Welcome back gang. It's my first post after starting for the magazine (which you can jump to here). It's a slow week, but only due to a busy week in general. Nothing to do with the other website. So give it a quick read and maybe jump to the mag. I review The Woman In Black 2, so give it a spin and pass it on. Thanks again and enjoy the slow week.
Blue Ruin (January 4th, 2015)
Director: Jeremy Saulnier
Starring: Macon Blair, Amy Hargreaves, Devin Ratray, and David W. Thomson
Sometimes a movie just absolutely stuns you. Maybe it's due to it's outright originality, doing things we haven't seen before. But sometimes a movie comes along and takes well trod material and elevates it completely with a fresh perspective. This is one of those movies. It may sound like a typical revenge thriller, but it's anything but. Saulnier (writer as well) crafts a revenge thriller that is completely un Hollywood. Following homeless man Dwight (Blair), we see his daily grind before we find out someone is getting out of prison. This shatters him and he bolts into action, obviously looking for revenge. But it is anything but easy. And from there, the movie takes some wild turns and delivers a gut punch of the highest order. There are some outright tense scenes in this movie, nail biters that weathered vets wish they could deliver. And it's all because the "hero" of the movie is not equipped to actually deal revenge. He's not a man with a particular set of skills. Dwight is a weak, cowardly man who is so broken that he only knows one way to deal with it. Then he has to deal with it, because every action here has consequences. Nothing goes smoothly and it's refreshing to see a purposeful mess on screen. Blair is phenomenal, completely in this mans head. He is unafraid to be ugly and not sexy at all, no flair. This is a brutal movie with some ugly and realistic violence. I was already into this movie before it laid out an anti violence message and way before it became a movie about masculinity and the sins of our fathers. This is a masterpiece and I can't wait to see what Saulnier has in store for us next.
Rating: 10/10
Horns (January 9th, 2015)
Director: Alexandre Aja
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Max Minghella, Joe Anderson, and Juno Temple
This is an interesting little movie even before it starts, based on the creative side working on it. You got Daniel Radcliffe, jumping headfirst into an R rated movie with a healthy dose of foul language and bad behavior. Then you got Aja, a director from the Splat Pack of the mid 2000's. He's a man who's best movies are based on other movies (the amazing Hills Have Eyes remake and the fun Piranha remake). Then you got the writer of the book it's based on, Joe Hill. Son to Stephen King, he is a writer who is trying to make his own way despite writing with a similar style to his Dad, despite leaning too heavily on nastiness with none of the humanity his father brought to the table. Then you get to the actual plot, where Radcliffe is believed to have killed his girlfriend (Temple). Trying to prove his innocence despite his preordained guilt by the public, he suddenly wakes up with a pair of horns that make people tell him their honest thoughts and to do what he says. The movie is a fun time, with some good laughs and some amazing violence. But there is a schizophrenia and incomplete feel to it. It introduces a lot of elements that are interesting, but doesn't go fully into them. And the mystery isn't the most mysterious ever put to screen, but there's a darkness that makes it fresher. Yet, that darkness is also a problem. I mentioned already that Hill goes very dark without the humanity, and it's obvious here. It's so bleak and filled with misery, yet spends so little time on why we should care about the fates of these characters that it doesn't hit as hard as it should. The only reason we care is that the performances are great. Radcliffe shows that he's got some real talent and that he's gonna be around awhile, showing no traces of the boy who lived. Minghella is solid as the loyal best friend. Temple does fine work with the thankless role of the deceased girlfriend. Joe Anderson is also really good in the not so vital role of the brother with alot of demons. He's not a bad guy but one who is lost and it's really good. This guy needs to work alot more. All in all, this is a solid little movie. It's not gonna change cinema. But it will entertain for the most part.
Rating: 8/10
Taken 3 (January 10th, 2014)
Director: Olivier Megaton
Starring: Liam Nesson, Maggie Grace, Forest Whitaker, and Dougray Scott
Stay tuned next week for a link to my review on my new magazine post.
Rating: 4/10
Top Movies
1. Blue Ruin
2. Horns
3. Taken 3
Top 5 Moments
1. Bathroom Fight - Blue Ruin
2. The Final Standoff - Blue Ruin
3. Open Up The Trunk - Blue Ruin
4. Dwights Everyday Routine - Blue Ruin
5. The Shotgun Blast - Horns
Top 5 Performances
1. Macon Blair - Blue Ruin
2. Daniel Radcliffe - Horns
3. Joe Anderson - Horns
4. Devin Ratray - Blue Ruin
5. Amy Hargreaves - Blue Ruin
Horns (January 9th, 2015)
Director: Alexandre Aja
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Max Minghella, Joe Anderson, and Juno Temple
This is an interesting little movie even before it starts, based on the creative side working on it. You got Daniel Radcliffe, jumping headfirst into an R rated movie with a healthy dose of foul language and bad behavior. Then you got Aja, a director from the Splat Pack of the mid 2000's. He's a man who's best movies are based on other movies (the amazing Hills Have Eyes remake and the fun Piranha remake). Then you got the writer of the book it's based on, Joe Hill. Son to Stephen King, he is a writer who is trying to make his own way despite writing with a similar style to his Dad, despite leaning too heavily on nastiness with none of the humanity his father brought to the table. Then you get to the actual plot, where Radcliffe is believed to have killed his girlfriend (Temple). Trying to prove his innocence despite his preordained guilt by the public, he suddenly wakes up with a pair of horns that make people tell him their honest thoughts and to do what he says. The movie is a fun time, with some good laughs and some amazing violence. But there is a schizophrenia and incomplete feel to it. It introduces a lot of elements that are interesting, but doesn't go fully into them. And the mystery isn't the most mysterious ever put to screen, but there's a darkness that makes it fresher. Yet, that darkness is also a problem. I mentioned already that Hill goes very dark without the humanity, and it's obvious here. It's so bleak and filled with misery, yet spends so little time on why we should care about the fates of these characters that it doesn't hit as hard as it should. The only reason we care is that the performances are great. Radcliffe shows that he's got some real talent and that he's gonna be around awhile, showing no traces of the boy who lived. Minghella is solid as the loyal best friend. Temple does fine work with the thankless role of the deceased girlfriend. Joe Anderson is also really good in the not so vital role of the brother with alot of demons. He's not a bad guy but one who is lost and it's really good. This guy needs to work alot more. All in all, this is a solid little movie. It's not gonna change cinema. But it will entertain for the most part.
Taken 3 (January 10th, 2014)
Director: Olivier Megaton
Starring: Liam Nesson, Maggie Grace, Forest Whitaker, and Dougray Scott
Stay tuned next week for a link to my review on my new magazine post.
Top Movies
1. Blue Ruin
2. Horns
3. Taken 3
Top 5 Moments
1. Bathroom Fight - Blue Ruin
2. The Final Standoff - Blue Ruin
3. Open Up The Trunk - Blue Ruin
4. Dwights Everyday Routine - Blue Ruin
5. The Shotgun Blast - Horns
Top 5 Performances
1. Macon Blair - Blue Ruin
2. Daniel Radcliffe - Horns
3. Joe Anderson - Horns
4. Devin Ratray - Blue Ruin
5. Amy Hargreaves - Blue Ruin
- Tom Lorenzo
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