Movie Review: Money Monster

I have to admit, Money Monster is not a movie that really made sit up say “Wow! I really need to see that!” It didn’t look all that bad, but hardly a must see in this day of flashy blockbusters and trendy indie offerings. It is a movie being marketed on old school star power, a method that doesn’t seem to hold the cache that it once did. There was a time when you could sell a movie based on the names Clooney, Roberts, and Foster, but I think that time is gone. It is not that they are not talented performers that deserve at least some attention, it is just that the movie does not really have a strong hook outside the stars’ names.

Movie Review: Tomorrowland (2015)

It seems like the art of trailer making is long gone. Yes, on occasion there are good ones, but more often than not, we get the movie condensed to two and a half minutes. A good example of a bad trailer would be last year's Carrie remake, sure a good portion of us know what happens in the movie, but the rest just need to watch the trailer, it tells you everything. Then there are trailers like the one for Tomorrowland, it intrigued me, it got my interest, yet I had absolutely no idea what the movie was about. It is a trailer that wants you to see the movie to find out just what it is. It worked.

Critical Capsule: The Monuments Men

So, the other night I saw The Monuments Men and today I thought I would share a few words but I really don't want to spend a lot of time on it. You see, while I love the story that is its basis, this movie just feels poorly executed and filled with missed opportunities. Its tone is all over the place, the characters do not have all that much chemistry and it feels disjointed as the characters spend a lot of time going in different directions. It is a movie that could have used a few more passes or actually made the interesting real life story interesting on the big screen.

Movie Review: Gravity

Alfonso Cuaron is a director I wish was a little more prolific. That could be a double edged sword. If he was more prolific, the resulting movies may not be nearly as good. In other words, I should just be grateful for what we get. His 2006 film, Children of Men, is simply phenomenal film making and one of my all time favorites. He was also the guy behind my favorite of the Harry Potter films, The Prisoner of Azkaban. Now, he has returned with a long in development special effects driven tale of humanity and survival. The movie is called simply Gravity.