There is in Luc Besson’s ANNA fully one-third of a very good movie. That third is a finely drawn satire, cartoonishly violent in its sublimation of female rage as it addresses female exploitation in the modern world using the milieus of espionage and modeling as the metaphor. The other two-thirds is a plodding retread of… Read More »
TAKEN 3
And so once again we are in the company of Bryan Mills and his very specific skill set as brought to life by the incomparable Liam Neeson. The one-man demolition squad, trained by the darkest of black ops, is once again called into action when his family is threatened. Fortunately, this is no irksome… Read More »
DISTRICT 13 — ULTIMATUM
Those who missed DISTRICT B-13 missed a superb filmed entertainment, but it will in no way impede an appreciation for its equally superb sequel, DISTRICT 13: ULTIMATUM. As with its predecessor, this is a social satire cleverly disguised as an action-thriller that succeeds on every level. Actually, it succeeds better than most films that confine… Read More »
FROM PARIS WITH LOVE
No one will mistake FROM PARIS WITH LOVE for a classic. The story is just so many set pieces that hang together by the most delicate of gossamer threads. Yet, they are set pieces that show off the best of stars John Travolta and Jonathan Rhys Meyers, while allowing director Pierrel Morel to indulge in… Read More »
LOCKOUT
If there were a reason to see LOCKOUT, and there really isnt, it would be to savor the way Guy Pearce gleefully surrenders the last iota of credibility in exchange for whooping it up with good-natured abandon as a near-futuristic action hero. The rest of this Luc Besson-enabled collection of clichés barely registers in comparison.… Read More »
TAKEN 2
TAKEN 2 is an unnecessary follow-up chronicling the further mishaps of the Miller family when they choose to go abroad on vacation again. In TAKEN 1, it was daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) who was kidnapped by the 21st-century version of white slavers, leading to an improbable but rousing rescue by her ex-CIA agent of a… Read More »
BRICK MANSIONS
Its impossible to not acknowledge that BRICK MANSIONS is Paul Walkers last completed film. Its also impossible to not be wistful that this remake of DISTRICT B-13, a darn fine film, isnt a better effort. While the original, also co-written by co-producer Luc Besson had a sharper political slant that included official corruption and rampant… Read More »
DISTRICT B13
There will be no film cooler than DISTRICT B13 released between now and Labor Day, and by the end of this particular season, I would not be surprised if it doesn’t turn out to be THE coolest film of the summer. It starts at a fever pitch of rushing adrenalin and from there goes into… Read More »