Even with the presence of a bona fide Hollywood icon, the lasting enthrallment of Heart of the Beast belongs to that goddamn incredible dog. Where he grabs your gaze and devours your soul is in moments of stillness and focus. Uber will hold a remarkably firm look that will stare down and disarm any living thing in its gaze, be that a bear, a pack of wolves, Brad Pitt, or us—fixated on the big screen with wet corners filling our eyes.
Read MoreDespite what looks like a melodramatic premise of coming-of-age tropes in the hands of George Jaques, it is quite astonishing all the unexpected places Sunny Dancer takes its drama, including a very risky sledgehammer twist which I dare not divulge. Nevertheless, the friendship-building relationship dynamics inside its marked weekly chapters are fascinating to behold.
Read MoreWith deep empathy and surging urgency, Paul Greengrass issues a call for justice and an end to the exploitation of the poor through this compelling and comparable chapter of history. Beginning and ending thematically with royalty experiencing stormy nightmares at the thought of civil mutiny, the parallels are striking and should, chiefly, be the strongest topic of conversation and inspiration coming out of this movie.
Read MoreThis kind of movie, like the characters in peril, live and die by the balance—or imbalance—of poor choices versus good decisions made by the central on-screen characters. Veer too much in the poor direction, and you throw your hands up at the screen too often in fun-dampening frustration. Pile too high in the good direction and everyone is a Mary Sue, and the sense of survival suspense evaporates. The End of Oak Street finds admirable footing in this area amid its surreal premise.
Read MoreIn Tony, directed by incisive rising filmmaker Matt Johnson of Nirvana the Band the Show the Movie and BlackBerry, we’re not watching the complicated rise of the next J. D. Salinger. We’re witnessing the prickly makings of, quite simply, an asshole. With each new early scene, Tony stacks lies that inflate his resume, ego, and foothold on any actual success, with no signs of slowing down in a parade of one bad choice after another.
Read MoreOn one end, many want the moments to be right, but sometimes sex can be a disposable activity to fulfill mutual carnal needs. With that kind of range, there are ways to explore such expanse with potent concepts. And yet, there are still ways to clumsily overthink it. Will Gluck’s heady new romantic comedy One Night Only finds a daring, silly premise and runs with it to find hilarity and heart within the hedonistic whims.
Read MoreThanks to their committed and brave performances of showing life’s difficulties parallel to the carefree and united fun, the question isn’t “will-they” or “won’t-they” like other rom-coms. It’s should they because of the prudence being paced so smoothly and realistically next to the pleasures. Built that way, any fulfillment found in it all becomes much more rewarding.
Read MoreSpider-Man needed this break, and we did too. For better and truer people, that anticipation time is filled with reflection and appreciation, fitting this lesson’s adage of devotion. Arriving with the passage of time firmly welded to its ripened core, Spider-Man: Brand New Day rewards those hearts who arrive eager and encouraged.
Read MoreLandship sticks to one solid episode of ordinary men surviving the worst of the worst for the man next to them, not medals pinned to chests or future storybook or silver screen glory. Dramatic license aside, witnessing the unbelievable made fluid and palpable—and the huge DIY effort to make it happen—becomes powerful enough without bigger patriotic swells unfurled for escapism’s sake.
Read MoreWith a very welcome shift to put Jessie front and center instead of Buzz or Woody (Tom Hanks) for a change (though the billing in the credits suggests otherwise), the antique cowgirl’s spunky spirit and more impactful and wider revealed history steer this story to new, poignant places. In aspiring to do all that, Toy Story 5 finds its missing brevity again, in what might be the funniest entry in the whole series.
Read MoreFor the Carolina Caroline screenplay to even entertain these more mature themes is a testament to its quality and uniqueness amid the sea of film noir and neo-noir mirrors and imitators. Anyone can put a hot girl and a studly man together with a couple of guns and fire off some ill-advised bullets and Cupid’s arrows. Samara Weaving and Kyle Gallner, like their characters, forge something stronger than a fleeting fling, and that weight means the world.
Read MoreWhen done right, there’s sensory excitement between noises that rattle seats and silences that destroy our nerves. Tuner, the narrative directorial debut for Oscar-winning Navalny documentary filmmaker Daniel Roher, recognizes this second type of potential power and seizes it for a nifty thriller that deserves just as many big screens as the summer blockbusters it is poised to swim against.
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