6.5
Another Nina Hoss/Christian Petzold collaboration, this time a historical thriller of sorts set in the wake of World War II in the bombed-out shambles of Berlin with identity at the thematic forefront. A film dealing with reconciling with the past and moving forward during a desperate pursuit for the truth but, more importantly, a search for an identity and with it autonomy.
7.5
The docufiction concept seems to be in high demand as of late in the American Independent scene given the recent flush of films intent on blurring the lines between fiction and reality into oblivion. Using real world settings, along with the real-life people that inhabit those neighborhoods, filmmakers attempt to successfully plant a narrative within the confines of the world they wish to represent on-screen with varying results.
6
I had fully expected to leave Happy Madison’s latest film, Pixels, disappointed and frustrated with yet another missed opportunity by Adam Sandler and his crew.
But I was surprisingly tickled by this little action-comedy that tells the story of four former child video gamers who have become forty-something adults and must once again tap into their otherwise seemingly useless expertise of classic video games like Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Centipede and Galaga to save the world from an alien invasion.
6
Ever since the emergence of sites like Kickstarter and IndieGoGo, I’ve been a huge supporter of the concept of crowdfunding, wherein creators can have their projects funded directly from the fans and consumers without a “middleman.” It’s allowed artists, inventors and even people who just want to make a good batch of potato salad a new outlet to get their work out there without having to go through the arduous process of finding investors or selling their souls to corporate overlords.
6.5
Bryan Reisberg’s Big Significant Things plays out like a typical road trip comedy with one slight variation- there’s only one character taking this journey. While nothing about the film feels very big or significant, it’s still an enjoyable ride with a very likable and endearing main character. The places he visits and people he encounters are interesting, and the humor, while dry, is funny in an understated sort of way.
5
Redemptive boxing stories are old had; almost as familiar as riches to rags to emotional awakening boxing stories. Southpaw adds little to the formula. Despite director Antoine Fuqua’s signature gritty sheen and some heavy lifting – in both physical preparation and an attempt to elevate the material – from star Jake Gyllenhaal, the film can’t conceal its prescribed signposts. There’s tragedy, a stripping away of material wealth, and a fracturing of family, followed by a training montage and a final physical confrontation that serves as a metaphor for overcoming personal struggles.
8
Since coming into our collective public consciousness in a big way, thanks to NBC’s Last Comic Standing and Comedy Central’s popular “roasts,” stand-up comedian Amy Schumer just keeps getting bigger, even hosting the 2015 MTV Movie Awards this past April. Her titular TV show, Inside Amy Schumer, is controversial and inventive and awesome, giving us women a voice that is strong, goofy and unapologetically honest.
8
After ten films, it’s safe to say that the worldwide audience is resting comfortably in the loving embrace of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
With each new entry in the MCU, as it is known by fans, one can expect a fun, action-filled adventure, and ever since Captain America: The First Avenger, Marvel has delivered just that.
After so many films you can certainly expect there to be a misfire, and many thought that would have been last year’s breakout hit Guardians of the Galaxy. James Gunn’s sci-fi epic featured an unknown cast of characters that included a gun-toting raccoon with attitude and a tree that speaks (but only says three words). Though it sounds crazy, it was loads of fun.
5
In his last on-screen performance, the late Robin Williams stars in Boulevard, a muted character piece from director Dito Montiel that successfully showcases Williams’ talents but lacks much emotional heft as a whole.
Williams plays Nolan Mack, a quiet, reserved man in his 60s who has worked at a bank for the last 25 years and lives his life by routine, going through the motions every day, secretly longing for something different.
7
Back in 1974, experimental documentarian Les Blank created his first feature-length film, A Poem is a Naked Person, in which he was tasked with following around singer-songwriter and folk icon Leon Russell as he performed in his studio and on stage.
3
The Gallows is comprised of a trifecta of horror movie lameness. The film’s found footage conceit uses standard tricks to deliver the requisite jump scares, it includes a supernatural element in order to conveniently break the rules of the physical world when needed, and weak third act twists pose as meaningful when they’re really meager. It all adds up to a whole lot of nothing.
8
Believe it or not, there was a time when comic-book films, particularly those involving superheroes, weren’t en vogue. Theatres were inundated with sub-par comic-book heroics. It may also come as a surprise that it was less than 20 years ago when the only game in town was Warner Bros. and DC Comics. Marvel Comics was bankrupt, and no movie had ever broken the triple-digit milestone for an opening weekend.
6
It’s undeniable that there is a telltale speech pattern that is considered by many as “the gay voice,” an accent or way of speaking that is common among gay boys and men.
You have likely wondered it at some point. Do gay men “put on” the vocal drawl with which they have become associated – or is it an innate, intrinsic series of inflections in their voice that is simply part of who they are?
8.5
As a film critic, I often receive screeners in the mail from new or first-time directors who want me to review their movies, often with the request that I “go easy on them” because of their limited resources. From now on, I will simply refer them to Sean Baker’s Tangerine as an example of how a great film can be made without high-end cameras and experienced actors.
6.5
Dru Brown’s Australian crime drama The Suicide Theory is an interesting character piece that frames ideas about life, death and fate around an endearing premise. The film begins simple enough with a desperate man hiring a cold and remorseless hitman in order to kill himself, having not had much success on his own. The catch here is that the man is apparently incapable of dying. The two men eventually form a bond, and their tragic pasts converge in a gripping and satisfying way.
4.5
Even before Dolly the Sheep was cloned back in 1996, the concept of cloning has been one of contention and endless arguments over morality, often pitting science against spirituality.
In the film Closer to God, director Billy Senese imagines what would happen if scientists announced they had successfully cloned a human being, with angry protestors being the least of their worries. The film’s beginning is similar to that of a hard science-fiction film, with the first successfully cloned human (a baby girl) announced to the public, followed by the inevitable shit-storm that follows.
