At the Megaplex
Chronicle – 2 1/2 Buckets
The best thing about Chronicle, a found-footage style mock-doc that follows three teenage boys who develop telekinetic superpowers after encountering a glowing (alien?) mass in an underground cave, is that it treats… [Read more]
The Woman in Black – 2 1/2 Buckets
Is it possible for an entire genre to be played out? That’s the question I had when watching The Woman in Black, which is, in nearly every objective sense, an old-fashioned ghost story done right. The atmosphere is spooky, the art… [Read more]
Big Miracle – 3 Buckets
To enjoy Big Miracle, you have to buy into it, and to buy into it, you have to watch it with the eyes of a child. When I say “buy into it,” I don’t mean to believe in the movie’s plausibility—this is that rare “true story” that’s actually true… [Read more]
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At the Art-House
Kill List – 1 Bucket
Because I saw the film at a private screening with under a dozen fellow journalists, I can’t attest to whether Kill List’s “WTF!?”-brand of narrative trickery plays better with a loud Midnight crowd. But I can say that, exhibition context… [Read more]
Declaration of War – 3 Buckets
Declaration of War opens very similarly to dozens of new-age romances – the two young, attractive leads lock eyes at a club, music blaring and drugs present. When they introduce themselves to one another, we learn that their names… [Read more]
Norwegian Wood – 3 Buckets
I have not seen either of filmmaker Anh Hung Tran’s famed works from the 1990s, The Scent of Green Papaya and Cyclo, but based on Norwegian Wood, I need to play catch-up very soon. Adapted from a novel by the legendary… [Read more]
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Columns / Blogs
Box Office Predictions – Weekend of Feb 3
Most Americans associate this weekend with the Super Bowl, not the movie theater, but this has historically been a decent frame to release two types of films: teen horror (The Roommate, The Messengers, When a Stranger Calls) and women’s counterprogramming (Dear John, Because I Said So). CBS Films hopes they’ve combined both into one with The Woman in Black, a ghost story that happens to star a female favorite, Harry Potter‘s Daniel Radcliffe… [Read more]
Box Office Predictions – Weekend of Jan 27
It’s that time of the week again, and I have box office predictions at the ready for the three films opening in wide release today. This weekend brings Liam Neeson battling wolves, Katherine Heigl bounty hunting, and Sam Worthington threatening to jump off a ledge – yep, it’s still January, all right. Additionally, because the Oscar nominations were released on Tuesday, you can expect some healthy jumps from those films that made the cut. Without further ado… [Read more]
Box Office Predictions – Weekend of Jan 20
Hello, readers – it’s once again time to play the weekly box office predictions game. Apologies for my unannounced absence last Thursday – a run-in with what I can only presume to be some of the worst food-poisoning man has ever experienced left me bedridden for nearly five days. But I’m back, baby, and ready to haphazardly throw around numbers as usual… [Read more]
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