AltWeeklies Wire
The Long Term Method-Acting Project Known as Mickey Rourke Goes For The Goldnew
The Wrestler is a bleak, strangely inspiring tale of a lonely man struggling with advancing age and a desperate dedication to the brutal grind of professional wrestling.
Baltimore City Paper |
Joe MacLeod |
01-15-2009 |
Reviews
'Defiance': Tough Jewsnew
Edward Zwick's Holocaust film lacks subtlety -- and that's exactly why it's likely to be a crowd-pleaser.
San Diego CityBeat |
Anders Wright |
01-14-2009 |
Reviews
Biopic 'Notorious' Has Biggie-Sized Moral Lessonsnew
It's not acting that makes Notorious a miss. It's that the plot lines are convoluted, the genre's cliches are in full effect (from audio flashbacks to magazine-cover montages), and the whole thing screams both "Too soon!" and "Too innocent!"
Willamette Week |
Casey Jarman |
01-14-2009 |
Reviews
'The Grocer's Son' is a Pastoral Respite from the Larger Conflicts of the Worldnew
The real stars of the movie are the crusty rustics in the background. Writer-director Eric Guirado reportedly spent months observing a passing way of life in this region before turning the locals into actors, and the effect is less predictable than is the central story.
The Georgia Straight |
Ken Eisner |
01-13-2009 |
Reviews
There's Nothing Redeeming About 'The Unborn'new
As soon as The Unborn's end credits started to roll, a guy seated two rows down from me at the promotional screening declared: "That sucked!" I couldn't have said it better myself.
The Georgia Straight |
Steve Newton |
01-13-2009 |
Reviews
Sam Mendes Takes Aim at the Suburbs Again and Gratingly Misses the Marknew
Screenwriter Justin Haythe and director Sam Mendes are so intent on hammering home the bleak message of Richard Yates' source novel about an unhappy couple caught in the conformist suburbs that they make even Leonardo Dicaprio and Kate Winslet blank, bland, and blobby.
Baltimore City Paper |
Geoffrey Himes |
01-13-2009 |
Reviews
Movie Buzz: Low-Concept Fare Takes Over Movie Houses
Critically lauded movies are being run out of movie houses by low-concept fare like Paul Blart: Mall Cop and My Bloody Valentine 3-D.
Metro Spirit |
Mariah Gardner |
01-12-2009 |
Movies
'Revolutionary Road' Needs Some Cheese for its Whinenew
Seldom has such an intelligent, impeccably mounted film seemed so far removed from the contemporary cultural mood as Revolutionary Road.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
01-09-2009 |
Reviews
Carlos Reygadas' 'Silent Light' is More Posing for the Poseursnew
In Reygadas' facetious approach to his subject matter, he pushes Art buttons: lots of rewound clocks and that big Dreyeresque moment confronting death. It lacks the wit and feeling of Frank Borzage's Three Comrades where a thrown watch transcends time and death.
New York Press |
Armond White |
01-08-2009 |
Reviews
Does Will Smith Think He's Jesus?
Seven Pounds is so pleased with its concept and its message that it drives right by some pretty big flaws.
'Benjamin Button' is Gump for Dummies
I don't care what anybody says: David Fincher's adaptation of the F. Scott Fitzgerald short story is a meandering bore.
'Revolutionary Road' is an Uneasy Reunion for Winslet and DiCaprionew
Onscreen, the familiarity of their coupling only highlights Revolutionary Road's bleakness: Even if the boat hadn't gone down in Titanic, the film tells us, these lovebirds were still doomed.
Washington City Paper |
Tricia Olszewski |
01-08-2009 |
Reviews
'Bride Wars' is Hellnew
Not only does the movie destroy any sympathy for its two main characters by turning them into evil shrews the minute their weddings are pitted against each other, but it also reduces all women to irrational, wedding-crazy stereotypes, apparently unable to focus on anything beyond superficial, materialistic desires.
Las Vegas Weekly |
Josh Bell |
01-08-2009 |
Reviews
Eastwood Updates Himself in 'Gran Torino'new
As an actor, Clint Eastwood is the most distinctly American film icon since John Wayne.
Tags: Clint Eastwood, Gran Torino
Darren Aronofsky Talks About Mickey Rourke's Comeback in 'The Wrestler'new
In the 1980s, Rourke was one of his generation's best actors, but he ditched the movies to try to make it as a pro boxer. When he discovered he needed Hollywood, it no longer needed him. Even director Darren Aronofsky was initially skeptical.
San Diego CityBeat |
Anders Wright |
01-07-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
