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Starring: Steve Carrell, Juliette Binoche, Dane Cook, John Mahoney, Dianne West
Director: Peter Hedges
Release Date: October 26, 2007
Running time: 95 min
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Distributors: Touchstone Pictures
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Review by: Jeremy Welsch
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“Honey if you call and I'm not home I'll be at the gym or the gun club.” - Jack Butler, Mr. Mom
The Skinny: Steve Carrell is a single father of three girls who tries to pick up a woman who ends up being his brother’s girlfriend he was planning to introduce during a family function. Now they all have to spend the weekend together.
The Review: It’s funny how differently things hit you on different days. Depending on the day or week you are having, a movie can either sit well with you or sit like a ton of bricks. I wasn’t really expecting too much from this film, but I guess a funny thing happened on the way to the forum…
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The Skinny: Michael Moore takes on the United States health care system.
The Review: I've always found watching documentaries from a critical stand point to be something of a conundrum. On one hand, you are watching a movie so you are analyzing the entertainment value of the film. On the other, you are watching a documentary so the subject matter itself becomes part of the overall critique. Sure, in feature films the subject matter is always important, but you typically don't have your beliefs challenged or called into question as much as you do in a documentary. I mean, I can watch American Psycho and know it's a great movie without being in agreement with the psychopathic murderer's point of view. That being said, you can't watch a movie like Sicko and ignore the content. That sort of defeats the purpose of watching it in the first place.
My personal belief is that the information we get from the media in this country is carefully orchestrated and spoon-fed to us with a specific purpose in mind. We are quick to judge the actions of everyone else, but rarely hold ourselves accountable for any wrongdoing. That's kind of always been the American way. Listen, I think we live in the greatest country in the world, but we do have our flaws. And they are glaring. If we don't like the way you are doing things, we'll kick down the door and beat you in to submission until you see things our way. It's the same mentality behind going to a smaller college so you are viewed as a person and "not just a number" or working for a smaller company versus a large corporation: we are just a little too big for our britches most of the time and tend to lose sight of the fact that our actions can affect the people who run this country (or at least who should be running the country): us, the general public.
This film is basically the antithesis of what we have been told over and over about health care in this country by our government and media.
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Starring: Clive Owen, Paul Giamatti, Monica Bellucci
Director: Michael Davis
Producer: Susan Montford, Don Murphy
Release Date: September 7, 2003
Running time: 87 min
MPAA Rating: R
Distributors: New Line Cinema
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Review by Jeremy Welsch
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“Nothing could be more painful than listening to you jabberin' on and on.”
- Mr. Smith, Shoot ‘Em Up
“What have I, what have I, what have I done to deserve this?”
- Pet Shop Boys
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
- Jesus
The Skinny: No skinny. Just read.
The Review: What is your favorite food? Maybe it’s something your mother made for you growing up or maybe it’s something you only have during the holidays. Whatever it is, I want you to close your eyes and picture it in your head. Think about how it tastes. How it smells. Think about all the reasons you like it. Now, with your eyes still closed, picture this fabulous meal of meals, the one true object of your culinary affections, your all-time desert island favorite meal of all time, being served to you with a big, fresh, steaming, smelly ladle of baby food colored, I just ate five truck load of the worlds worst sushi and don’t think I’m going to make it to the bathroom, shit smothered all over the top of it. You are now about 10% on your way to describing what I felt like watching this movie. |
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Starring: Josh Hartnett, Melissa George, Danny Huston, Ben Foster
Director: David Slade
Release Date: October 19, 2007
Running time: 113 min
MPAA Rating: R
Distributors: Columbia Pictures
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Review by: Jeremy Welsch
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“You are a vampire who never knew what life was until it ran out in a big gush over your lips.” - Lestat, Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles
“God? No God.” - Marlow, 30 Days of Night
The Skinny: Vampires descend on Barrow, Alaska as they enter a month of prolonged darkness during the winter solstice.
The Review: Somewhere, some time I read that Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) affects almost 25% of Alaskan residents to some degree. It would stand to reason that residents of Barrow, Alaska, the northernmost settlement on the North American mainland and in the United States, would make up the largest portion of that percentage. With just over 4,000 residents in the town, 25% would put us at right about 1,000 people impacted. Christ, don’t these people have enough to worry about? Now there are vampires attacking?
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GOODBYE BAFANA: Memoirs of a Prison Guard |
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Directed by Bille August | Written by Bob Graham, James Gregory | Starring Joseph Fiennes, Diane Kruger, Dennis Haysbert | Distributed by United International Pictures (France) | Running Time: 140 mins
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Film Review by Daphne Laura
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This true story is based on the book written by James Gregory, the white South African who served as prison guard to Nelson Mandela. It is a simple film which deals with sensitive subject matters such as discrimination, racism and the effect of the apartheid policy during those turbulent years in South Africa's history. But more than this, it is an interesting case study of one man's character development. |
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PARIS, JE T'AIME: Stories of Love. From the City of Love |
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Directed by Olivier Assayas, Alfonso Cuaron, Wes Craven, Gerard Depardieu, Ethan Coen, Joel Coen, Walter Salles, Alexander Payne, Isabel Coixet, Gus Van Sant, Tom Tykwer | Starring Natalie Portman, Gaspart Ulliel, Steve Buscemi, Gena Rowlands, Ben Gazzara, Nick Nolte, Juliette Binoche, Fanny Ardant, Bob Hoskins, Willem Dafoe, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Elijah Wood, Daniel Podalydes | Distributed by First Look International (USA) | Running Time: 120 mins
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Film Review by Daphne Laura
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18 short love stories by different directors, all set in Paris, France. A montage of films, each lasting roughly about 5 minutes, and cleverly edited to depict snippets of life in the French capital. Each segment is directed by a different director and surprisingly every episode has a beginning, a middle and an ending which doesn't leave you hankering for more. It caters to everyone in the audience, regardless of whether one has been to the City of Lights or merely browsed the sights and sounds of Paris through magazines, the TV, the Internet or in films. |
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FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS: Fluttering aimlessly |
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Directed by Clint Eastwood | Written by William Broyles and Paul Haggis | Starring Ryan Philippe, Jesse Bradford, Adam Beach, Jamie Bell, Barry Pepper, Paul Walker | Distributed by DreamWorks SKG (USA) | Running Time: 132 mins
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Film Review by Daphne Laura
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I read the book by James Bradley and Ron Powers, all 356 pages of it. I was totally engrossed by the detailed way it was written and absorbed every single well-researched bit of information with gusto. I was therefore naturally curious to see how Clint Eastwood would interpret the story of the six flag raisers of Iwo Jima. Sad to say, I left the theater pretty disappointed by the film. |
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2:37: From the Eyes of an Alienated |
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Written, Produced and Directed by Murali K. Thalluri | Executive Producers: Murali K. Thalluri, Kent Smith, Gary Hamilton, Nick Selth, Dean O'Flaherty | Editor: Murali K. Thalluri, Nick Matthews, Dale Roberts | Production Designer: Jeni Lee | Sound: Leslie Shatz | Music: Mark Tschanz | Principal Cast: Teresa Palmer, Joel Mackenzie, Frank Sweet, Clementine Mellor, Charles Baird
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Review by Jed Medina
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“A close friend committed suicide in late 2003, and left me a video suicide note. It was something that affected me immensely to the point where, over months, and coupled with my own personal problems, I was driven to depression and ultimately to an attempt on my own life, “ says 21-year-old director Murali K. Thalluri.
In making his debut film 2:37, Thalluri has exorcised his own demons and paid tribute to his late friend. While there are a number of films that have examined the lives of young teens, this is possibly the first feature film to have been created by one of them. But being young does not prevent Thalluri from delivering a powerful and poignant film. On the contrary, this complex movie dwells on some of the most sensitive and serious issues affecting students who are on the verge of becoming adults.
Weaving together a multi-layered plot, 2:37 studies the effects of violence, drug abuse, homosexuality, incest and bullying on the lives of six students in a school in Adelaide, Australia.
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RED ROAD: Of Guilt and Forgiveness |
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Directed by Andrea Arnold | Produced by Carrie Comerford | Written by Andrea Arnold, Anders Thomas Jensen, Lone Scherfig | Starring Kate Dickie, Tony Curran | Cinematography Robbie Ryan | Editing by Nicolas Chaudeurge | Distributed by Tartan Films (USA) | Running time 113 min
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Review by Jed Medina
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"Tell me how it happened...I just want to know...please!"
After an incident that left both of them bewildered and shocked, Jackie (Kate Dickie) confronts Clyde (Tony Curran). Clyde is someone from Jackie's past, but just how he's connected to her is still unknown. She simply crossed the street and started shouting at him, and he looks surprised and a bit afraid of her.
Red Road is the astonishing and unforgettable story of Jackie, a CCTV operator who must confront her past in order to wake up from the stupor of her self-imposed isolation.
“The film is called RED ROAD because it’s set in the Red Road flats,' explains Carrie Comerford, the film's producer. These flats are so recognizable that they have become a landmark in that part of Glasgow. But the film could have been made in any other city and Jackie’s story would remain the same.
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ZODIAC: Insights into a Criminal Mind |
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Directed by David Fincher | Written by James Vanderbilt and Robert Graysmith | Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, Anthony Edwards, Elias Koteas, Robert Downey, Jr, John Carroll Lynch, Chloe Sevigny Distributed by Paramount Pictures | Running Time: 158 minutes
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Film Review by Daphne Laura
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This film is based on actual case files about a serial killer named "Zodiac" with references from the books written by Robert Graysmith. Graysmith is the San Francisco Chronicle cartoonist, portrayed by Jake Gyllenhaal, who got obsessed with the case. David Fincher, who also helmed "Se7en", "Panic Room" and "Fight Club", uses a now familiar visual technique prominent in most of his films: dim, grainy images and a few jarring hand-held effects to depict the era/setting of the film. "Zodiac" starts in the late 60s and spans four decades.
To give the film more of a documentary feel, the time frame is shown on screen to indicate the evolution of the case. But it distracted me because I kept trying to figure out "8 weeks later from which month?". Well, I was never good in math anyway!
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SUNSHINE: A psychological journey |
Directed by Danny Boyle | Written by Alex Garland | Starring Rose Byrne, Cliff Curtis, Chris Evans, Troy Garity, Cillian Murphy, Hiroyuki Sanada, Mark Strong, Benedict Wong, Michelle Yeoh
Review by Rina H.
2057: The Sun is dying. The Earth is covered with ice. Eight astronauts on board the spaceship Icarus II pursue a mission to carry a bomb into the Sun to save the Earth and its inhabitants.
"If the Sun dies, so do we..."
What does it feel like to lose the ground under your feet? What does it feel like to be that far away from the Earth, somewhere out in space? What does it feel like to reach the end of the world, the end of being able to understand? In an interview with the German movie magazine Cinema, director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, The Beach) said that all these questions represent what his movie Sunshine is about. His aim was to let everything appear as real as possible with a focus on psychological aspects.
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Producer: Anna Anthony | Screenplay: Josef Fares | Director: Josef Fares | Cinematography: Aril Wretblad | Editing: Michal Leszczylowski, Kristin Grundström | Music: Adam Nordén.
Principal Cast: Imad Creidi, Antoinette Turk, Elias Gergi, Carmen Lebbos, Viktor Axelsson, Charbel Iskandar, Yasmine Awad, Jad Stephan .
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Review by Jed Medina
Zozo is a 10-year old boy who goes to school and hangs out with his friends playing soccer in war-torn Lebanon. The year is 1987 and the civil war is raging on.
To escape from all the violence and chaos, his family decide to leave Beirut and emigrate to Sweden. His grandparents have already settled there and await them anxiously. But on the day the travel papers arrive, their house is shelled, killing everyone instantly, except Zozo and his older brother. As they escape from the bombing, they encounter a group of soldiers who begin firing at them. Running for their lives, his brother orders him to hide inside a garbage bin. That is the last he hears of him. With only his grandparents alive, he has to find his way to the airport and begin a new life...
Directed by Josef Fares (who was himself born in Beirut and emigrated to Sweden), Zozo is almost an autobiographical movie. Using a refreshing combination of fantasy, comedy and drama, Zozo takes a look at how a young boy's life is affected by the tragic death of his family, his struggles to move on, and the challenges he has to face in order to fit in a society so different and sometimes so hostile to him.
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FRACTURE: Enough to thrill? |
Directed by Gregory Hoblit | Written by Daniel Pyne and Glen Gers | Starring Anthony Hopkins, Ryan Gosling, David Strathairn, Rosamund Pike, Billy Burke
Distributed by New Line Cinema | Running Time: 112 minutes
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Film Review by Daphne Laura
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The trailer for "Fracture" reveals practically everything about this thriller. It is marketed as an open and closed case with a twist. The film makers pique our interest by suggesting things aren't as easy as they seem in this murder mystery. If they were, then why bother watching it, right?
Ted Crawford (Anthony Hopkins), a wealthy aeronautics engineer, shoots his wife at close range after he discovers she is having an affair. He confesses to the detective in charge, is arrested and arraigned for trial. Willy Beachum (Ryan Gosling) is a young public defender with a foot out of the door as he embarks on his new career with a private law firm. He takes the case assuming it will be an easy one to handle but ends up embroiled with something more than he bargained for.
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IRREVERSIBLE: Time destroys everything |
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Directed by Gaspar Noé | written by Gaspar Noé | starring Monica Bellucci, Vincent Cassel, Albert Dupontel, Jo Prestia... | Running time 97 min.
Review by Rina H.
Titled the “most walked-out-of movie of the year” by American magazine Newsweek, Irréversible was the most controversial and shocking movie at Cannes in 2002.
With on one hand graphic violence and an eight minutes long rape scene and on the other hand interesting camera shots and a high amount of realistic flair. the movie split its audience into two camps.
The story can be told in a few sentences. After a conflict with her boyfriend Marcus (Vincent Cassel) at a friend’s party, Alex (Monica Bellucci) leaves to walk back home. On her way she is brutally raped and beaten up by a man (Jo Prestia) in a lonely underpass and falls into a coma. Driven by rage and a desire for revenge Marcus and his friend Pierre (Albert Dupontel) search for the rapist and turn into cruel and brutal animals themselves. |
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THE GOOD SHEPHERD: A Chilling Portrait of a Spy |
Directed by Robert De Niro | Written by Eric Roth | Starring Matt Damon, Angelina Jolie, William Hurt, Alec Baldwin, Robert De Niro, Billy Crudup, Michael Gambon, Joe Pesci, and John Turturro.
Distributed by Universal Pictures | Running time 156 min.
Review by Jed Medina
"Get out while you still can... while you still have a soul," says the professor to Edward Wilson (Matt Damon). He then ties Wilson's shoe lace and walks ahead. It is a sign that the old fellow is not going to quit and leave his job quietly. What follows next is the story of how the British intelligence 'retires' one of their own. The professor who teaches poetry is not really an ideal member of the establishment, being a homosexual and a very promiscuous one at that. It is an eye opener for Wilson who is in London for his counter-intelligence training.
Set in the pre-Cold War era and the years thereafter, The Good Shepherd is a fictional story about the birth of counter-intelligence and the CIA. Through the eyes of Edward Wilson, we see how spies worked during an era when the race for world dominance between the Soviet Union and the United States was at its peak. Using flashbacks, we learn how Edward became involved in counter-intelligence; these events are intertwined with the present as he tries to uncover the recent fallout in which the US failed in the Bay of Pigs invasion. Stating that 'there is a stranger in the house', he and his team try to uncover where the leak came from and who gave the information to the Cubans (and to their Russian counterparts). |
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Movie Reviews 
