One of the most natural and engaging documentaries I've seen. 3.5 out of 4
It is interesting that Catfish be released soon after The Social Network, as both films present some insightful portrayals of the Facebook generation. While Social Network traced Facebook’s less-than humble beginnings, Catfish captures a real piece of the culture that followed soon after.
It was announced, not too long ago, that a prequel to John Carpenter’s The Thing was in the works. Soon after, Ridley Scott announced that he was working on a prequel to Alien.
I don’t even know where to begin.
Understated, tender and resonate. 3 1/2 out of 4 Stars
Never Let Me Go is not the first film about cloning and organ harvesting, yet it’s the first film to do so seriously, and in the subtlest of forms. In fact, the film is less about cloning and more about the human condition, which makes it truly original and effective.
This year has been a bad year for movies. Yes there have been highlights; Inception and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World were great, and there’s about five others that were really good watchable movies, but beyond that the competition drops off really quickly. Luckily, as we’ve exited one of the worst summers for film I can remember, we’ve begun to get back to the season where studios have deemed it is acceptable to release “good” movies. While not quite Oscar season, we still have been treated to what some say will be an Oscar contender in The Social Network, the new David Fincher film written by Aaron Sorkin and based on the story of the creation of the ubiquitous facebook.
Let’s get this straight. This is not really “the facebook movie.” When I say that, what I mean is that despite its name, it’s not really about facebook at all. To its great benefit, this film is about people, specifically a small number of characters, their friendship, and the way it was affected by greed, pride, and betrayal. It takes the backdrop of an important event in recent history and uses it to feature universal human truths and emotions in a way that every audience member should be able to relate to, not just the people of the “facebook generation” for which I unfortunately must count myself a part of. facebook’s effect on the world and the way we communicate is only dealt with tangentially, as in moments when characters declare that “facebook me” became a common phrase across the Harvard campus. Continue reading
As sharp and perfectly executed as they come. 4/4.
Tom DiCillo’s Living in Oblivion is a labor love about a labor love. Making a film, especially an independent film, isn’t easy. With all the various problems that collide with one another on set, it’s a miracle anything ever gets finished. It’s no wonder that everyone in the film industry is borderline, if not certifiably insane.
We enter another week of “Taking Stock,” our weekly column in which the entire staff tells you what they think of the movies coming out this week based on very little knowledge and first impressions.
InceptionJames: I’ve seen this already. It’s the best film of the year so far and already amongst my favorite films ever. What do I have to do to get you to go see it? You’re not going yet? Go. Now. No seriously, now.
Benn: Best movie of the summer by far, and probably amongst the best of the year.
Dylan: My only concern is that I don’t have high enough expectations. Everytime I see the trailer, I get a little chubby in my pantaloons. Seeing it A.S.A.P.
Fil: I’m very obviously excited about this. Hopefully some people (JAMES) don’t hype it too much. Definitely going to see this tonight, go see it and form your own opinions people. Continue reading
We enter another week of “Taking Stock,” our weekly column in which the entire staff tells you what they think of the movies coming out this week based on very little knowledge and first impressions. If it were last impressions, these would be reviews.
Despicable MeJames: The trailers look cute but forgettable and I’m still not 100% sure what this is even about. I’m predicting this to be a decent rental.
Benn: Looks fun, but not my thing really.
Dylan: I’m not really sure why I should care about this movie. There are yellow freaks and Steve Carell and that’s about all I gathered from the trailer. Not the top movie on my list.
Fil: I think this might be kind of a fun movie to see. Not exactly something I expect greatness out of, but it might surprise us. Focusing on the ancillary characters in trailers is usually a bad sign though. <-Formatting error…or subtle hint that my opinion is more important?
Anna: The teasers looked like shit, but I recently saw a full trailer and it looked fun. I’d give it a try.
Light-hearted fun, but not much else. 2.5 out of 4
“Micmacs” is a French word similar to “knick-knacks”, as in “a little of this, a little of that.” In many ways, this describes Jean Pierre Jeunet’s latest film pretty well, as its made up of charming little ideas, yet doesn’t add up to anything all-too substantial.
We enter another week of “Taking Stock,” our weekly column in which the entire staff tells you what they think of the movies coming out this week based on very little knowledge and first impressions.
The Twilight Saga: EclipseJames: What do I say about Twilight that hasn’t been said on this site 100 times already? The trailer looks better than the first two? That doesn’t take much.
Benn: You know what? I’ve said everything that needs to be said about this terrible, terrible thing. Google “Fur and Loathing, Lock Stock” for my summation of “Twilight.”
Dylan: I’ve heard this is the best of the Twilight movies thus far. It’s like ranking S.T.D’s in order of most tolerable. This represents all that is bad in the world.
Fil: I, for one, am so excited about this. GO TEAM BUFFY!
Anna: All I’m going to say is that there was a trailer for this before Iron Man 2. Everybody in the theater made noises of disgust. I joined in.
Don't know what he's looking at...it's not the beach.
Last night, I watched one of the more depressing movies I’ve ever seen. It was about this old guy who tells a story to a female resident of this nursing home. He tells the story of a couple who had fallen in love, and there were some plot twists and things, and at the end…YOU REALIZE THAT THE MAN AND THE WOMAN WERE THE PEOPLE IN THE STORY BUT THEY JUST HAD ALZHEIMER’S. Then they die, and there are swans flying as the credits roll. The tears were just flying out of my eyes, it was terrible.
So anyways, I didn’t actually watch The Notebook, but my writing skills are just so good, that I totally had you going, didn’t I? Hah! The movie I actually watched last night was On the Beach, a 1959 film about the end of the civilized world. It was directed by Stanley Kramer and starred Gregory Peck, Ava Gardner, Anthony Perkins, and Fred Astaire. Being born in good ol’ 1985, I have no idea who any of those people are, but apparently they’re some big movie stars?
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