Category Archives: Drama Movie Reviews
The Place Beyond the Pines (2012)
The Place Beyond the Pines (2012)
The Place Beyond the Pines was not exactly what I expected it to be. The film was unique because there were multiple layers to the story as well as to each of the characters. The storyline flowed nicely even though each layer of it seemed to change who the main characters were. The mood of the movie was rough and intense throughout with a darkness that few films are capable of.
Luke (Ryan Gosling) is a motorcycle stunt driver whose life gets turned upside down after finding out that he is a father. In order to try to provide for his kid, he quits his job and begins robbing banks. Avery (Bradley Cooper) is an honest cop. Eventually both men’s paths cross.
Rounding out the rest of the cast is Eva Mendes, Ben Mendelsohn, Mahershala Ali, Ray Liotta, Bruce Greenwood, Dane DeHaan, Emory Cohen, Rose Byrne, Harris Yulin, and Olga Merediz.
The film is written and directed by Derek Cianfrance.
Gosling is cast against type. He does not usually play the rebel outlaw type, but he proves once again that he is capable of widening his range as an actor because he nails his part.
Cooper has a strong presence and when his character arrives, it changes the whole dynamic of the movie.
I felt like Mendes did a good job, but we could have gotten more out of her character. I fault the writers for that. She did great with what she had to work with, but her character could have been developed better.
Liotta seems to have resurfaced after being pretty washed up the last few years. In this film he carried himself like the Ray Liotta of old. He did not seem like the train wreck that he was becoming. This was a welcomed surprise.
Both Cooper and Gosling continue to make smart decisions when it comes to which films to act in. This film is guaranteed to keep them both in the spotlight.
The Place Beyond the Pines is a movie filled with tough subject matter mixed with raw emotion portrayed by a fantastic cast of actors who are very passionate about their work. This combination makes for a very exciting and suspenseful film about people leading hard lives.
I rate this movie an 8 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Buy.
Crazy, Stupid, Love. (2011)
Crazy, Stupid, Love. (2011)
Crazy, Stupid, Love. is one of the better “dramadies” that I have seen in a while.
Sweet-talking ladies man Jacob (Ryan Gosling) takes newly, almost single Cal (Steve Carell) under his wing and tries to help him get back out into the dating scene. This sets off a dysfunctional chain reaction in both of their lives and hilarity ensues along with craziness, stupidity, and love.
The film has just the right blend of laughs and drama. It may go a little overboard in one direction or the other at times, but that just helps to capitalize on the subject matter and keep the film exciting.
Carell does better when more comedy is involved and Gosling is more of a serious actor. Both actors’ styles complemented each other very well and I think that working together enabled them each to go a little bit out of their comfort zones as to what is usually the norm for them. Gosling pulled off being funny and Carell managed to get serious. Carell has proved that serious doesn’t usually work for him (i.e. Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012)), but it did in Crazy, Stupid, Love. Gosling didn’t become a comedian by any means. He has always managed to be pretty witty and clever, but he added funny to the mix.
The movie also has strong female characters played by Julianne Moore, Emma Stone, and Marisa Tomei. Each woman was able to bring a level of wholesomeness to their roles with a touch of quirkiness. This complemented the film quite well and helped to make it a bit unpredictable.
Other supporting cast includes Kevin Bacon, Analeigh Tipton, Jonah Bobo, Joey King, Beth Littleford, John Carroll Lynch, Josh Groban, and Liza Lapira.
Josh Groban proved that he should stick to singing and leave the acting to the actors.
The film was directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa.
If you are looking for a good date movie (whether you are married or not), look no further than Crazy, Stupid, Love. It is humorous and touching at the same time. It is not a “chick flick.” It is a film that both men and women will enjoy.
I rate this movie an 8 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Buy.
If you liked Crazy, Stupid, Love., then you will probably enjoy:
Inglourious Basterds (2009)
Inglourious Basterds (2009)
Inglourious Basterds is a World War II film of epic proportions. I think the title of the movie is enough to turn some people off from wanting to see it. That is unfortunate because those people don’t know what they are missing. The film is absolutely incredible. At the time that I saw it, I did not think that Quentin Tarantino was capable of making such a perfect movie. He writes, directs, and has an uncredited part in the film.
“Once upon a time in Nazi-occupied France…”
A group of Jewish American soldiers known as The Basterds, along with a famous German actress and, a Jewish girl seeking revenge, all find themselves in a plot to try to kill high ranking Nazi leaders.
Inglourious Basterds is one of my favorite films of all time. It is definitely in my top 5 and maybe even in my top 3. I wish I had seen it in the theatre. I was a little bit skeptical of the movie when it first came out, and therefore I ended up waiting to watch it on DVD. Big mistake! If they brought it back to the theatre tomorrow, I would see it in a heartbeat.
The film has everything. Love, hate, blood, guts, war, beautiful landscapes, spies, traitors, loss, tragedy, revenge, hope, tension, an excellent story, a huge cast of amazing characters, a great director, a perfect script, and just enough humor to bring everything together.
Inglourious Basterds is probably Brad Pitt’s best movie. It is definitely his best character, but it is a toss-up between this movie and Fight Club (1999), although in recent years he has chosen his roles very wisely.
Quentin Tarantino managed to not only get a perfect cast, but somehow he got the best possible performances out of most of them. It is amazing how incredibly awesome everyone in the movie is. This is Tarantino’s best movie. He may come close, but I don’t think that he will ever top this film.
Christoph Waltz broke into American movies with his part in this film. Up until Inglourious Basterds, he was basically just a well-known foreign actor, mostly in Germany. His performance in the movie was nothing less than perfect and nobody could have done a better job. He did receive the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor which he wholeheartedly deserved. As I mentioned in my Django Unchained (2012) review, he received the same award in back-to-back Tarantino directed films. Those are both 2 characters that have really stuck in my mind. He got the role of a lifetime twice.
Like Waltz, Melanie Laurent came out of nowhere and was just astonishing. I can’t think of an actress off the top of my head that in recent years has done a better job than she did in this film. The only actress that could maybe come close is Diane Kruger also for her role in this film.
Eli Roth gave the best performance of his acting career.
The not very well-known Daniel Bruhl made his mark in this film and let his presence be known.
Til Schweiger has been acting for a while, but his breakout performance was definitely in this film. Any reference to him will be a reference to this movie.
This was Mike Myers best movie since Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002).
Michael Fassbender was an up-and-comer before he made this movie and now he is a household name.
Samuel L. Jackson plays the part of the narrator and you also hear the voice of Harvey Keitel.
The movie also includes Gedeon Burkhard, B.J. Novak, Omar Doom, August Diehl, Denis Menochet, Sylvester Groth, Martin Wuttke, Julie Dreyfus, Richard Sammel, Alexander Fehling, Rod Taylor, Samm Levine, Christian Berkel, and Lea Seydoux.
If you have not seen Inglourious Basterds then after you finish reading this review, stop what you are doing, drop everything and go out and buy it immediately. It is that good. I am not kidding. Go now!
I rate this movie a 10 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? BUY!
Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
The poster for the movie says, “The Greatest Manhunt in History.” It should have said, “The Greatest Waste of Time.” The running time of the movie is 157 minutes. They literally could have cut the running time in half and told the same story and it actually might have been entertaining.
The movie is about the 10 year long “Manhunt,” capture, and killing of Osama Bin Laden after the attacks that occurred on 9/11/2001.
We all know by now that the fact that it took America 10 years to find Bin Laden and kill him is an absolute disgrace. Of course, it was a great thing when it finally got done, but it sure took us long enough. Zero Dark Thirty plays on that fact. The movie is a very long, drawn-out depiction of the steps that we took to finally track down America’s Most Wanted and destroy him. The film isn’t a decade long, but it certainly tries to feel that way. It is so boring and slow at times that I wanted to turn it off at a number of different points.
The other thing about this film is that it is hard to tell how factual it really is. It is based on a true story, but do we really know all of the facts? Unfortunately I think that people will watch this movie and assume that it is 100% accurate. How do we know the truth about what happened? A lot of the information about the “Manhunt” is classified. How will we ever know the real truth?
The film tried so hard to be this big epic movie. It failed quite miserably as far as I am concerned.
Zero Dark Thirty was nominated for 5 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Actress (Jessica Chastain), Best Original Screenplay, Best Editing, and Best Sound Editing. To me, that is so comical. It shows that the Academy has truly lost its mind to even nominate such garbage in the first place.
This movie was almost as far away from Best Picture as you can get. The acting was mediocre at best, especially Jessica Chastain’s performance. Not even close to top notch. The screenplay was very un-original. They took a story that everyone in the world knows about and turned it into a screenplay. That is not original in my book. There were so many unnecessary scenes that could have been cut out of the movie that it was a complete disgrace to filmmaking. The editor should have been fired, not nominated for an Academy Award.
I’m glad that the movie only won an Academy Award for Best Sound Editing. It was better that it didn’t actually win. It technically tied with Skyfall (2012) for Best Sound Editing. Skyfall should have won. I don’t know what is more embarrassing for Zero Dark Thirty, the fact that it was nominated for 5 Academy Awards and only won 1 of them or the fact that the only one that it actually won was a tie for Best Sound Editing.
Maybe the movie only got so much recognition because Kathryn Bigelow directed it. Her film The Hurt Locker (2008) was very solid and was nominated for 9 Academy Awards and won 6 of them. That film made her the first woman to win an Academy Award for Best Director. Were the Academy Award nominations for Zero Dark Thirty just a sort of blue ribbon recognizing Bigelow for her participation in trying again?
Bigelow had no support from her cast which most notably includes Jessica Chastain, Jason Clarke, Reda Kateb, Kyle Chandler, Jennifer Ehle, Harold Perrineau, Jeremy Strong, Mark Strong, Edgar Ramirez, James Gandolfini, Stephen Dillane, Frank Grillo, and Joel Edgerton. Maybe the cast was not of much help because their characters had way more than enough time to develop, but they never really did.
Kathryn Bigelow was in way over her head when she decided to direct Zero Dark Thirty and it shows. The film is a steaming pile of cow dung. The only decent part of the movie is when they showed Seal Team Six raiding Bin Laden’s lair.
I recommend staying as far away from this movie as possible. Save yourself a precious almost 3 hours of your life and don’t watch it.
I rate this movie a 2 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Run.
Hitchcock (2012)
Hitchcock (2012)
In Hitchcock Anthony Hopkins steps into the shoes of the Master of Suspense and they fit him quite well. In fact, he seemed so much like Alfred Hitchcock that at times I forgot it was actually Anthony Hopkins. They even have the same monogrammed towels, although, that’s merely a coincidence. Or is it?
Hitchcock is based off of Stephen Rebello’s non-fiction book Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho. The film gives you a behind-the-scenes look at the relationship that Alfred Hitchcock had with his wife and the struggle he went through to create his most popular beloved masterpiece, Psycho (1960).
I am a huge Hitchcock fan, and I was not familiar with a lot of the events that occurred in this story. The movie was a sort of tribute to the legendary genius film director. It was enlightening and very entertaining.
Just as Hitchcock was able to get tons of popular actors to act in his films, Hitchcock the movie is overrun with a number of great actors: Anthony Hopkins, Helen Mirren, Scarlett Johansson, Danny Huston, Jessica Biel, Toni Collette, Michael Stuhlbarg, Michael Wincott, James D’Arcy, Richard Portnow, Kurtwood Smith, Ralph Macchio, Wallace Langham, Currie Graham, Spencer Garrett, and Frank Collison. Sacha Gervasi directs the movie.
Helen Mirren is superb as Hitchcock’s wife Alma. The chemistry between Mirren and Hopkins on screen is perfect.
The filming of Psycho was very tastefully recreated in Hitchcock. Scarlett Johansson does an excellent job playing Janet Leigh. Jessica Biel is a great Vera Miles. I thought James D’Arcy was a pretty believable Anthony Perkins.
Anthony Hopkins did for Hitchcock what Daniel Day-Lewis did for Lincoln (2012). They didn’t just act the part. They became the part.
If you are an Alfred Hitchcock fan like I am, than you will most certainly enjoy Hitchcock.
I rate this movie a 9 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Buy.
Note: You might be wondering why the name Ralph Macchio sounds so familiar. He was the original Karate Kid (Daniel Larusso) in The Karate Kid (1984). Can you believe he is already 51 years old?
Oz the Great and Powerful (2013)
Oz the Great and Powerful (2013)
Oz is bursting with great visuals and powerful special effects so stunning that they are beautiful works of art by themselves. The film is full of crisp, vibrant colors that help to contribute in transporting you to another world; the Land of Oz to be exact.
Upon hearing rumors many months ago that this movie was going into production, I was extremely skeptical. Why doesn’t Hollywood leave well enough alone? Why do they insist on fixing something that is not broken? The original film (The Wizard of Oz (1939) is a timeless classic. It is one of the most famous and beloved movies ever made. Even 74 years later, the film could never be made better. Why try to even compete?
I found out that this new movie was going to be a prequel. I was still just as skeptical. I forgot about it for a while until I finally saw a preview for it. The preview was intriguing enough for me to want to see it.
Oz the Great and Powerful was very tastefully written and filmed. It did not try to compete with the original, and it never could. I was impressed by how the Land of Oz was recreated. No, it was not the same as the Oz that we all know and love, but it was a nice tribute to that Oz. The scenes in black and white were reminiscent to the scenes in Kansas that we all grew up watching. Not the same, but entertaining to watch.
The movie was a fun take on what happened in Oz before Dorothy got there. It tells the tale of how Oz himself ended up there. You get to see how the wicked witch became wicked and who her sister was long before she gets a house dropped on her. Glinda the good witch is there and so are the munchkins.
The movie is filled with capable actors like James Franco, Mila Kunis, Rachel Weisz, Michelle Williams, Zach Braff, Bill Cobbs, Tony Cox, Bruce Campbell, and Ted Raimi. They all give decent, likable performances. Nobody really stands out, but that’s okay.
I can’t imagine how much pressure Sam Raimi was under when he directed this movie. There are big shoes that he could never fill.
The film does not try to intertwine with the original and that is what strongly works in its favor. It is a whole different story and a whole different movie. If you don’t expect it to actually be the original, then you might actually enjoy it like I did.
I rate this movie an 8 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Buy.
Leave (2011)
Leave (2011)
Leave is a psychological thriller done in a similar style to that of The Machinist (2004). The movie is an enjoyable enigma for you to figure out.
Henry (Rick Gomez) is a very successful author who becomes haunted by the same nightmare every night. The nightmares started after he endured a shocking experience. He begins to write a new book, but his writing all reverts back to his nightmare. Paranoia ensues as he tries to figure out what the nightmare means.
I did not have very high expectations for this movie. I figured it would be a hit or miss. It was not outstanding by any means, but it was a nice change from the norm and it held my attention throughout. The film will transport you into a world of uncertainty. What is truth and what is fiction? It will keep you guessing all the way to the end.
I did expect Bryan Cranston to have a much larger part. The cover of the movie is very deceiving because he is on it. His role was a cameo at best. He was in the movie for maybe a minute and a half. The cast is a bunch of well known character-actors. I think that Cranston is all over the advertising because he is the most well-known actor in the whole movie. I think that it was a waste that he was not in more of the film. I guess the advertising technique was successful because having not seen the trailer for the movie; I only had the cover to go by. Thinking that it was a Bryan Cranston movie is what got me to watch it. It is not a Bryan Cranston movie, but I’m glad that I watched it.
Rick Gomez and Frank John Hughes do a lovely job of carrying the majority of the film with very minor supporting characters played by Vinessa Shaw, Ron Livingston, and M.C. Gainey.
If you enjoy puzzles and mindbenders, then this movie is for you. There are many twists and turns and all sorts of clues in this mystery. Can you figure it out?
I rate this movie a 7.5 out of 10.
Buy, rent, or run? Rent.
If you liked Leave, then you will most likely enjoy the following films:
End of Watch (2012)
End of Watch (2012)
End of Watch (2012) is the ultimate buddy-cop drama done in the style of Training Day (2001), Harsh Times (2005), and Street Kings (2008). All of those films share the same type of gritty, blunt, in-your-face intensity and show just how unpleasant rundown areas of Los Angeles can be. Those movies share similarities in style because they were all written and or directed by David Ayer.
In End of Watch Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Pena are young, up-and-coming brothers in blue patrolling the hellish streets of Los Angeles, California. They are pitted together against pure evil. They take a bite out of crime and crime bites back
A lot of the movie is filmed with smaller handheld cameras which I think helps to make the film seem a little bit more realistic. If the person is shaky then the camera is shaky.
The film takes many of the horrible things that we pretend don’t happen and throws them in our faces so that we cannot deny their existence any longer. It takes dark subject matter and forces you to have an opinion about it. When your eyes are opened to the world that exists in the movie, you begin to wonder if there is some truth to that world in the real world. Does that sort of thing actually happen in real life? Are people really like that? The answers to those questions are what make the movie so chilling.
Gyllenhaal and Pena are both tremendous in the movie. Their characters play off of each other so well that it really makes the film enjoyable to watch.
Anna Kendrick and Natalie Martinez both gave great supporting performances.
The language and violence in the film is very potent. Much of the movie is exceptionally rough and harsh. There is some humor thrown in to weaken the blow, but End of Watch is a powerful movie to watch. This type of show is not for everyone.
I rate this movie an 8.5 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Buy.
Dead Man Down (2013)
Dead Man Down (2013)
Dead Man Down is a tale about grief, pain, and especially revenge. The film is a bit of a puzzle. I especially enjoy movies that make you think and figure things out for yourself instead of spelling it all out for you. This story pieces itself together little by little as events unfold and eventually everything becomes clear. By doing this, the movie keeps your attention because you are focused on what will happen next.
Colin Farrell plays a man who is blackmailed by his neighbor (Noomi Rapace) after she witnesses him commit murder. She now wants him to kill for her and get revenge on the man who has wronged her.
The film is directed by Niels Arden Oplev who is most known for directing the original foreign version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2009).
Although the movie was filmed in New York, it has a foreign independent movie feel to it. This is not only because there are a number of foreign actors and actresses in the film, but because the whole movie has an almost exotic feel to it. Instead of focusing on landmarks to tell the viewers where the story is taking place, this movie almost does the opposite. You can tell that it takes place in a big city, but the filmmakers decided to film in less obvious parts of the city. Instead of getting big helicopter views, they give you a view from a rooftop or a balcony. It seems like the story is intentionally confined to a smaller area. Maybe this makes it easier for people all around the world to believe that what is happening in the film could actually be happening in their home town. It is just an interesting aspect of filmmaking that I have never thought of before.
I like Colin Farrell but I am always a little leery of his movies because they are usually hit or miss. Lately he has been choosing his characters a little more wisely (Seven Psychopaths (2012), Total Recall (2012), Horrible Bosses (2011)) and this movie was no exception. His character is a no-nonsense tough guy and he plays the part well.
Terrence Howard brings a lot of energy and charisma to the film. He has a very Denzel Washington-like way of taking over the scenes that he is in and making his presence known. I think that this is his best role since The Brave One (2007).
After watching her delicate performance in the movie, Noomi Rapace has convinced me that I should check out her Dragon Tattoo Trilogy (2010) that she is most known for. Her character in Dead Man Down seemed very genuine.
Armand Assante has basically a cameo appearance. I was a little bummed that he wasn’t in more of the movie.
The movie was a little drawn out at times. Some of the action sequences seemed a little convenient. The story might be a little hard to follow if you’re not paying attention. But, overall it was an entertaining and unique film.
I rate this movie a 7.5 out of 10.
Buy, rent, or run? Rent.
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2011)
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2011)
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is a tender, heartfelt drama about a boy (Thomas Horn) who tries to keep the memory of his father (Tom Hanks) alive for as long as possible. The boy is completely devastated after his father dies inside of the World Trade Center during the attacks on September 11th, 2001. He finds a key to an unknown lock that belonged to his father and he is prepared to search all of New York City to find out exactly what the key will unlock.
The pace of the film was pretty slow and it allowed for the development of the main characters. It did not have to rely on special effects or action, just actors acting and telling a story.
Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock both give charming performances in the film, as they usually do. But, their roles were miniscule in comparison to the breakout performance of 14-year-old Thomas Horn. Horn came out of nowhere. He did an excellent job of acting in his first movie ever. The young man was able to carry the majority of the film on his back. Thomas Horn reminded me a little bit of Haley Joel Osment. It will be interesting to see what Horn does next.
Max Von Sydow did a great job with his supporting character.
Jeffrey Wright and John Goodman both had minor supporting roles.
My only complaints about the movie are that it was maybe a little too slow during some parts and it was a little bit predictable. It would have been more beneficial to the film if Hanks and Bullock had a little bit more face time.
It is hard to get excited to watch a movie that has anything to do with the attacks on the WorldTradeCenter on 9/11/2001. That is the reason why I did not rush out and catch this movie in the theatre when it was out in 2011. I’m glad that I did take the time to finally watch it because it did turn out to be a pretty touching story.
I rate this movie a 7.5 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Rent.
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