Posted by Doug S. on April 29th, 2011
Arthur
5 stars out of 10
Genre: Comedy
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Run time: 110 min.
Writer: Peter Baynham
Director: Jason Winer
Year: 2011
1981′s original "Arthur" was a pleasant, breezy, light comedy that got by on Dudley Moore’s lovable characterization of the titular character, and a whole lot of heart. This updated version is still pleasant and breezy and light, but demonstrates clearly just how much the whole endeavor depended on what Moore brought to the role.
As before, Arthur–this time embodied by the lunatic English comedian Russell Brand–is the fabulously wealthy playboy literally without a care in the world. He spends his days just trying to amuse himself. And then along comes Naomi (Greta Gerwig), and suddenly Arthur’s in love. Which would be fine, except that his family is demanding that he marry the decidedly unappealing corporate executive Susan (Jennifer Garner). If he wants to stay with the woman he loves, he’ll have to give up his inheritance and fend for himself.
Read more »
Posted by Doug S. on April 29th, 2011
Tron Legacy
4 stars out of 10
Genre: Sci-fi
MPAA Rating: PG
Run time: 127 min.
Writer: Adam Horowitz, Eddy Kitsis
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Year: 2010
There are probably people who look back fondly on the original Tron. Even those people are likely to be disappointed in this sequel that attempts to update the visuals with mixed results, and fails utterly to tell a coherent or involving story.
Let’s deal with the story first, and as briefly as its depth deserves. The 80′s Tron was hardly a masterpiece in this department. It was conceptually interesting but otherwise generic, mostly lacking in character. The best that can be said of this new version is that it is consistent with that. The story is bland and predictable, seen a thousand times with other visuals. And also thematically confused, uncertain what story it’s attempting to tell. Worst of all, it’s completely un-engaging. You could get up and walk out at any point without hesitation, and not feel like you’ve missed anything.
Read more »
Posted by Doug S. on April 29th, 2011
Skyline
1 star out of 10
Genre: Sci-fi
MPAA Rating: PG
Run time: 92 min.
Writer: Joshua Cordes, Liam O’Donnell
Director: The Brothers Strause
Year: 2010
It’s rare that a movie is so aggressively awful that it justifies audiences converging en masse at the studio office, demanding their money back. "Skyline"proves to be one of those movies.
If you’ve seen the trailer, you already know the entire plot and every single watchable moment. In fact, the trailer is considerably more entertaining and coherent than the actual film. The story amounts to "aliens invade, people run, some of them die" It’s rudimentary, and rudimentary can work sometimes. But it’s not even told well. It’s a poor story told poorly.
Read more »
Posted by Doug S. on April 29th, 2011
Rango
7 stars out of 10
Genre: Animated/Family
MPAA Rating: PG
Run time: 107 min.
Writer: John Logan
Director: Gore Verbinski
Year: 2011
It’s often interesting when live action filmmakers take on animated films. Sometimes you get something fresh and invigorating, as with Wes Anderson’s “Fantastic Mr Fox”, and sometimes you get a confusion of sensibilities, as with Zack Snyder’s "Legend of the Guardians" Fortunately "Rango"falls comfortably into the former camp. Director Gore Verbinski proves himself perfectly suited to delivering an exciting animated film unlike anything you’ve ever seen and with a life and energy all its own. But it also struggles with a strange mishmash of tones as it tries to find that sweet spot between being "too adult" and "too kiddie".
Read more »
Posted by Doug S. on April 29th, 2011
Sucker Punch
3 stars out of 10
Genre: Action
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Run time: 120 min.
Writer: Zack Snyder
Director: Zack Snyder
Year: 2011
Director Zack Snyder’s sudden emergence can rightly be likened to that of M. Night Shyamalan. Both directors burst onto the scene with a huge hit (Shyamalan with "Sixth Sense" and Snyder with "00" and were instantly labelled as visionaries. Soon, they entered the rare pantheon of directors whose very name was used to sell a movie. Unfortunately, Snyder’s career seems to still be on a path similar to Shyamalan’s, in that his output has offered steadily diminishing returns. "Sucker Punch" is sadly his equivalent to "Lady in the Water" a silly, misguided vanity project that thinks itself far more profound than it actually is.
Read more »
