MetroPulse Stories: Movie Reviews

'Dark Shadows' May Not Satisfy Fans, But It’s Better Than the Usual Burton-Depp Shtick

coury@metropulse.com (Coury Turczyn) — Wed, 16 May 2012 15:33:00 -0000

Although Dark Shadows is not nearly the laff riot portrayed in the trailer, it doesn’t take its source material very seriously. But for those seeking a cool respite from the summer-movie season of explosive bombast, it’s a pleasant bit of fluff, if not quite a return to form for Tim Burton.

Joss Whedon Draws Up a Blueprint for the (Almost) Perfect Comic-Book Movie With 'The Avengers'

Wed, 09 May 2012 15:59:00 -0000

As novel as it seems for Joss Whedon to have brought together the four Marvel Studios franchises into one tentpole film in The Avengers, it’s been inevitable for as long as there have been movie blockbusters.

The Dardenne Brothers Echo the Classics in 'The Kid With a Bike'

Wed, 02 May 2012 14:52:00 -0000

As much as it continues in the same fashion as their previous films, Belgian writer/directors Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne's The Kid With a Bike brings to mind/nods to a few other finely observed urban realist gems, specifically Vittorio De Sica’s 1948 Bicycle Thieves and Francois Truffaut’s 1959 The 400 Blows.

A Sushi Master Chases Perfection in 'Jiro Dreams of Sushi'

everettm@metropulse.com (Matthew Everett) — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 17:08:00 -0000

There can’t be many situations more frustrating than the one in which Yoshikazu Ono finds himself in the new documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi.

'The Cabin in the Woods' Builds a Mythology of Horror Amid Its Scares and Rapid-Fire Twists

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 16:06:00 -0000

Don’t read this review. If you’ve made it this far without anyone spoiling the surprises lurking in The Cabin in the Woods, don’t let me be the jerk who ruins it for you.

Kick, Kick, Bang, Bang: Indonesian Martial-Arts Flick 'The Raid: Redemption' Beats the Crap Out of Tired Hollywood Action

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 15:22:00 -0000

Any action fan who watches the Wales-born, Indonesia-based Gareth Evans’ new film The Raid: Redemption will recognize an epochal action prodigy/game changer at work and want him to make many more like it as soon as possible. To put it more bluntly, holy shit.

'American Reunion' Proves You Can't Go Home Again

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 15:08:00 -0000

No matter how hard you try, you really can’t go back. And to prove it, here’s a dull, unfunny and accidentally depressing installment in a franchise whose best years are clearly behind it.

Snow White Update 'Mirror Mirror' Charms Despite Its Flaws

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 15:06:00 -0000

Hollywood will try to sell you Snow White twice in two months this year, and at first glance Tarsem Singh’s Mirror Mirror looked like the loser. The only obvious sin of June’s self-serious adventure Snow White and the Huntsman is having hired Kristen Stewart; Mirror Mirror, on the other hand, was taxing enough in its 90-second trailer to portend a catastrophe at feature length.

'The Hunger Games' Shies Away From the Darkest Corners of Its Source Material

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 15:39:00 -0000

Director Gary Ross, working from a script that he co-wrote with Hollywood writer Billy Ray and Hunger Games author Suzanne Collins, has crafted a solid adventure flick that will please the trilogy’s fans and win it more than a few new ones. He’s even made a few minor improvements on the source material, doling out exposition in small, nicely spaced bites rather than frontloading the film with huge information dumps. But the tightening comes at a price.

Lynne Ramsay Gets Lost in the Wrong Conversation in 'We Need to Talk About Kevin'

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 15:26:00 -0000

Lynne Ramsay’s films have all had an instinctual quality, but this time her instincts fail her as often as not.

Disney Delivers Pulp at Its Pulpiest in Epic Sci-Fi Fantasy 'John Carter'

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 14:14:00 -0000

As long as one-liners and blue Martian blood are flying, John Carter is endearing and entertaining. When it stops to catch its breath, though, it has a tendency to take itself a bit too seriously.

Oscar-Winning Iranian Film 'A Separation' Announces a Rare Cinematic Talent

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 15:10:00 -0000

From the outset, again and again, you are asked to judge the situation, evaluate the arguments and those making them, weighing each statement and each action that results. That process never stops as the Oscar-winning A Separation expands into both a grueling family drama and a brilliantly plotted, almost Rashomon-esque mystery.

The Real-Life Navy SEALs in 'Act of Valor' Can’t Act, But They Pull Off Some Thrilling Action Scenes

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 15:11:00 -0000

Somehow, it doesn’t feel right to criticize the acting prowess of the active-duty Navy SEALs who make up the core cast of Act of Valor. It’s schmaltzy and trite when it’s standing still and it occasionally veers too far into the realm of creepy propaganda, but once the bullets start flying—real ones, according to the film’s press materials—Act of Valor is a solid action movie that should satisfy anyone willing to shell out their bucks to see it.

Studio Ghibli’s 'The Secret World of Arrietty' Reminds Us of the Wonders of Hand-Drawn Animation

coury@metropulse.com (Coury Turczyn) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 16:27:00 -0000

Despite the odds, two-dimensional drawings of cute little critters scampering across a movie screen are not a dead art form. They’re just not a very American one anymore.

The Latest Version of 'The Woman in Black' Is a Pitch-Perfect Ghost Story

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 16:20:00 -0000

James Watkins’ chilling spook show isn’t even remotely interested in reinventing the ghost story. There’s nothing in it you haven’t seen before, but its old-school scares are executed so perfectly that it feels fresh again.

Glenn Close’s Cross-Dressing Passion Project 'Albert Nobbs' Fumbles Its Passions

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 16:03:00 -0000

Albert Nobbs knows what he’s about. He is always perfectly groomed, eminently capable, and scrupulously unobtrusive. In short, he is the perfect manservant, except that he’s not a man.

Steve McQueen Takes on a Grown-Up Subject in 'Shame'

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 15:29:00 -0000

Are we ready yet to be grown up at the movies?

Gary Oldman's Smiley Is the Anti-Bond in 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy'

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 16:04:00 -0000

Consider me disillusioned. All these years, I’ve thought being a spy would be awesome—all globe-trotting and fancy cars and nifty gadgets. As it turns out, spies aren’t sexy at all. They’re sad, they cry a lot, and they mostly just slink around in poorly lit buildings and read things. It’s a lot like being a librarian, albeit with a somewhat elevated risk of being shot in the face or disemboweled in a bathtub.

David Fincher’s Hollywood Adaptation of 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' Is More Faithful Than the 2009 Swedish Version

Wed, 04 Jan 2012 17:12:00 -0000

At this point, it’s hard to write about the dreaded American remake of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo without sounding like an apologist. The movie has only grossed around $60 million so far—a respectable sum, but not nearly enough to make it the rape-y, torture-y cash cow that Sony hoped it would be. An endless stream of snark is being hurled its way in any online film-nerd repository you care to visit, and critical responses have been lukewarm. It’s a far cry from the rapturous reviews and $200 million in ticket sales that greeted Danish director Niels Arden Oplev’s Swedish-language original back in 2009.

Best of 2011: Movies

Wed, 28 Dec 2011 17:00:00 -0000

Our critics round up the best movies of 2011.