Reviews
THE GREY, FEROCIOUSLY GOOD
Exciting, terrifying, intriguing and thrilling The Grey provides a stunning entry in the erratic first month of the year. Good acting all around, electrifying cinematography and able direction keeps the film moving and entertaining. If you like a white-knuckle panic film that challenges your worst fears, The Grey will have you in its snarling teeth.
MAN ON A LEDGE, HEART POUNDING
With an exciting beginning and suspense filled story Man on a Ledge entertains those that love a good thriller. With very good performances and an action filled script that’s nicely directed this year’s box office should leap into high gear.
ALBERT NOBBS, TOP DRAWER
Headlining the film Glenn Close gives a magnificent performance as the title character in Albert Nobbs. The very emotional and tragic drama provides a platform for her amazing talent. Including a noted cast, fine direction by Rodrigo Garcia and remarkable cinematography that sets the bleak Irish period, the movie wins big.
A DANGEROUS METHOD, DEPRESSING
You have to really dig deep to find a perfect performance in A Dangerous Method, unfortunately there isn’t a big cast from which to choose, Keira Knightley over acts, Viggo Mortensen very dull and Fassbender a little distant. Disguised as a biography, it’s more of a blip on an electroencephalograph in the life of some noted psychoanalysts.
REAL STEEL, is Smashing on Blu-ray/DVD
It’s not Rocky, it’s Real Steel, but you would think you were watching the great boxing film in another dimension. Now on Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack the gritty, action packed fight film blows the lid off some extreme robots on it’s way to being an entertaining movie for those who like a good punch fest. I liked this film for the action, comedy and father-son relationship and now that it’s on Blu-ray, on my home entertainment system, it’s still got me hooked.
RED TAILS, FLY HIGH
George Lucas, known for his adventure and science fiction films, tears a page from the WWII war history book and produces Red Tails a true story of courage in the face of adversity and discrimination. Much like Spike Lee’s Miracle at St. Anna the backdrop of war becomes the field on which we see the selfless devotion of African-American soldiers helping to maintain a free world. I like the way director Anthony Hemingway tells his story based on true events with a kind heart and forgiving hand, even though the situation was probably more disparaging than he shows here.
HAYWIRE, ‘TAPS OUT’
From a ravenous mixed martial arts maven to a star overnight Gina Carano takes acting to new heights in Haywire a spy thriller from Academy Award winning director Steven Soderbergh. Her screen presence gets so lively that I couldn’t keep my eyes off the screen. Knowing that the blows she has to give her adversaries have a lot of impact on her character Carano doesn’t hold back a thing. She may be new to acting, but that’s only the tip of her talent. It’s just too bad that other factors beyond her control cause the film to ‘tap out’.
EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE, Sweet and Sour
The touching film Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close delves into the mind of a young boy on a quest. It’s not the quest that’s important here, but the determination and desire to make peace with a loss so great it’s nearly impossible. Director Stephen Daldry takes us on that journey as if we were the ones looking for answers.