March 2011
8 posts
3 tags
Limitless (2011) review
It’s not purely coincidence or good fortune that I enjoy most films I see: not being employed as a film reviewer, I only watch those movies which appeal to me in some fashion, and while I’ve chosen poorly at times, I generally don’t have major regrets. Limitless is a moderately entertaining thriller which rather carefully avoids any sort of philosophical musing: Inception...
7 tags
Paul (2011) & Burke and Hare (2010) review
I won’t say I’m exactly a Simon Pegg “fan,” having only seen (to date) four of his films—and half of those in the past 4 days—but I find him an amusing, multi-talented actor-writer who first came to international (and my) attention with Shaun of the Dead. Not entirely coincidentally, the last two films I’ve watched were two Pegg-pictures, Paul and Burke...
3 tags
Battle: Los Angeles (2011) review
Although it was the top-grossing film in the USA last week, Battle: Los Angeles hasn’t been received too kindly by critics. The film is well-made, technically, and in my opinion it redeemed itself to a certain extent with its last 20-odd action-packed minutes, but I have issues with it, formally and ideologically.
The script is an example of “fragmentary”...
5 tags
Rango (2011) review
I wondered how Rango would fare with contemporary audiences who have relatively little familiarity with Westerns (I also wondered about this in reference to True Grit, and while its performance on Oscar night wasn’t great, the box-office results should make the Coen Brothers happy): would they “get” it? Would the tropes still resonate? Apparently so, or perhaps a good film is...
2 tags
The Adjustment Bureau (2011) review
Although based on a short story by Philip K. Dick (Blade Runner, Total Recall, Minority Report), The Adjustment Bureau is more fantasy than science-fiction. Despite some (illogical and unnecessary, if you stop to think about it) technological trappings, basically The Adjustment Bureau is about God’s intervention—via his angels—in the lives of humans. Sure, God is...
4 tags
Drive Angry 3D (2011) review
Although I’m not the ideal audience for a 3-D film (juggling two pair of glasses isn’t much fun), I will say one thing about Drive Angry 3D: lots of stuff does come flying at the camera in spectacular fashion, including tire irons, axes, cars, scrap metal, bodies (and body parts). Visual effects aside, Drive Angry 3D is reasonably entertaining, heavy on the action and light on...
4 tags
Rubber (2010) review
I don’t know exactly what to write about Rubber. I enjoyed it, with reservations, but I’m not sure what the best audience would be for this film. My film class was amused (and bemused) when I showed the trailer, but there’s a difference between 4 minutes of highlights and an 85-minute feature film.
At first glance, this is a “high concept” film: a rubber tire...
