TITLE: Good People
RELEASE DATE: 8/12/2014
RATING: R
Discovering a cache of cash in their dead tenant’s apt, a couple in debt take the money and find themselves the target of a deadly adversary-the thief who stole it.
What did you think of this film?
During Credits? No
After Credits? No
Special thanks to Frank S. for this submission
TITLE: The Equalizer (aka. The Equalizer: The IMAX Experience)
RELEASE DATE: 9/26/2014
RATING: R
A man believes he has put his mysterious past behind him and has dedicated himself to beginning a new, quiet life. But when he meets a young girl under the control of ultra-violent Russian gangsters, he can’t stand idly by – he has to help her.
What did you think of this film?
During Credits? No
After Credits? No
[wpolling_archive id=”22″ vote=”true” type=”open”]
TITLE: Plastic
RELEASE DATE: 9/26/2014
RATING: R
Sam & Fordy run a credit card fraud scheme, but when they steal from the wrong man, they find themselves threatened by sadistic gangster. They need to raise £5m and pull off a daring diamond heist to clear their debt.
What did you think of this film?
During Credits? No
After Credits? No
Special thanks to Frank S. for this submission
TITLE: A Walk Among the Tombstones
RELEASE DATE: 9/19/2014
RATING: R
Private investigator Matthew Scudder is hired by a drug kingpin to find out who kidnapped and murdered his wife.
What did you think of this film?
During Credits? No
After Credits? No
I love crime dramas and I consider it to be one of my favorite genres, however, I think it’s now facing one huge issue. For every film like Killing them Softly or Drive, you’ll find a hollow, clichéd film that wallows in how horrible its characters are and bashes you over the head with the shallow and unoriginal messages that’s it’s trying to say. Everybody loves crime dramas, but in this we face a problem because that means that we will also have to endure a bunch of hack writers who are failing to capture the magic of the movies and shows they are inspired by and in so come up with movies that choose cynicism over wit and feel pretentious, lazy and insincere. Director Michaël R. Roskam’s film The Drop doesn’t go into territory that I would call groundbreaking or daring, but what the movie has going for it is that it always feels genuine. Nothing felt heavy handed or forced and it was all done with a highest level of competence from everyone.
Bob (Tom Hardy) is a bartender at a bar that is often the drop box for the money of the mob. When he finds a brutally beaten pit bull puppy in a garbage can, he adopts and takes care of it with the help of one of his neighbors (Noomi Rapace) whom he begins to have a romantic relationship with. All while this is happening, Bob and his boss Marv (James Gandolfini) must figure how to come into good terms again with the mob after the bar gets robbed.
As I said above, the thing that works best about the movie is the attention it gives to making you care about its characters. I think this might be my 2nd favorite Tom Hardy performance to Bronson. Even though he is creating this accent for the part, Hardy feels very natural in the role. Because of him and the writing, Bob may be one of the most likable protagonists I’ve seen so far this year. You never get the feeling that Hardy is using this role for an Oscar or credibility. Due to facial expressions and his outstanding chemistry with Gandolfini and Rapace; we are given this touching portrayal of a truly nice, kind hearted person who also has to do some terrible things because of the line of work he has chosen. He does some pretty brutal things near the end but throughout he is so well written and Tom Hardy seems so relaxed into the character that you are still rooting for him to succeed even if he might be a bit of a psychopath at times.
Praising Tom’s performance first isn’t to give shame to the rest of its outstanding cast. James Gandolfini’s final role might not be delivering something new or groundbreaking in the actor but it still shows him at his best. Like Hardy, James gets you to sympathize with this man who is doing terrible things because he’s stuck between a rock and a hard place. What makes Marv different from Bob is that Marv craves the excitement and intensity of the criminal underworld and won’t mind using it to his advantage while Bob will keep away from that place for as far as he can go. The chemistry between Bob and Marv plays as a sort of dysfunctional father/son relationship that feels honest and at times bleak and at times funny. Equally great is Noomi Rapace as Bob’s sort of girlfriend Nadia. Again, the chemistry she shares with Bob is rather strange but the dialogue that they share together is poignant and Tom Hardy and Noomi Rapace do an incredible job playing off of each other. It’s all very grounded and despite all of this intense stuff that is going on the romance part felt oddly sweet. Also worth mentioning is Matthias Schoenaerts who played Eric, Nadia’s ex-boyfriend and the original owner of the pit bull. He does a good job playing someone you really would like to punch while still making him seem like a real person. One of my favorite scenes in the movie is one where it shows him breaking into Nadia’s house to speak to her. Usually they would just cut to Nadia going into the house and finding Eric there but the movie goes one step beyond and shows before that with him looking around her house and practicing what he will say to her. It’s a cliché that happens a lot in movies but that one extra step made Eric feel more human and moved the plot point away from the pack.
All of the technical areas of the movie worked really well. I really enjoyed the music by Marco Beltrami; it gave the movie a subtle 70’s crime vibe without feeling too obvious that it was paying homage. The cinematography by Nicolas Karakatsanis captured the cold yet comforting nature of the story and the setting.
The movie works at is best due to its great set of characters. Writer Dennis Lehane builds such strong characters that you can sympathize with them even at their lowest points. Throughout, the movie tackles a question that has certainly been done before. Can Bob morally juggle a kind, gentle life with the terrible things he sometimes does? The movie isn’t so much about redemption as it is about a person dealing with something they have to do if they want to survive. There throughout is this switching between Bob doing bad things for a good life and doing good things for a bad life and by the end you get to see him be accepted for everything that he is and despite all of the gritty, dark things that have gone down, you leave the movie feeling that it was very heartwarming and inspiring. Anybody can make a trashy movie that shows how terrible the criminal underworld is but it takes a true artist to portray the true happiness and warmth in the people behind it all. This is the kind of movie that thrives on the nuances of the calm before the storm.
The Drop is not a perfect movie. Clichés happen in here that would annoy me in other films and if you wanted to, you could probably nitpick this movie to pieces, but because of charming performances and a sincere screenplay, the movie an undeniable success when it comes to its message. Dark things will always happen and nobody will ever be perfect, but the best that anyone can do is try to find kindness and compassion despite what is happening.
Rating:[star rating=”4″ numeric=”yes”]
Release Date: 9/12/2014
Rating: R
Cast: Tom Hardy, Noomi Rapace, James Gandolfini and Matthias Schoenaerts
Directed by: Michaël R. Roskam
Screenplay by: Dennis Lehane
Based on the Short Story “Animal Rescue” by: Dennis Lehane
TITLE: The Drop
RELEASE DATE: 9/12/2014
RATING: R
Bob Saginowski finds himself at the center of a robbery gone awry and entwined in an investigation that digs deep into the neighborhood’s past where friends, families, and foes all work together to make a living – no matter the cost.
What did you think of this film?
During Credits? No
After Credits? No
NOTE: In Loving Memory of James Gandolfini.
TITLE: Scarface
RELEASE DATE: 12/9/1983
RATING: R
In 1980 Miami, a determined Cuban immigrant takes over a drug cartel while succumbing to greed.
What did you think of this film?
During Credits? No
After Credits? No
NOTE: This film is dedicated to Howard Hawks and Ben Hecht.
Special thanks to Frank S. for this submission
Sin City: A Dame to Kill For is an example of decent disposable entertainment. The movie proves that forgettable popcorn fun doesn’t have to sacrifice effort. This long awaited sequel doesn’t have the same emotional impact as the first movie but its visually stunning, has a great cast and kept me entertained while I was watching it.
A Dame to Kill For has the same narrative structure as the first movie. We get to watch three barely connected stories play out in the corrupt, filthy Basin City. The first storyline takes place after the events of the first film as we see Nancy (Jessica Alba) failing to keep together after the suicide of detective Haritgan (Bruce Willis). She decides to seek vengeance against the corrupt Senator Roarke (Powers Boothe) who drove Haritgan to kill himself. The second storyline follows a gambler named Johnny (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and the hell that follows after he goes up against Senator Roarke in a game of poker. The third segment taking place before the first film features a private detective (Josh Brolin) who finds himself going up against Ava Lord (Eva Green), a very seductive monster who has no problem destroying people to get what she wants.
The biggest problem with the movie is that this time around they are embracing the gimmicks of its concept. With the last movie, the style and the noir homage was played against ambitious stories with a unique screenplay. Sin City 2 has the same type of writing and visuals without a lot of the originality and heart that made the first one so memorable. This time they take the beats and use them for simple action thriller purposes. It’s not that this is poorly written, it’s just that the characters are clichéd and the stories are predictable in the way that it is something you would expect to see in a cheap, low budget B movie of the 40’s and 50’s. The dialogue sounds pretty but lacks it a general passion that makes it come off as witty. The movie isn’t taking itself as serious this time around and if you want something that is just as epic you will be pretty disappointed but if you understand that this is a more laid back and pulpy take on the world they created, there are a couple of reasons why you may still enjoy it if you go along with the ride.
The visuals are just as brilliant and unfiltered as they were before. Sin City’s greatest asset is how well the world they create mixes explosive, modern effects with a grimy, 40’s, black and white charm. There are so many stunning shots thanks to director and cinematographer Robert Rodriguez. You could say that the pure, gigantic ambition of the dreamlike setting mixed with breath taking moments of action and energy is what keeps this movie feeling so alive. You can watch this movie and you can see the sheer passion that went into the look of every scene. This movie does have one thing that that is an improvement and that is Rodriguez’s choice to make the movie in 3D. Usually this can come off as an overused and sloppy gimmick but in this case the breathtaking effects fit with the extra layers of 3D like a glove. The movie is already incredible to watch but with this the originality and the undeniable effort leaps off the screen. If one of your problems with 3D is that it makes the screen look dark, have no fear, a lot of this movie is already in black and white already. This very much reminds me of the 3D for Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby. You’re taking an artist who has always been highly stylized and your letting their visions jump out at you.
The energy and excitement of the cinematography is enough for me to give this a decent enough rating, but I also found myself really enjoying the performances. Mickey Rourke cherishes every moment he is on screen with his role as Marv, the violent criminal with a heart of gold. Josh Brolin is solid if not exactly doing something that places his character beyond other stock, brooding anti-heroes of recent memory. Eva Green also looks like she’s enjoying herself chewing humongous amounts of scenery while playing the villain part. Joseph Gordon-Levitt definitely gives the most emotional performance out of the cast and the calmness and subtle depth that he brings to Johnny makes it far and away the best segment of the three. I even thought Jessica Alba did ok with the part she was given even if she is a weaker actress. One of the great things that surprised me is that no one in the cast (even Bruce Willis in a small role) seems like they’re doing this as a paycheck, people in the movie are either giving decent performances or having a lot of fun camping up there ridiculous characters. Because of that, the storylines and characters feel less generic and more or less play to the idea of how delightfully entertaining the movie is supposed to be.
The movie fails to deliver on a product that is as powerful as the one that came before it. That being said, Sin City: A Dame to Kill For remains an endlessly stunning film to look at (especially in 3D) and the actors and the writers do a good job making the style and structure pulpier without it feeling lazy. Sin City 2 isn’t something I’m going to remember but it is something I had a shockingly big amount of fun with which is why it is a disappointment to see it failing so miserably at the box office.
Rating:[star rating=”3.5″ numeric=”yes”]
Release Date: 4/4/2014
Rating: R
Cast: Jessica Alba, Eva Green, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Rosario Dawson and Josh Brolin
Directed by: Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez
Written by: Frank Miller
Based on the graphic novel by: Frank Miller
TITLE: Life of Crime
RELEASE DATE: 8/29/2014
RATING: R
Two common criminals get more than they bargained for after kidnapping the wife of a corrupt real-estate developer who shows no interest in paying the $1 million dollar ransom for her safe return.
What did you think of this film?
During Credits? No
After Credits? No
NOTE: for Elmore
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