The Reel World

Walking out of Neighbors one thought struck me, and I haven’t been able to shake it since seeing the film.  I’m getting old.  It’s the revelation we all deal with at some point or another, and it seemed to be the overall theme of Neighbors.  Since Judd Apatow came along I think he has firmly created a new sub-genre the coming of middle-age film.  Seth Rogan seems to be the poster child of this new genre, and with his characters he is somewhat the ambassador of all man-children out there. 

“War leaves a mark.”

Even the people who manage to escape war with all their limbs intact feel its impact for the rest of their lives. Of course, it’s much trickier to spot the emotional and psychological wounds veterans like Eric Lomax carry with them. The Railway Man is based on Lomax’s harrowing World War II experiences and the day of reckoning, decades later, with one of his tormentors. In turning Lomax’s real-life story into a dramatic movie, the film doesn’t so much ask if revenge is good for the soul; it argues that it might be necessary.

"There are dark days ahead."

When Marc Webb took over the reigns of Spider-Man over at Sony, I had very mixed feelings. I was a pretty big fan of the comic as a kid, and the Raimi films were a pretty exciting time for me. OK, maybe not the third one. Webb came along and he put a fresh spin on the web-spinner by returning much of the story to its roots. I liked his first film, although it hasn't aged as well for me as the Raimi films did. But you can't get much better than Spider-Man, and I watched with diminishing anticipation as word leaked out bit by bit what Webb and Sony had in store for Peter Parker beyond The Amazing Spider-Man.

They don't make good romantic comedies anymore. The Other Woman is not a romantic comedy. It is a comedy...about three women having a romance with the same man. But the three women find out about each other and bond together in a “Sismance”. That's not a word, and it doesn't sound as good as bromance, but there you have it. Part of the problem is they don't make enough movies just for women, and that's what this is. It's a charming trifle along the lines of The First Wife's Club. There is always a creepy guy at the center, so creepy guys beware. It's a revenge comedy part of the time.

Being the last film completed by Paul Walker before his passing, fans are getting the chance to see their star up on the big screen before he takes his final bow in Fast & Furious 7. The only Paul Walker film that managed to get me excited was Running Scared. It was dark and gritty, and I feel director Wayne Kramer pulled a great performance out of Walker. Looking to Brick Mansions, a remake of the parkour French hit District B-13, it seemed like Walker could possibly have another teeth-cutting performance. But that’s not the case.

I have to be honest. Director Richard Shepard probably lost me in the first 10 seconds of Dom Hemingway. I can't help believing that my opinion was shaded a bit as I watched Jude Law as the titular character rambling some nonsensical dialog while having himself "taken care of" by a fellow inmate in prison. It's an image that lives with you long after the scene is done. Surprisingly, I did start to settle in for what looked like a more promising ride than I had first believed. And for about 40 minutes it actually became an almost good film.

There is nothing wrong with your movie screen. Jonathan Glazer controls all that you see and hear. That tiny speck of light you see is just the beginning. The beginning of an experience you will not soon forget. The light appears distant...cold... foreboding. It's coming closer to us, or we are coming closer to it. The distant star grows while you are assaulted with some of the most bizarre sounds you have ever heard. It's somewhat uncomfortable. You squirm in your seat. The light grows; its alien forms finally settles into an unexpected familiar form. Still, it's all rather unsettling. Jonathan Glazer controls more than all you see and hear. For the next two hours he controls your sanity... your very humanity.

Let me say something about myself. I have a saying. Atheists are stupid and agnostics are smart. The reason agnostics are smart is because they know they don't know. Faith is belief. The problem is that this is a cynical age. There are so many people who are atheists because they can cite facts about the universe and science. I always think it's absurd to hear an atheist talk, because they are so insulting to anyone who doesn't agree with them. So am I an agnostic?

"Hi, little guys."

There was a time, decades ago when Walt Disney Studios was doing quality documentaries on a pretty regular schedule. Many of them appeared on the television show The Wonderful World Of Disney, and more than a few were released as feature films. And while that tradition has continued somewhat, it's been a while since I was truly impressed by a Disney documentary. That all changes with the release of Bears.

Just about any project that Christopher Nolan has any attachment to is going to get my attention.  And from the first glimpses of the film in the early teasers, Transcendence always felt like a film Nolan would seem right at home making.  Instead taking the helm for the first time as director is Wally Pfister.  Though this may be his first time in the director’s chair, Pfister is no stranger to working on pictures of large scale; after all, he’s been Nolan’s director of photography since Memento back in 2000.  So how does Pfister do with his first at bat?  Well, it could be a lot worse…