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While January is traditionally the dumping ground for misfit movies, there are always a few that manage to surprise.Contraband is a pulpy, efficient and unpretentious remake of the 2008 Icelandic thriller Reykjavík-Rotterdam. Baltasar Kormákur, star of the original film, directs the Hollywood remake and keeps it moving at a fast pace. Chris Farraday (Mark Wahlberg) is a [...]
The action sequences are executed with the confidence of a veteran… The fourth film in the franchise and the first live-action endeavor from director Brad Bird (The Incredibles, The Iron Giant), Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol is filled with the verve and clarity of his animated action sequences while lending just enough gravity and remote plausibility to the [...]
Another Earth is an excellent example of science fiction rooted in the present day and from the fantastic opening sequence to the quizzical final scene the audience will be glued to the screen. Co-writer Brit Marling is Rhoda Williams, a bright young woman who is fascinated by the universe and accepted into an Astrophysics Program. [...]
Julia Leigh’s Sleeping Beauty has nothing to do with fairy tales. Instead, this quiet Cannes Film Festival honoree is an adaptation of Japanese author Yasunari Kawabata’s novella “House of the Sleeping Beauties” (1961), in which wealthy old gentlemen visit a brothel to pay for the privilege of sharing a bed with a willingly-drugged young lady of the [...]
These days, it’s typical for rushed and ineffective sequels to be released into theatres to capitalize on the success of a hit film. While it has taken only two years for Robert Downey Jr.’s sleuth to return to screens, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows stands as an exception to the rule. Arthur Conan Doyle purists may [...]
“This is not Juno,” director Jason Reitman said, just before presenting his latest film, Young Adult, to a packed Alamo Drafthouse in Austin on Monday. The occasion was a “super secret” screening with a custom poster giveaway (bribe?), not unlike the other previews in Paramount’s pre-release tour. Afterwards, comedian and star Patton Oswalt bared his soul, destroyed a drunken [...]
After the release of RING OF DEATH, RHI Entertainment unleashes their second MMA film in this action packed film about a war veteran looking to find the fighter who maimed his brother. Iraqi war veteran Jack Campbell (Max Martini) has returned home with a dishonorable discharge for punching out his commanding officer. Upon returning, he finds [...]
Ambitious fantasy martial arts film from writer-director Guy Moshe attempts to meld martial arts, samurai and Wild West genre conventions in a stylized comic book world of post-apocalyptic gang warfare and bitter vendettas. With its German impressionist-like sets, gaudy lighting and CGI-enhanced comic book treatment, the film succeeds in creating a unique and stimulating visual [...]
In 2008, the teen MMA film NEVER BACK DOWN was unleashed to audiences with mostly modest reviews. Does this sequel, marking the directorial debut of Michael Jai White, live up to the original? No. Instead, it ranks superior to the original in both storyline and action. The story revolves around four fighters with different backgrounds. [...]