Category: Drama
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Forgotten Gem: Mi Familia (*****) is where my heart stays
My Family / Mi Familia – 1995 Director Gregory Nava Screenplay Nava and Anna Thomas Starring Esai Morales, Jimmy Smits, Edward James Olmos, Constance Marie, Elpidia Carrillo, Enrique Castillo, Scott Bakula, Jenny Gago, Jennifer Lopez, Eduardo Lopez Rojas, Jacob Vargas, León Singer The depth of feeling and wisdom inherent in Gregory Nava’s generation-spanning masterpiece Mi Familia is vast. It’s…
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Straight Outta Compton (****) is almost brutally honest
Straight Outta Compton – 2015 Director F. Gary Gray Screenplay by Jonathan Herman, Andrea Berloff Starring O’Shea Jackson, Jr., Corey Hawkins, Jason Mitchell, Paul Giamatti, Neil Brown, Jr., Aldis Hodge, R. Marcus Taylor, Keith Stanfield Straight Outta Compton is a story I needed to see. I knew nothing about most rap in the 90’s, even though my music collection was vast. The…
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Cool Papa E Reviews Rocky / Creed The Complete Saga
Rocky The Complete Saga – 1976 – 2015 Rocky – 1976 Director John G. Avildsen Starring Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, Burgess Meredith, Joe Spinell, Tony Burton, Geraldine Hughes Screenplay Sylvester Stallone Synopsis Down and out low ranking boxer Rocky Balboa (Stallone) gets the shot of a lifetime when he is randomly picked to take on the World Champion…
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Love and Mercy (****) is the song we’ve been waiting for Wilson to sing
Wilson’s life has been a blessed one, it’s plain to those who have noticed. While not without trials, and a constant challenge of maintaining sanity and sobriety, Wilson has felt the warmth of the sun for some time. That the makers of the biopic should choose Love and Mercy as the title to their enterprise…
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Unfinished Business (**) is jumbled, strange and sincere
“Whether one enjoys this film or not depends on how drawn one is to Wilkinson, Price and Vaughn and how much someone can withstand Franco. Don’t rent this if you are looking for a comedy, but don’t expect to be as disappointed as you’ve heard. ”
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The Hustler (****) / The Color Of Money (*****): Who owns this place?
The Hustler – 1961 Director Robert Rossen Starring Paul Newman, Jackie Gleason, Piper Laurie, George C. Scott, Myron McCormick, Murray Hamilton, Jake LaMotta, Michael Constantine Screenplay Sidney Carroll & Rossen based on The Hustler by Walter Tevis In an era where film was often an extension of the stage, The Hustler plays as exactly that. It is an exceptional meditation of…
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Big Eyes (***) – It’s just a bunch of one big lie
Big Eyes – 2014 Director Tim Burton Starring Amy Adams, Christoph Waltz, Danny Huston, Jon Polito, Krysten Ritter, Jason Schwartzman, Terence Stamp, Delaney Raye, Madeleine Arthur Screenplay Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski The more you lie, the smaller you seem. Slogging through Tim Burton films has felt like work ever since the first time I watched Edward Scissorhands. Riding the wave of the success of…
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Fifty Shades of Grey (***) attempts to level the playing field
Fifty Shades of Grey – 2015 Director Sam Taylor-Johnson Starring Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan, Jennifer Ehle, Eloise Mumford, Victor Rasuk, Luke Grimes, Rita Ora, Max Martini, Callum Keith Rennie, Andrew Airlie, Dylan Neal, Marcia Gay Harden Screenplay Kelly Marcel based on the book by E.L. James After so many words stated both pro and con about the worthiness and value of this romance story disguised as a sex movie,…
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Exodus Gods and Kings (****): Moses, Ramses II, God and his Angels
Exodus – Gods and Kings (2014) Directed by Ridley Scott Starring Christian Bale, Joel Edgerton, John Turturro, Aaron Paul, Ben Mendelsohn, María Valverde, Sigourney Weaver, Ben Kingsley, Andrew Tarbet, Isaac Andrews Screenplay Adam Cooper, Bill Collage, Jeffrey Caine, Steven Zaillian The prospect of a big budget film based on The Holy Bible is immediately deserving of skepticism these days. For some, like Aronofsky, use it to “explore…
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A Most Violent Year (****1/2) is a good story excellently told
A Most Violent Year – 2014 Written and Directed by J.C. Chandor Starring Oscar Isaac, Jessica Chastain, David Oyelowo, Alessandro Nivola, Albert Brooks A Most Violent Year is a fascinatingly simple story that underlines the strength of a man and all the things that contribute and detract from it. Oscar Isaac is Abel Morales, the owner of the small but thriving…
Ebert Did It Better: Gasbag Reviews 