Posts tagged review
Limitless: Review By Deathsquad
Mar 20th
Bradley Cooper plays a writer who’s having a serious case of writer’s block. Can’t get one single word written. His girl tosses him back his house keys. If things couldn’t get any worse, Cooper runs into his former brother in law, who, creepily, resembles Jim Carrey. The Carrey look a like gives Cooper the greatest pill of all time that will give him access to 100% of his brain power. This ladies and gentleman is Limitless.
Limitless is more of a comic booky type movie than it is anything else, which I enjoyed. Watching the trailers, I was going in expecting some basic story very similar to the horrendous Senseless. Instead, you get blue, white collar villains, love interest, and a cool main protagonist. I say protagonist and not hero because this guy is kind of jerk and does nothing to use his brain power to really help mankind. A lot of the trippy looking visual effects are really good, like a toned down Crank effects feel. The pacing in this movie is fast and excellent.
Sorry, Ryan Reynolds. There is no one who can the perfect douche like Cooper does; he perfects the role. Also, what makes him even better is that, watching Midnight Meat Train, he can play non-douche roles very good, as well. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I’ll say it. Good job, Robert Deniro. Even though you were tremendously, undeniably miscast, you did a good job. Bra-freaking-vo. However, your role was well written, so no big fist bump on that note. Seriously, what happened to this guy making the transition from acting to directing. Was The Good Shepherd that bad. I thought I said I didn’t want to see you anymore after Righteous Kill. Then what do you do. You make things even worse and put yourself in a now-mediocre Robert Rodriguez flick. Machete was semi-decent, but you should not have been in that movie. Especially, when you kill Jeff Fahey. No one kills Jeff Fahey. Why? Because Jeff Fahey kicks ASS. “Now that’s a rump-roast”. I’ve said my peace, back to Limitless. SCREW YOU DENIRO!! Okay, now I’m back. Andrew Howard, the main antogonist, is great as a Russian mobster who is constantly harassing Cooper’s character throughout the movie. Backing Cooper into a corner, he becomes in possession of the pill and transforms from a seven layer thug loser into a super GQ genius of thuganomics. I enjoyed watching these two guys play off each other.
The unnecessary action scenes is an serious downfall. Not only are they unnecessary, they ‘re insufficiently directed. Looking at his filmography, Neil Burger doesn’t have any experience with shooting action. So, why do it for a movie that doesn’t need it, because the fast pacing could make up for anything. There was this chase scene with Cooper’s girlfriend and an agent who was involved with the pill manufacturing, traveling the city limits with his ‘menacing’ butter knife, and it was so awful and so useless. With that said, I could have passed with that until the scene of the conclusion between Cooper and Mr. GQ of Thuganomics. It was very disappointing. Just a basic thrown together conclusion that sunk this ship. Strangely enough, near the end the movie gets back on track and delivers a great ending, but by then, it kind of became confusing jumping back from the pointlessness version of the movie. End credits and a little pause, my lasting impressions. Limitless, a movie that had potential to be a fun,cool comic book flick, but because of the incompetent directed action scenes and the oversaturation of antagonists, mainly speaking of the butter knife dude, instead of being limitless, this movie was pretty limited.
From www.movieweb.com
Movie Review: Rango
Mar 20th
Rango must be the roughest, toughest chameleon the Wild West has ever seen.
And he is probably also the first chameleon ever seen in those parts.
Rango (Johnny Depp) was living a harmless, carefree life as a child’s pet when fate saw him flung out a car window and into the desert. Lost, alone and very hot, Rango has to find a safe new home pretty quickly before the desert sun shrivels him up.
Of all the places he could wind up in, he finds himself in the lawless and very dry western town of Dirt.
In Dirt, life is all about water and securing a little bit of it for yourself.
It’s a roughhouse sort of town where bravado and confidence carry you a long way.
When Rango wanders into town he is immediately labelled as an outcast and faces a tough future until he stands up for himself, spins a tall story and finds himself appointed the town’s new sheriff.
Sheriffs in Dirt don’t last too long, but Rango is determined to turn that around.
First, he must discover what happens to the town’s precious water supply.
There used to be more than just dirt in Dirt so where did all the water go?
With the help of feisty rancher Beans (Isla Fisher), Rango takes on a family of hillbilly moles who are suspected of stealing the town’s remaining water.
When they prove innocent, he turns his attention to the most powerful man in town – the mayor.
But if he is going to cause any trouble for the mayor, Rango must first defeat the evil Jake, the rattlesnake (Bill Nighy).
Rango is a particularly lovable character, in a goofy sort of way.
When he can’t think what to do next, he just opens his mouth and lets his first thought emerge.
The wonderful animation of Rango allows his creators to
put together a quirky and humorous adventure, pitting our hero against the weirdest (and ugliest) bunch of co-stars you’ll ever see on the silver screen.
(PG) 112 minutes
3.5/5
From www.hawkesbaytoday.co.nz
‘Win Win’ movie review: A human comedy
Mar 19th
Paul Giamatti stars as a wrestling coach whose toughest match is with his conscience. BY NANCY R. MANDELL NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM MOVIE REVIEW
If your idea of a comedy isn’t defined by hangovers, reckless driving and casual sex, you may enjoy “Win, Win,” a gentle offering from director Tom McCarthy whose previous films—The Station Agent, The Visitor— distinguish him as a quirky talent who finds humor in strange situations.
This particular situation is set in McCarthy’s hometown of New Providence, N.J. (although filmed for no acknowledged reason on Long Island), where Paul Giamatti as Mike Flaherty, is eking out a living as an elder care attorney who also coaches the high school’s losing wrestling team. Mike is trying desperately to keep his financial problems from his wife (Amy Ryan), although the pressure has been causing him bouts of actual physical stress.
Going completely out of character, Mike makes a spur-of-the moment decision in court one day where he is representing Leo Poplar, a well-to-do senior in the early stages of dementia whose only wish is to remain in his home. But Leo—played with great dignity and humor by Burt Young (a familiar face from all six “Rocky” films)—has been declared incompetent and needs a court-appointed guardian to do so. Mike nominates himself for the job, a noble gesture if it were not for his true motive: to collect the $1,500 a month fee that goes with the responsibility. And then, without informing the court, he promptly admits Leo to a local Alzheimer’s residence.
But wait a minute. In no time at all, Mike discovers a bleached blonde, tattooed teenager sitting on Leo’s doorstep. The kid (Alex Shaffer) is Kyle Timmons, the grandson Leo doesn’t know exists since he’s been out of contact with his only child for years. Kyle has run away from his mother, an addict undergoing rehab in Ohio, hoping to live with his grandfather. Failing to contact Kyle’s mom (Melanie Lynskey), Mike has no choice but to bring Kyle home with him, to the chagrin of his wife Jackie and the fascination of his own little girl. (The baby Jackie carries around for most of the film doesn’t seem to care one way or the other!)
By an amazing coincidence—“What are the odds!”—Mike’s best friend asks—the disaffected Kyle turns out to have been a champion school wrestler. Mike enrolls him in New Providence High making him eligible for the team. With barely time to suspend your disbelief, Kyle turns the team—and himself—around, fitting into school and the Flaherty household as though he’d been there forever.
The plot thickens when Cindy (Lynskey) turns up to claim Kyle and the $1,500 a month she’ll get as Leo’s guardian. Her presence not only threatens to expose Mike’s duplicity, but to wreck Kyle’s chances for a college scholarship as well.
As directors go, McCarthy, who also wrote and co-produced “Win Win” from a story by himself and lifelong friend and high school wrestling teammate Joe Tiboni, is a humanist. There are people—Mike and Cindy for example—who do bad things in this film, but there are no villains here. They are only doing what they have to do to survive.
This rather simple tale is fleshed out by the role played by Mike’s two close friends—the ubiquitous Jeffrey Tambor as Vigman, an accountant who shares office space with Mike, and Terry, who wrestled with Mike on the New Providence team when they were teenagers. Played by Bobby Cannavale a busy television actor who also appeared in McCarthy’s “The Station Agent,” Terry is undergoing a midlife divorce crisis. Their virtually palpable friendship gives the film a foundation that supports even its corniest moments. Like the trio in TV’s “Men of a Certain Age,” these guys are just trying to get along, doing what it takes to keep their heads above the respective waters that threaten to drown them. (Thanks to a colorful description of his wrestling technique by Kyle, avoidance of drowning becomes a metaphor for just about everything that happens in “Win, Win.”)
McCarthy cast the young Shaffer, a non-professional with high school wrestling experience, as Kyle. Like all of the casting in the film, it’s a good choice. Amy Ryan—the slutty mom in “Gone Baby Gone” and more lately, a regular on “The Office”—couldn’t be better as the ordinary housewife forced to accept an Eminem look-alike into her home. The subtle change in her relationship to Kyle is one of the film’s real pleasures.
In fact, its subtlety accounts for the unexpected effect “Win Win” has on an audience—at least the one that shared the screening room where I watched the movie. I had the feeling that most of us went in with few expectations, but thanks to an unusual and literate screenplay, sensitive direction and an accomplished acting ensemble, almost everyone sat through the credits. That’s what you have to call a win/win.
This film opened Friday, March 18 at a theater near you.
ALSO BY NANCY R. MANDELL
‘Cedar Rapids’ movie review: Won fans at Sundance
‘No Strings Attached’ movie review: Stars Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher
MOVIE REVIEW: ‘True Grit’
No teapots, but plenty of ‘Tempest’ (trailer and movie review)
‘The Fighter’ movie review, trailer
Movie review: ‘Morning Glory’ (with trailer)
Movie review: ‘127 Hours’ is a survival of the fittest
From www.newjerseynewsroom.com
Avatar 3D Blu-ray Movie Review
Mar 19th
Avatar 3D Blu-ray Movie Review
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Our Rating: 71% | Manufacturer: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment
Last April, I took a look at the original Blu-ray release of Avatar. The disc was a bare bones release designed to capitalize on the films popularity and sate fans before the promised ‘special edition’ version which was released in November 2010. Whilst a 3D retail release has not yet eventuated, late last year it was revealed that Twentieth Century Fox had approached TV manufacturers Panasonic and Samsung with a proposal to produce a 3D Blu-ray version as an offer to purchases of their equipment.
Panasonic won the bidding war – no doubt a large sum of money and likely more than the profit that would have been obtained had the disc been available freely in the marketplace. Allegedly, the period of exclusitivity extends until early 2012. So for die hard Avatar fans; you’ll need to go buy a Panasonic Viera (I did – you won’t likely regret it), or pay the exorbitant fees demanded by eBay.
Avatar has been an incredibly long time coming. The genesis of the project begun in the mid 1990′s with an idea from James Cameron. Deciding that technology was not evolved enough to see his vision come to fruition, Cameron shelved the idea and made a small film called Titanic. You may have heard of it. Whilst pursuing other underwater documentary projects such as Ghosts of the Abyss, Cameron continued to evolve technology to see the creation of Avatar finally starting production in 2005. Shrouded in mystery and with only very small snippets of information making its way into the public domain, by the time the trailer was released towards the end of 2009, many film fans and bloggers alike were confused wondering what all the fuss was all about. When James Cameron started making modest statements regarding the film, alarm bells started sounding. Maybe all those years under the water had sent Cameron crazy? Potentially he had the bends, but just wasn’t dying?
However, by the time of the film’s release in December 2009, it was clear then Avatar was something special. Audiences instantly connected to it and as they flocked to repeat sessions, subsequently bringing their family and friends along, the film grossed higher and higher week after week, soon surpassing Cameron’s own Titanic in worldwide revenue (nearly $2.8 billion U.S.), and became the highest grossing film of all time, whilst also pushing 3D as cinemas next technological breakthrough.
I’ll dispense with providing a plot outline for Avatar. I truly believe that there are no TweakTown readers that are unfamiliar with the story of the film. Despite its unoriginal themes, Avatar is a visual tour de force. My first viewing of the film theatrically in 3D was, for want of a better word; amazing. I recall sitting speechless by the end of the film, thinking to myself that the film changes everything, similar to my thoughts after The Matrix in 1999. It seems I wasn’t alone in my experience.
Video
Avatar 3D is presented in the aspect ratio of 1.78:1, compressed with the newly mandated MVC MPEG4 codec. Like all home video releases thus far, the aspect ratio here deviates from the 2D theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1, resulting in more vertical information. James Cameron has stated that this is his preferred aspect ratio.
Please note that this 3D Blu-ray will only work in a certified 3D Blu-ray player, connected to a 3D TV. There is no 2D version of the film on this disc.
Like the previous release, the transfer is essentially flawless. I didn’t see any video nasties such as aliasing or macroblocking. It comes direct from the servers and has never touched celluloid. Analysis of the disc reveals that almost every available bit on the 50GB dual layer Blu-ray has been used.
The image is sharp and detailed and full of lush colour. A bit of calibration will likely be needed for your TV – this is not a film that needs to be displayed incredibly bright.
So onto the 3D effect and the question that everyone is asking is, ‘is it all it’s cracked up to be?’, and for that I have no straight forward answer. But I’ll attempt to explain. I tested the disc on a 52″ Sony Bravia LCD and a 65″ Panasonic Viera Plasma. I found the Viera to be more pleasing in terms of 3D effect, reduced eye strain and overall colour. The Sony Bravia was noticeably duller, was not as impressive on the frequent low lit scenes and made the film look a bit more video-like than the Panasonic.
The 3D effect on the Viera was very pleasing and mirrored the impressiveness of the visuals I remember from the cinema, even though the active shutter glasses did result in more eye strain and the occasional glitch which was not present in the passive glasses from the theatre.
However, the real crux of the matter is how big the display is, how big your display room is and subsequently how far away from the display device you are. These variables will dictate how impressive the 3D effect actually is. The further away from the device you are, the more you will be disconnected from the 3D effect as your peripheral vision subconsciously notes what is happening around you. Obviously a bigger display will help in this regard (I believe that 65″ is currently one of the largest common consumer TV sizes currently available), but this comes at a premium cost.
Audio
The main audio track is encoded in DTS HD Master Audio 5.1, at 24 bits – a complete replica of the previous release.
Avatar’s audio track is pretty spectacular stuff. Every trick in the book has been utilised to create an aggressive and engrossing mix. Hats off to the audio mixers for crafting such a believable soundstage for the world. The surround channels are utilised constantly and bass is deep and powerful.
I enjoyed James Horner’s soundtrack score, despite it recalling much of his previous work. The score has been fairly aggressively mixed into the soundtrack, helping to build the emotional component of the film.
Overall, a really amazing audio mix. This will wring every last bit of juice out of your audio system.
Extras
Nothing. Nada. Zip.
Die hard Avatar fans can now purchase the epic 3 disc Blu-ray which features almost every minute of behind the scenes footage that was ever captured. Well, this may be an exaggeration, but there is an awful lot there and I think that even the more demanding fans will be satisfied. So that dulls the pain of having no extra features on this disc. Besides – 3D transfers are much more bit-hungry than a 2D release (two frames being encoded at once instead of just one) so this transfer really did need to be isolated. Potentially when the disc hits retail it might be bundled with the special edition release anyway.
From www.tweaktown.com
‘Ong Bak 3′– Self-indulgent Tony Jaa loses way (IANS Movie Review)
Mar 19th
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Film: ‘Ong Bak 3′; Director: Tony Jaa and Panna Rittikrai; Actors: Tony Jaa, Primorata Dejudom, Nirut Sirichanya; Rating: *
Martial arts in cinema have been a domain of the Asians. Since the days of the first master Bruce Lee, there have been many like Jackie Chan and Jet Li, among others, who have taken martial arts in cinema to a different level.
A new successor to this legacy comes from Thailand and his name is Tony Jaa. Fans of martial arts worldwide have already been mesmerised by his pyrokinetics. But with this latest venture he proves he may have lost way in his quest for world cinematic martial arts domination.
Like most of Bruce Lee’s or Jackie Chan’s film, Tony Jaa’s film rarely has a story to boast of. Even for that the story and direction of ‘Ong Bak 3′, both by Tony Jaa, is a new low and the martial arts disappoint too.
After heir to the throne Prince Tiem is almost beaten to death by an evil king who has usurped his kingdom, he is brought back to life thanks to the blessings of the Buddha and he must now fight his adversaries to restore peace in the nation.
Audiences aware of Tony Jaa and his full contact, and Bruce Lee’s martial arts have seen proof that even in the days of special effects, pure physical action and a highly energetic lead will never run out of date.
However, as he has grown from strength to strength, Tony Jaa seems to forget his strength which is his physical abilities.
In ‘Ong Bak 3′, his reliance on wires and special effects to enhance special effects spoil the action. He is trying to outdo Chinese and Hollywood martial arts film, and that will prove to be his undoing.
For there is something beautiful about raw physical energy, to be able to see the body go beyond its stated potential, to see the mind follow the body instead of the other way round.
Former martial arts masters in films knew that. And so did Tony Jaa. Obvious from his film ‘The Protector’ (2005) where a full five-minute long shot follows him moving from one floor to another, jumping, punching, kicking his adversaries. His stamina in that one scene, as in many others in his films, is sheer poetry.
However, in ‘Ong Bak 3′, he forgets that and though the cinematography is commendable, the film’s action, choreographed by Tony Jaa himself, is corrupted by special effects, loud, garish sound and the absolute unbelievability of the stunts compared to the believability of the same in previous films, even in the previous Ong Bak films.
Even extreme action junkies will balk with anger at ‘Ong Bak 3′ and find it hard to digest either the film or its action.
Tony Jaa is obviously aiming for Hollywood glory, but he would do well to remember what will take him there — not such bad special effects-laden action sequences, but raw, physical action. We all know he can do it.
All About: National,Entertainment,–select–
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From www.sify.com
Limitless: Review By Worth5Bucks
Mar 19th
The most important lesson (the only one in fact) that I learned from this movie was that I really just don’t like Bradley Cooper. I’ve only seen three movies he’s starred in being The Hangover, The A-Team, and this. I haven’t liked any of them. That’s when I realized I don’t really like Neil Berger either. In case you don’t know who Neil Berger is, he’s that guy who directed the Illusionist, the movie, that at least to me, didn’t even compare to The Prestige (I hate Jessica Biel.) Then I realized I’ve never even been much for Robert Di Nero either. So, throughout the film all I could do was wonder why I decided to see this movie I never really wanted to see in the first place.
Eddie Morra (Bradley Cooper) is a writer; well, he’s more like a writer poser, he might have a shadow of some idea in his head (one we never learn about), but most importantly, he hasn’t written a single word. Eddie has trouble putting his ‘idea’ on page. Basically, he’s a moron. Later, he runs into his ex-wife’s drug dealer brother Vernon. When they get to talking, Vernon convinces Eddie into trying out this new FDA approved (yeah right, Vernon’s a liar) pill drug called NZT. According to Vernon, NZT allows you to access your whole brain. Eddie (not a druggie) doesn’t want to try it, but his girlfriend just left him and he’s a pathetic writer, so in Eddie’s unintelligent miserable eyes, his life is already over. Because of this, he tries it. Within 30 seconds he’s a new man; it’s like he can reason or something.
That is where the first and biggest problem of the movie comes in, the very premise is flawed. It has been proven over and over again that we as humans don’t just access 10 or 20 percent of our brains; we access all of it most of the time. If you don’t believe me, look it up. If basing the movie off of total myth isn’t enough for you, don’t worry; the problems don’t stop here.
Eddie is now intelligent and creative, his brain serves him as an informational database of everything he’s ever seen, and his learning capacity seems infinite. He finishes his book and then decides he doesn’t want to write anymore. His new aspiration is now something, although he never tells us what this ‘something’ is. The movie then takes a path of him becoming self absorbed and rich, with little consequence. Somewhere along the way, as unrevealingly as I can put it, Robert Di Nero comes in to play.
In my life I’ve only gotten headaches from three films: Up in 3D, Bourne Supremacy, and this. Limitless is the first movie I’ve ever seen that wasn’t in 3D and wasn’t filmed with a shaky camera that this happened. Why? Well, you know those shots in movies where the camera zooms 20 miles in a matter of seconds? Limitless is chalk full of them, half of them are in the inner city and all of them are very bright. About five minutes into the movie, my head already hurt. That didn’t really stop.
That brings me to my next point. The editing: it was constantly annoying, it was poorly done, and it wasn’t clever. The worst thing though, is that the editors thought it was good enough that they could constantly shove it in my face. A movie like Limitless needs good editing desperately, because there’s no good humor to fall back on, there’s no chemistry between characters or actors to rely on, and there isn’t even that much action. I was quickly running out of things to be entertained by. I felt like an infant being forced to play with the same boring toy.
—-FUNNY SPOILERS—-
Not that important but quite revealing of a couple scenes, if your heart’s set on watching this movie, don’t read this section!
Eddie kills 3, possibly 4 people in the movie, (he doesn’t remember if he killed one or not,) drinks another’s blood, gets away with it, later becomes senator (still addicted to NZT,) and will probably become president.
Eddie’s girlfriend (who he won back,) to defend herself, picks up a 6 year old girl (a total stranger in fact) at an ice skating rink and spins her in the air to slice a guy in the face with an ice skate.
Eddie drinks a dead man’s blood in order to get another dosage of NZT in order to survive, but the NZT simply would not be concentrated enough to have results.
This review is making this movie sound a lot more ridiculous than it is by the way.
—-END SPOILERS—-
Limitless has the tendency of raising a lot of questions and not answering them, but that didn’t really matter because I was very passive about getting them answered. It was poorly directed, it had no chemistry, had a story proved wrong, and annoying visuals. It had a poorly chosen cast, was edited down to PG13 for more ticket stubs, and the score was uneventful and it barely differed from the preview music. I didn’t walk in to the theater looking for a bad movie; I stayed open minded throughout. Don’t get me wrong, this movie is entertaining, it’s not awful, it’s just lacking. My suggestion: rent it, or see it for free.
A review by Worth5Bucks
From www.movieweb.com
The Lincoln Lawyer Movie Review: A Legal Drama That Shines
Mar 19th
The Lincoln Lawyer is – surprisingly – even better than the previews made it look – and the previews looked pretty good. The story, starring Hollywood heavy weights Matthew McConaughey and Ryan Phillipe, is compelling; the actors make this film relevant and interesting from start to finish.
McConaughey is known for playing slick, smooth, and charming leading men, and The Lincoln Lawyer is no exception. He is a sleazy attorney who seems to be in the biz just for the cold hard cash, but there’s a soft side to this smooth-talking defense lawyer and McConaughey nails both sides of this character.
The Plot:
The Lincoln Lawyer centers around criminal defense lawyer Mick Haller. Haller is known for keeping criminals on the streets by getting them off the hook – for a price. He does all his business out of the back of an old Lincoln town car, with the occasional help from driver Earl (Lawrence Mason). He takes on a case involving a Beverley Hills playboy, Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillipe), accused of rape and attempted murder of a prostitute (Margarita Levieva). He soon learns the case is not as cut and dry as original thought and Roulet may not be the innocent victim of a set up.
The cast also includes Marisa Tomei as Maggie, a prosecutor and Mick’s ex-love; William H. Macy as Mick’s investigator; and Josh Lucas as the D.A trying Roulet’s case.
The Good:
The Lincoln Lawyer is a flashback to some of the best legal dramas of the ’90s. It is smooth and smart in its scripting and execution. Nothing in this film seems forced or phony.
This is Matthew McConaughey at his best. He does a great job as Mick Haller, although sometimes his cocky nature can come across more arrogant than charming, it completely works for this one. McConaughey isn’t new to legal dramas – A Time To Kill and Amistad come to mind – and while he was great in those two films, he brings a maturity this time around that makes him that much more charming and compelling in his role.
The plot keeps you guessing right from the start and there isn’t a dragging moment in the whole thing. We find out early on what is really going in the Roulet case, so it doesn’t feel like the film is a forced two hours of whodunit. The story takes an interesting twist when Haller grows a conscience and sets out to right a past wrong that’s connected with his current case.
Tomei delivers a great performance as Maggie, Heller’s ex-wife and mother of his daughter. The two obviously still have a strong attraction to one another and the back and forth between them is intoxicating and mesmerizing. Macy is also great in his role as Heller’s investigator and he brings the right amount of humor and sarcasm in his banter with Mick – we wouldn’t expect anything less from Macy.
The Bad:
Not much negative to say about this film as I thought it was thoroughly enjoyable. The one area that seemed a little contrived were the courtroom scenes. They came across as much too dramatic and over-the-top compared to the rest of the film.
Overall, director Brad Furman brings us a film that is entertaining and satisfying. He keeps the audience invested in Mick’s life and even though Mick is a charming SOB who is mostly concerned with making money and seems to lack a conscience, we see his turnaround throughout the film and are rooting for him till the end.
From www.reelmovienews.com
Movie review: “Kill List”
Mar 18th
Movie review: “Kill List”
AUSTIN (Hollywood Reporter) – A marked improvement in substance and technique over his well-received debut “Down Terrace,” Ben Wheatley’s “Kill List” brings a fresh mystery and bite to the hitman genre. Art-house potential is strong unless early reaction to a deeply weird twist taints word-of-mouth; even in that case, the film will find enthusiastic support in some quarters.
Like “Terrace,” this effort combines familial dynamics with genre elements. Here, though, the domestic tensions are grounded in a more believable realism. Husband-and-wife military veterans Jay (Neil Maskell) and Shel (MyAnna Buring), now living as civilians with a young son and a sideline in contract killing, bicker about money and household repair, but their friction is heightened by an event to which the script only alludes: Eight months ago, Jay somehow botched an assignment in Kiev in a way that is shadowing both his career and his psyche.
Tension steps up a notch when Jay and Shel have longtime friend/partner Gal (Michael Smiley) and his new girlfriend Fiona (Emma Fryer) over for dinner. Ugly (but sometimes comic) spats and friendly reconciliations serve as backdrop for Gal’s invitation — insistence, nearly — that Jay join him on a job involving three murders for a mysterious employer.
The ensuing assignment delivers solid crime-film beats, but the increasing nastiness of the targets with intimations of involvement with snuff films and child pornography pushes psychological buttons for Jay, who begins to take his work very seriously indeed: In one horrifically graphic scene, he uses a hammer to pound his victim so hard the body starts to come apart.
Jim Williams’s score, incorporating mysterious chants and whistling, backward-played speech, and dragging strings, further cements a mood of dread and anxiety. Meanwhile the two actors convince us of a long history between the men that breeds viewer identification despite the terrible things Jay is doing.
From the start, the film drops clues (some subtle, some overtly cryptic) of a conspiracy deeper than the assassination contract itself — possibly one stranger than anything found in the familiar crime-flick universe. Wheatley shows remarkable agility integrating them into the movie’s tone, and when that last-act swerve arrives, even its deep strangeness doesn’t derail the movie’s grim momentum. The climax’s “what the hell?” factor escalates steadily, though, to a resolution that may leave audiences deeply divided. Even those who throw their hands up, though, may find themselves recommending this potent film to their more fringe-friendly acquaintances.
(Editing by Zorianna Kit)
From www.reuters.com
Movie review: ‘Limitless’ intriguing but limited
Mar 18th
“Limitless” is limited, but intriguing nonetheless.
Much of this has to do with director Neil Burger (“The Illusionist”), who brings a kooky edge to the story. The rest has to do with star Bradley Cooper (“The Hangover,” ”The A-Team”) proving he actually might be more than just another pretty face.
Cooper plays Eddie Morra, a would-be writer who’s been going nowhere for quite some time. As we meet Eddie he’s scraggly and run-down looking, which only goes to show that Bradley Cooper is still killer good-looking even when he’s scraggly and run-down.
Early on, Eddie runs into his ex-brother-in-law, a sleazoid type who has just the thing for Eddie: A special pill that will allow him to use all the brain power at his disposal, as opposed to the sliver of gray matter humans use on a regular basis.
Suddenly Eddie’s finishing a novel in a couple of days, and it’s brilliant. Scoring a few more pills, he realizes he can make a fortune in the financial world. Unfortunately, he needs some start-up money, so he turns to a loan shark (Andrew Howard). Then, when he’s scored big, he starts working with a major mogul (Robert De Niro).
Meanwhile, Eddie’s dealer runs into some trouble of the dead kind and Eddie makes off with his stash. His addiction grows; his success grows; his stash keeps shrinking. Eventually, his associates want a part of it. Eddie may be on top, but the bottom seems to be beckoning.
It’s a straightforward tension Burger is dealing with, working from Leslie Dixon’s adaptation of Alan Glynn’s novel, but he keeps throwing in little kinks to keep things interesting.
And, at its heart, the film keeps asking: Would you do it? Who could pass it up? Is this the devil in disguise or heaven opening up? You choose.
“Limitless,” a Relativity Media release, is rated PG-13 for thematic material involving a drug, violence including disturbing images, sexuality and language. Running time: 105 minutes. Grade B.
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Motion Picture Association of America rating definitions:
G — General audiences. All ages admitted.
PG — Parental guidance suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children.
PG-13 — Special parental guidance strongly suggested for children under 13. Some material may be inappropriate for young children.
R — Restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
NC-17 — No one under 17 admitted.
From washingtonexaminer.com
