Category: Drama
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Conviction is average Oscar bait and switch
Conviction – 2010 Directed by Tony Goldwyn Starring Hilary Swank, Sam Rockwell, Peter Gallagher, Minnie Driver, Juliette Lewis, Melissa Leo, Clea Duvall, Bailee Madison Written by Pamela Gray There is a scene early on in Conviction when Kenny Waters (Rockwell), who has brought his young child into a bar with loud, live music, along with…
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Animal Kingdom is a slow burn with no way out
Animal Kingdom – 2010 Written and Directed by David Michôd Starring Guy Pearce, Jacki Weaver, James Frecheville, Ben Mendelsohn, Joel Edgerton, Luke Ford, Sullivan Stapleton There is a point in Animal Kingdom, where protagonist Joshua “J” Cody (Frecheville), in the bathroom of his girlfriend’s parents’ house, has finally pieced together what the fate of his family…
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The Messenger: presents a Memorial Day tale many Americans should see
The Messenger – 2009 Directed by Oren Moverman Starring Ben Foster, Woody Harrelson, Samantha Morton, Jena Malone, Steve Buscemi, Yaya DaCosta Written by Moverman and Alassandro Camon The Messenger starts out with a deception. Staff Sgt. Will Montgomery (Foster) meets up with an old flame, Kelly (Malone). After they have adult situations and then go to…
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Two for **: No Strings Attached / Love & Other Drugs
No Strings Attached – 2011 Directed by Ivan Reitman Starring Natalie Portman, Ashton Kutcher, Kevin…
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Something happened on the way to Hereafter: life got really slow
Hereafter – 2010 Directed by Clint Eastwood Starring Matt Damon, Cecile de France, Frankie and George McLaren, Jay Mohr, Richard Kind, Lyndsey Marshal Written by Peter Morgan So, I really like Clint Eastwood. Seriously. And more as a director than an actor, but it’s been close. I think he asks a lot of questions with…
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Catfish : true or not, it is a compelling tale
Catfish – 2010 Directed by Henry Joost, Ariel Schulman Catfish calls itself a documentary, and although this claim is disputed, the story itself is warning enough to those who have used Facebook as a way to create a network of friends that they converse with routinely but don’t really know. How it happened in this film is…
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Ron Howard’s The Dilemma fails to earn any sympathy…or laughs
The Dilemma – 2011 Directed by Ron Howard Starring, Vince Vaughn, Kevin James, Jennifer Connelly, Winona Rider, Queen Latifah, Channing Tatum Written by Allen Loeb The first thoughts that run through my head as I look at Kevin James’ character, Nick, explain to his friend and business partner, Ronny, played by Vince Vaughan, why their…
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Get Low shows the high virtue of forgiveness
Get Low – 2010 Directed by Aaron Scheider Starring Robert Duvall, Bill Murray, Lucas Black, Sissy Spacek, Bill Cobbs, Gerald McRaney, Lori-Beth Edgeman, Andrea Powell, Scott Cooper Written by Chris Provenzano, C. Gaby Mitchell The human soul is a curious thing. It can go for years at a time helping the mind to deny certain truths, while…
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Cyrus shows that Tomei is without peer
Cyrus – 2010 Written and Directed by Jay and Mark Duplass Starring John C. Reilly, Marisa Tomei, Jonah Hill, Catherine Keener, Matt Walsh, Kim Rhodes Marisa Tomei has had an interesting career. She had acted in major motion pictures since 1984’s The Flamingo Kid, but was thought of as a relative newcomer when she surprised the world with…
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The King’s Speech is quiet, humble and dignified
The King’s Speech – 2010 Directed by Tom Hooper Starring Colin Firth, Geoffery Rush, Helena Bonham Carter, Guy Pearce, Timothy Spall, Derek Jacobi, Jennifer Ehle, Michael Gambon Written by David Seidler First thing’s first: The King’s Speech is a great film. It was not, however, the best film of last year. That movie was Inception.…
Ebert Did It Better: Gasbag Reviews 