VIVA RIVA!

10/24/2011

 
Congolese crime story with Angolan gangsters, nudity, sex and violence. Lots of twists & turns.
Official Site: http://vivariva.com/

HANNA

10/20/2011

 
Love the cast; (Saoirse Ronan, Eric Bana, Cate Blanchett,) music: The Chemical Brothers and pretty much everything about this movie.
Official Site: http://hannathemovie.com

BLITZ

8/29/2011

 
Jason Statham is a bad ass mofo and expert at mumbling pithy lines delivered with withering stares. Love him. Pair him with Paddy Considine as his gay boss / partner, add U.K. flair and style to a police drama which includes a female cop straight out of rehab and have them all chase a fascinating evil psycho cop killer perfectly realized by Aidan Gillen. Loved it.

More info: http://www.britscene.com/2010/10/blitz-2/3634

LIMITLESS

8/26/2011

 
Bradley Cooper vehicle: and what a ride it is. Based on the book The Dark Fields. So what if the science is junk, and there's holes in the logic of the story. It's a fun well-crafted film!

Official Site: http://www.iamrogue.com/limitless/fullsite/
 
Joan Crawford as a bitter disfigured blackmailer who, with the help of a cuckold plastic surgeon, played by Melvyn Douglas, transforms herself. Directed by George Cukor: wonderful! On TCM.
 
Preposterous, weird combo of romance and sci-fi, beautifully photographed by John Toll. Adapted from Phillip K. Dick's 1954 short story. Great locations and cinematography.

Official Site: www.theadjustmentbureau.com

THE LINCOLN LAWYER

7/14/2011

 
Routine yet engaging adaptation of a Michael Connelly novel. Matthew McConaughey's well cast in this role as an L.A. criminal defense attorney with a southern drawl. The characters are interesting, the tension builds and ultimately pays-off despite the egregious camera zooms.

Official Site: http://www.thelincolnlawyermovie.com/
Netflix: http://movies.netflix.com/Movie/The_Lincoln_Lawyer/70167077?trkid=496624

THE HOUSEMAID

7/4/2011

 
Worth seeing for the locations alone, hard to discuss without revealing the ending. See it.

Official Site: http://www.ifcfilms.com/films/the-housemaid
Netflix: http://movies.netflix.com/Movie/The_Housemaid/70139521?trkid=496624
 
Jean Renoir's french poetic realism "film noir" about love, madness and locomotives adapted from Émile Zola's novel. Tragic. Suspenseful. Magnificent trains. Don't be put-off by the opening title roll-up: this is a master work!

Official Site: http://www.criterion.com/films/773-la-bete-humaine
Netflix: http://movies.netflix.com/Movie/La_Bete_Humaine/70012503?trkid=496624#height1933

RED WHITE & BLUE

5/19/2011

 
Here's a way to build suspense; don't explain what's going on, and end scenes in the middle, so the viewer is kept wondering "what the...?" and unable to apply finger to fast forward button lest something is revealed. Violent, bloody, revenge film set in Austin Texas. Creepy messed-up characters and weirdly engaging performances. Nasty, mean little disjointed movie which sucked me in for a few minutes.

Official Site: http://www.redwhitebluemovie.com
Netflix: http://movies.netflix.com/Movie/Red_White_Blue/70134423?trkid=496624#height1765