Ebert Did It Better: Gasbag Reviews

Category: Action

  • After Earth: Slogans are stupid, Jaden is just okay

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    After Earth – 2013 Director M. Night Shyamalan Starring Will Smith, Jaden Smith, Sophie Okendo, Zoë Kravitz, Isabelle Fuhrman Screenplay by Shyamalan and Gary Whitta When I was a younger man, I coached basketball for grade school boys and girls.  I had a variety of assistant coaches.  The way I picked them was a bit unique, but it was…

  • Oblivion: A nice, unoriginal Sci-Fi story with great visual flair

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    Oblivion – 2013 Director Joseph Kosinski Starring Tom Cruise, Olga Kurylenko, Andrea Riseborough, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Melissa Leo, Morgan Freeman Screenplay Joseph Kosinski, Karl Gajdusek, Michael Arndt So many elements are borrowed from other sources in Oblivion, it’s remarkable that it ends up as cohesive as it is.  That the sources all derive from the more contemplative sci-fi of the 1970’s may have something to do…

  • The Iceman just wants to be a landlord

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    The Iceman – 2013 Director Ariel Vroman Starring Michael Shannon, Winona Rider, Chris Evans, Ray Liotta, James Franco, David Schwimmer, Stephen Dorff, Erin Cummings, Robert Davi Screenplay by Vroman and Morgan Land No one can economize a performance like Michael Shannon.  His countenance is always sober, but seething underneath.  His performance in Man of Steel was a thankless…

  • Now You See Me is a cute date that vanishes after the show

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    Now You See Me – 2013 Director Louis Leterrier Starring Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Woody Harrelson, Mélanie Laurent, Isla Fisher, Dave Franco, Common, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Michael Kelley, Elias Koteas Screenplay Ed Solomon, Boaz Yakin, Edward Ricourt Now You See Me is the kind of trick that shows you how its done while its setting you up for the next trick.  Four magicians (Eisenberg, Fisher, Harrelson and Franco)…

  • Forgotten Gem: Elmore Leonard’s Out of Sight – Made of stars

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    Out of Sight – 1998 Directed by Steven Soderbergh Starring George Clooney, Jennifer Lopez, Ving Rhames, Steve Zahn, Dennis Farina, Don Cheadle, Albert Brooks, Samuel L. Jackson, Luis Guzman, Isaiah Washington, Catherine Keener, Nancy Allen, Viola Davis, Michael Keaton Screenplay by Scott Frank, based on the novel by Elmore Leonard There was a time, before I was married, when…

  • Pain & Gain: Meat

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    Pain & Gain – 2013 Director Michael Bay Starring Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson, Anthony Mackie, Tony Shalhoub, Ed Harris Screenplay Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely based on the book by Pete Collins Let’s not get down to the nitty-gritty on this.  No one will benefit from knowing whether the events in the movie are true or not.  What is remarkable is the…

  • Bullet to the Head: This is why Stallone can’t work alone

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    Bullet to the Head – 2013 Director Walter Hill Starring Sylvester Stallone, Sung Kang, Sarah Shahi, Christian Slater, Jason Momoa, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje Screenplay Alessandro Camon based on Du Plomb Dans La Tete by  Alexis Nolent This is Stallone’s version of a comic book movie.  It has few things to recommend it.  One of them is getting to view a career of Stallone head shot photos as police…

  • Elysium has no more than one answer to the world’s ills

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    Elysium – 2013 Written and Directed by Neill Blomkamp Starring Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley, Alice Braga, Diego Luna, William Fichtner, Wagner Moura, Faran Tahir Alice Braga is one of the most beautiful women in the world.  Her beauty is breathtaking.  I spent much of Elysium wondering how in the world it was that Max De…

  • Olympus Has Fallen is a not so subtle slice of Peckinpah

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    Olympus Has Fallen – 2013 Director Anton Fuqua Starring Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, Morgan Freeman, Angela Bassett, Robert Forster, Cole Hauser, Finley Jacobsen, Ashley Judd, Melissa Leo, Dylan McDermott, Radha Mitchell, Rick Yune Written by Creighton Rothenberger, Katrin Benedikt The attack on the White House is glorious.  An ungodly amount of .50 caliber bullets flying throughout, maiming some,…

  • The Wolverine: Characters will survive…

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    The Wolverine – 2013 Director James Mangold Starring Hugh Jackman, Hiroyuki Sanada, Tao Okamoto, Rila Fukushima, Famke Janssen, Will Yun Lee, Svetlana Khodchenkova, Haruhiko Yamanouchi, Brian Tee Screenplay Christopher McQuarrie (uncredited), Mark Bomback, Scott Frank James Mangold’s take on The Wolverine is an example of how good any film can be if one focuses on the importance of building a good story around a great character.  That character, as…