HOT TUB TIME MACHINE is a completely silly premise that the film purveying it has the excellent good sense to not only acknowledge, but also to mock. That premise is three middle-aged guys and a geeky nephew hop into a hot tub that magically transports them back to 1986. The flick also has the excellent… Read More »
CITY ISLAND
The Rizzo Family of CITY ISLAND is a family of secret smokers. That smoke, though, is just a screen for the many other secrets that lurk amid this close-knit but volatile family, one that has no problem expressing itself, but not as much talent in sharing confidences. In fact, most of the secrets, smoking included,… Read More »
DATE NIGHT
One tiny slip from the straight and narrow can have devastating long-term consequences. That’s the lesson that the Fosters (Steve Carrel and Tina Fey) learn during the light-hearted yet deadly escapades involved in DATE NIGHT. The material itself isn’t the most substantial, and there are distinct echoes other flicks, think THE OUT OF TOWNERS, or… Read More »
AFTER.LIFE
AFTER.LIFE tries to be a thoughtful consideration of what it means to be alive, but instead devolves into an advertisement for red lingerie and mortuary science as a challenging career choice. The lingerie is a short charmuese slip worn through most of the film by co-star Christina Ricci, whose wardrober receives a special credit. The… Read More »
THE BLACK WATERS OF ECHO’S POND
When a film is released without a press screening, it never bodes well. Thus, one cannot approach THE BLACK WATERS OF ECHO’S POND with anything but resignation. Yet even for a flick in which the distributor has no faith, the product is abysmal. As a generic slasher film, it is surprisingly coy about its gore… Read More »
THE PERFECT GAME
Click here for the interview with Cheech Marin (12:55) When going for the heart, there is a tricky line for a film to walk between earnest sweetness and syrupy schmaltz. THE PERFECT GAME pulls off this balancing act with a combination of smart direction and even smarter casting. That’s no small achievement considering the story,… Read More »
THE JONESES
THE JONESES makes its point very early on and with all the savage compassion with which the film is rife. The titular character’s hapless neighbor (Glenne Headly) is repeating self-help mantras that she desperately hopes will make her a superstar salesperson. It’s patently hopeless to everyone but her. She is oblivious to the new age… Read More »
OCEANS
Disneynature’s OCEANS, the follow-up to its earlier EARTH, does a very clever thing by way of getting across its environmentalist message. Instead of hitting the audience over the head with disturbing, heartbreaking images of animals being exterminated in all manner of unpleasant ways by actions of an indifferent humankind, it presents all the equally emotional… Read More »
THE BACK-UP PLAN
In a market with massive amounts of competition, say the film business, there are several strategies to assure box office success. There is the one about appealing to the lowest common denominator, also known as the male aged 13-25 or so bracket, which includes action films where things go boom loudly and with relentless regularity.… Read More »
THE LOSERS
THE LOSERS, based on the DC Vertigo Comic, is not great cinema, it is merely a great time at the movies, and there is no shame in that. Granted, its working with a run-of-the-mill plot involving a group of idealistic but profane misfits out to save the world from a an evil genius with no credit… Read More »
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