to be elusive. There are only so many ways to film someone typing away on a computer and close-ups … Continue reading
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