**1/2 out of **** Rated PG-13 (for sexuality, nudity, language, and action/peril) Released: December 21, 2016 Runtime: 116 minutes Director: Morten Tyldum Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Chris Pratt, Michael Sheen Available to rent through Amazon Video or buy on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K. Proceeds from purchases made through these links go to support this blog. Let’s take a moment to appreciate the fact that we [...]
Some Thoughts On ROGUE ONE’s CGI Controversy (SPOILERS)
Attack of the Clones indeed. Coming out of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (my review), people are polarized over the use of CGI visual effects in one particular regard, and they’re making their opinions known across the interwebs in full, er, force. Of course I’m referring to the resurrection of Grand Moff Tarkin, played by [...]
The Future Is Still Bleak In BLADE RUNNER 2049 Trailer (VIDEO)
More moments to be lost in time...like tears in rain. The first look at Blade Runner 2049 is the perfect tease, establishing a premise without getting into plot, by showing the meeting between a new blade runner, played by Ryan Gosling, and the old one, Harrison Ford's Rick Deckard. Directed by Denis Villeneuve (Arrival), produced by Ridley Scott (the original's director), and co-written [...]
COLLATERAL BEAUTY (Movie Review)
* out of **** Rated PG-13 (for thematic elements and brief strong language) Released: December 16, 2016 Runtime: 97 minutes Director: David Frankel Starring: Will Smith, Edward Norton, Helen Mirren, Kate Winslet, Kiera Knightly, Michael Peña, Jacob Latimore, Ann Dowd, Naomie Harris Available to rent through Amazon Video or buy on Blu-ray and DVD. Proceeds from purchases made through these links go to support [...]
ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY (Movie Review)
*** out of **** Rated PG-13 (for extended sequences of sci-fi violence and action) Released: December 16, 2016 Runtime: 133 minutes Director: Gareth Edwards Starring: Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Ben Mendelsohn, Forest Whitaker, Riz Ahmed, Mads Mikkelsen, Donnie Yen, Wen Jiang, voices of Alan Tudyk and James Earl Jones Available to buy on Blu-ray, DVD, or Digitally. Proceeds from purchases made through these [...]
LA LA LAND (Movie Review)
**** out of **** Rated PG-13 (for some language) Released: December 9, 2016 NY & LA: December 16 limited. Everywhere January 6, 2017. Runtime: 128 minutes Director: Damien Chazelle Starring: Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, John Legend, J.K. Simmons, Rosemarie DeWitt Available to rent through Amazon Video or buy on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K. Proceeds from purchases made through these links go to support this [...]
First Trailer for Nolan’s WWII Epic DUNKIRK (VIDEO/POSTER)
The genre director of The Dark Knight and Inception storms the beaches of World War II. The Battle of Dunkirk, which took place on French soil, was a week-long fight in late May of 1940, four years before the United States' D-Day at Normandy. This one involved primarily British forces, along with other Allies, against [...]
Big Snubs In 23rd Screen Actors Guild Nominations (AWARDS 2016)
Slow that roll, La La Land. In what seemed like a quickly growing consensus toward a Best Picture win for the modern day musical romance, the Screen Actors Guild denied La La Land a nomination in its biggest category, Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture (their Best Picture equivalent). Stars Emma Stone [...]
Beantown Critics Love LA LA LAND More Than MANCHESTER (AWARDS 2016)
Manchester by the Sea couldn't even win in Massachusetts. Swept up by the craze for Damien Chazelle's La La Land, the Boston Society of Film Critics joined other organizations in naming the L.A.-based modern musical as the year's best film. The Oscar frontrunner, starring Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling, is quickly becoming an awards season phenomenon, as Boston also tabbed it for Best [...]
The 74th Annual Golden Globe Nominations (AWARDS 2016)
The Oscar race will be a marathon between these three movies: La La Land, Moonlight, and Manchester by the Sea. That's the major tea leaf confirmed by the announcement of the 74th Annual Golden Globe Awards nominees, one of the big Oscar harbingers every year. Those three films, along with their directors, were all nominated for Best Motion Picture; that [...]