[6] A high school student (Devon Bostick) causes a community uproar after conspiring with his teacher to present a fictitious report identifying his deceased father as a terrorist. Writer/director Atom Egoyan (The Sweet Hereafter, Exotica) is playing with religious and racial tolerance in light of 9/11 with Adoration. The film comes off a bit too much like forced social commentary, but the acting is decent …
[8] John Hillcoat (The Road) directs this true story co-written and scored by Nick Cave. Shia LaBeouf (Transformers) and Tom Hardy (The Dark Knight Rises) star as entrepreneurial brothers who make and sell moonshine in prohibitionist Virginia. The brothers already have an ‘understanding’ with the local law enforcement, but when a gangster (Gary Oldman) and a dirty district attorney (Guy Pearce) vie for a piece …
[8] Logan Lerman (from the Percy Jackson movies) stars as Charlie in this coming-of-age drama/romance about a socially awkward high school boy who finds solace among the ‘freaks’ while overcoming a past trauma that left him hospitalized. Emma Watson (Hermione from Harry Potter) and Ezra Miller co-star as Sam and Patrick, Charlie’s newfound friends. Together, the trio bond over music and star in a production …
[6] There’s no denying the pervasive corniness of Randal Kleiser’s adaptation of The Blue Lagoon. Brooke Shields and Christopher Atkins play teenagers who have grown up in isolation on a remote island after being shipwrecked as children. The film half-asses the characters’ sexual awakenings (what the film is all about) and never stops testing your suspension of disbelief. But the film still works as escapist …
[8] A man is wrongly convicted and sentenced to a brutal chain gang in this gripping tragedy from Mervyn LeRoy (The Wizard of Oz). Paul Muni (Scarface, Life of Emile Zola) stars as the innocent prisoner who succeeds in a daring escape and becomes a well-respected member of society before the law catches up with him. State extradition laws offer him some sanctuary, but Muni …
[8] Errol Flynn and David Niven star as World War I pilots confronting the grimmest odds of survival in this exciting and moving remake of Howard Hawks’ 1930 original. With its wartime setting and nary a woman in the cast, The Dawn Patrol is another great bromance in the grand tradition of war stories — it’s all about camraderie, brotherhood and sacrifice.
[7] During the opening credits of this Roland Joffé (The Mission, Vatel) version of The Scarlet Letter, a certain snippet of text appeared that allowed me to forgive quite a lot of the nonsense that would follow. The text read: “Based Loosely on the Novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne”. Loosely. So what the hell — why not have the American Indians rescue Hester from the gallows? …
[7] Writer/director Miranda July also stars in this Cannes and Sundance Film Festival winner about people trying to connect with each other in an age when culture and technology make that connection more challenging. The film seems to be saying that we are all experiencing this difficulty, but July’s characters are so quirky and awkward that Me and You and Everyone We Know is as much …
[8] Shame is a deeply sad, austere and beautifully composed film about a sex addict whose routine is interrupted by a visit from his emotionally disturbed sister. The film features a fearless, hyper-anguished performance from Michael Fassbender, who is quickly becoming one the best film actors of our time. Masterfully directed by Steve McQueen (Hunger, 12 Years a Slave), who lets several scenes play out …
[8] Anne Hathaway and Rosemarie DeWitt star as sisters who duke it out when the former returns from rehab for the latter’s wedding. Rachel Getting Married is a low-budget departure for director Jonathan Demme (Silence of the Lambs), a chance for him to experiment and take some risks. The result is an interesting film shot in a documentary style with a script that gets surprisingly …
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