Category: Movie Reviews
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Arthur: Guess who’s playing Russell Brand?
Arthur – 2011 Directed by Jason Winer Starring Russell Brand, Helen Mirren, Greta Gerwig, Jennifer Garner, Luis Guzman, Nick Nolte Written by Peter Baynam based on a story by Steve Gordon There is a point 30 minutes into Arthur where Nick Nolte joins Russell Brand on the screen. After squinting really hard for about a…
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The Eagle sees Channing Tatum fighting people with wild hair
The Eagle – 2011 Director Kevin Macdonald Starring Channing Tatum, Jamie Bell, Donald Sutherland, Mark Strong Written by Jeremy Brock based upon The Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff It’s hard to tell whether Channing Tatum is a good actor or a meat head who has been given some decent material to work with.…
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Yogi Bear: Because Dan Ackroyd needs work
Yogi Bear – 2010 Directed by Eric Brevig Starring Dan Ackroyd, Justin Timberlake, Anna Faris, Tom Cavanagh, J.T. Miller, Andrew Daly, Nate Corddry Written by Brad Copeland, Jeffrey Ventimilia, Joshua Stremin I would be amazed that this movie took 3 writers to create…until you take into account the earlier work of these “Bill” Shakespeares. Stremin…
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Unknown: Take my life, please
Unknown – 2011 Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra Starring Liam Neeson, January Jones, Diane Kruger, Aidan Quinn, Frank Langella, Bruno Ganz and the “Can You Hear Me Now?” guy Written by Oliver Butcher, Stephen Cornwell based on Out of My Head by Didier Van Cauwelaert If you’d ever seen him run, you’d think Liam Neeson is an old…
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The Lincoln Lawyer: Straight formula, no chaser
The Lincoln Lawyer – 2011 Directed by Brad Furman Starring Matthew McConaughey, Marisa Tomei, William H. Macey, Josh Lucas, Ryan Phillipe, John Leguizamo, Michael Pena, Bryan Cranston, Michael Pare, Trace Adkins, Frances Fisher Written by Jeff Romano, based on the novel by Michael Connelly There is a feeling one gets while watching The Lincoln Lawyer is that…
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Rango: flawless animation, great voice work, recycled story
Rango – 2011 Directed by Gore Verbinski Starring the voices of Johnny Depp, Ned Beatty, Bill Nighy, Isla Fisher, Alfred Molina, Abigal Breslin, Ray Winstone, Stephen Root, Harry Dean Stanton, Timothy Olyphant Written by John Logan Rango starts off with a protagonist acting so strangely, one can’t help wondering if he isn’t more than a…
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Insidious: Further down the Poltergeist Road
Insidious – 2010 Directed by James Wan Starring Rose Byrne, Patrick Wilson, Lin Shaye, Leigh Whannell, Ty Simpkins, Barbara Hershey, Angus Simpson, Andrew Astor Written by Leigh Whannell Even before the credits start to roll, subtle signs creep their way through not so subtle music. Hints are given, locations revealed that are nowhere in the…
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Red Riding Hood has a woman’s touch, but it ain’t enough
Red Riding Hood – 2011 Directed by Catherine Hardwicke Starring Amanda Seyfried, Gary Oldman, Julie Christie, Virginia Madsen, Billy Burke, Shiloh Fernandez, Max Irons, Lukas Haas Written by David Johnson based on the Brothers Grimm tale Catherine Hardwicke must have high standards. She declined to direct Twilight: New Moon, which then made about a gazillion dollars.…
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With Perlman, The Season of the Witch seems overcast
Season of the Witch – 2011 Directed by Dominic Sena Starring Nicolas Cage, Ron Perlman, Claire Foy, Stephen Campbell Moore, Robert Sheehan, Ulrich Thomsen, Stephen Graham, Christopher Lee Written by Bragi F. Schut Like any red-blooded American male under 55, I like Ron Perlman a lot. His recent breakthrough with the Hellboy films and the TV…
Ebert Did It Better: Gasbag Reviews 