You know the apocalypse is approaching when one of the year’s best films stars Adam Sandler and Ben Stiller. “The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected)” is the latest film from writer-director Noah Baumbach and stars Adam Sandler, Ben Stiller, Elizabeth Marvel, Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson as a dysfunctional family living in New York City.… Continue reading ‘The Meyerowitz Stories’ a Dysfunctional Family Dramedy That Excels
The 89th Academy Awards are less than a week away, so naturally it’s time to predict them. This year things are more up-in-the-air than usual, with only one essential lock, although betting your mortgage on “La La Land” winning multiple awards is the closest thing to a safe bet as they come nowadays. Here, I’ll… Continue reading 89th Academy Awards Predictions: Who Will, Could, and Should Win
It’s most every film fan’s favorite time of the year again: Oscar Season (unless you’re like me and the Summer Movie Season takes precedence). The nominees were announced Tuesday and as expected, “La La Land” cleaned up house with a record-tying 14 nominations including Best Picture, and there were a few surprises along the way… Continue reading 2017 Oscar Nominations and Reactions
This, “Lone Survivor,” “Deepwater Horizon”… guess Peter Berg and Mark Wahlberg are just going to spend the rest of their careers making films about recent tragedies. “Patriots Day” is about the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing and its subsequent manhunt. Mark Wahlberg, J. K. Simmons, John Goodman, Kevin Bacon and Michelle Monaghan all star as Peter… Continue reading ‘Patriots Day’ a Solid, Respectful Thriller with a Few Stumbles
This is honestly going to be one of the most difficult reviews I’ve ever written… “Silence” is the latest film from Martin Scorsese, a passion project of the director’s for over 25 years. The film follows two 17th-century Jesuit priests (Andrew Garfield and Adam Driver) who travel from Portugal to Japan in order to locate… Continue reading ‘Silence’ Easier to Admire than Enjoy
2016 wasn’t a great year for mainstream movies, but some things did manage to rise above and provide us with solid entertainment. Plenty of things were happy surprises and there were a few hidden gems, including things not on this list like “Nerve,” “Money Monster” and [looks both ways] “Batman v Superman: Ultimate Edition.” As… Continue reading Top 10 Best Films of 2016
For the second year in a row, the best film of the year comes out at Christmas. “La La Land” stars Ryan Gosling as a jazz pianist who falls in love with an aspiring actress (Emma Stone) in Los Angeles. John Legend, Rosemarie DeWitt and J.K. Simmons also star as Damien Chazelle writes and directs.… Continue reading ‘La La Land’ a Gorgeous Film Celebrating Dreams
Great performance, great real-life story, meh film. “Jackie” stars Natalie Portman as the titular character of Jackie Kennedy, and follows her retelling of the days after her husband’s assassination in 1963. Peter Sarsgaard, Greta Gerwig, Billy Crudup and John Hurt also star as Pablo Larraín directs. There are plenty of examples of great actors giving… Continue reading Portman Great as ‘Jackie’ but Script Lets Her Down
Subtlety can be a film’s largest strength or biggest weakness, and in this case it’s both. “Loving” tells the true story of Richard and Mildred Loving, an interracial couple in 1960s Virginia who fight to have the marriage laws of the United States changed. Joel Edgerton and Ruth Negga star as the couple alongside Nick… Continue reading ‘Loving’ is Well Acted but Too Subtle for its Own Good
Part of me spent the entire runtime of this film hoping it would turn out to be an “Inglourious Basterds” spin-off… “Allied” stars Brad Pitt and Marion Cotillard as two spies in World War II who meet and fall in love during a mission to assassinate a German official. Jared Harris, Lizzy Caplan and Matthew… Continue reading ‘Allied’ a Slow-Burn Spy Thriller Worth Watching
The Reel Deal 