Squarely on the shoulders of Al Pacino rests “Scent of a Woman,” a film of unlikely friendship and moral education spanning an epic 187 minutes. It is film built on memorable quotes and moments from Oscar-winning “One Flew Over the Cukoo’s Nest” adapter Bo Goldman as well as one unforgettable performance.
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10 Greatest Comedy Couples, Pt. 2
Yesterday I began a list of ten great comedian and comedienne collaborations (or just plain dynamite romantic comedy couples). With Steve Carrell and Tina Fey starring for the first time in Date Night, two comedic actors who have single-handedly keeping NBC’s primetime television afloat, I thought it was warranted. If you didn’t read part one, it’s […]
Weekend Preview (4.9.10)
Date movies in April? Three of my projected top five films this week are romantic comedies or romances. The big one opening is Date Night with Steve Carell and Tina Fey, a surefire hit that no studios wanted to mess with, hence why nothing else (basically) is coming out this weekend. In addition to that […]
The Twilight Saga: New Moon Review
As a movie-lover, I had to see what all the fuss was about, so I watched “Twilight” despite minimal knowledge of Stephenie Meyer’s books. I didn’t like it, but felt it could be done better, so with Catherine Hardwicke switched out for Chris Weitz, I decided to see if the franchise could back-up its hundreds […]
10 Greatest Comedy Couples, Pt. 1
Two of the most popular movie and NBC television comedians Steve Carell (The Office) and Tina Fey (30 Rock) are joining forces for the first time in Friday’s Date Night, from Shawn Levy (Night at the Museum). Of all possible date comedy duos, none could be more promising. This is not Jennifer Anniston and Gerard […]
On DVD: Law Abiding Citizen
There’s exploiting the criminal justice system and then there’s Clyde Shelton’s (Gerard Butler) exploiting of the criminal justice system, which involves killing everyone connected to it. Right and wrong is hardly black and white in any good movie and in “Law Abiding Citizen” it’s hardly a hundred shades of gray. Shelton is a man who […]
Trailer Wednesday: Expendables, Splice & “Schmucks”
Summer movie trailers are really hitting the web lately, so I’ve packed three trailers into today’s update, all of which are very different and will be released in each of the three main months of summer. There’s June’s artsier science-fiction horror thriller Splice which hit it big at Sundance, July’s standard but appealing-titled comedy Dinner […]
Weekend Recap: Cash for Clash
Nothing like perfect predictions. While I did overestimate how much Clash of the Titans would make this weekend by about $20 M, I feel pretty good about that, because it means the 3D phenomena has cooled off a bit. “Clash” earned about half of what Alice in Wonderland did in its opening weekend, which despite […]
Review: Clash of the Titans
A good special-effects era mythology movie is bound to happen at some point, but we’re definitely still waiting. “Clash of the Titans” is merely a modern incarnation of the original that in the age of CGI monsters and impressive fight sequences plops lazily in the category of status quo, something its 1981 cult predecessor was […]
On DVD: 2012
Admitably, there’s something innately satisfying about watching the hypothetical demise of the entire planet by means of natural disaster/earth crust displacement. There might even be something profound science fiction-wise lurking about in the concept of the Mayan apocalypse and the end of the world as we know it. For better or worse, “2012” is a […]
Crank (2006) – 3/5 Stars
“Crank” is a high-octane concept movie that busts out of the gate and never stops. Unlike most adrenaline-junkie action films, however, “Crank” justifies its juiced-up rip-roaring wackiness because the movie is actually about someone who needs to keep his adrenaline up in order to live. Not many other “action porn” movies can say they have […]
The Untouchables (1987) – 3.5/5 Stars
The Prohibition-era “fight” between gangster Al Capone and G-man Eliot Ness over the streets of Chicago is the stuff of legend. For this reason, director Brian De Palma’s next big mob-themed follow-up to “Scarface” is quite a challenge. Capone is an enigma of sorts: the closest thing to a tall tale that history has to […]
Weekend Preview (4.2.10)
I can sniff the summer movie season and Clash of the Titans is like that overly ambitious dude that barbecues in April. The spring always has one or two major blockbuster hopefuls and this is quite possibly the biggest of them all. Promotions and advertising have been crazy for this film, it was converted to […]
On DVD: The Men Who Stare At Goats
“The Men Who Stare At Goats” is like a cleverly written essay only the writer never actually wrote a thesis. When it leaves you wondering “what just happened?” it’s not because you don’t understand it, but because you don’t know what the point is. Included in the definition of art is purpose, and even if […]
Trailer Wednesday: Scott Pilgrim, Knight and Day
Today’s Trailer Wednesday features two action movies coming out this summer that land on opposite ends of the spectrum as far as creativity and originality. The first is the video-game inspired romantic indie comedy Scott Pilgrim vs. The World which is unlike anything you’ve ever seen before and the second is Tom Cruise action movie […]
