Out in Theaters: ‘THE SHAPE OF WATER’

December 13, 2017 by Matt Oakes Posted in Most Popular, Out in Theaters Tagged Alexandre Desplat, Best of 2017, Doug Jones, Guillermo del Toro, Michael Shannon, Michael Stuhlbarg, Octavia Spencer, Paul D. Austerberry, Reviews, Richard Jenkins, Sally Hawkins, The Shape of Water 1 Comment

Far and away the best of Guillermo del Toro’s English language features, The Shape of Water, like Dr. Frankenstein stitching together disparate appendages, conjoins the romanticism of the 1930s Classic Universal Monsters Movies, the conspiratorial grit of the 70s Hammer Films and a splash of Max, Mon Amour to craft a truly one-of-a-kind, genre-bending splat of modern monster cinema. Breathtaking, adorable and fundamentally weird as hell, The Shape of Water is a slice of well-germinated fan fiction that’s so much more than its leaflet thin description of Deaf Girl falls for Fish Man could possibly describe. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI’

December 12, 2017 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Adam Driver, Andy Serkis, Benicio Del Toro, Carrie Fischer, Daisy Ridley, Domhnall Gleeson, Gwendoline Christie, John Boyega, Kelly Marie Tran, Laura Dern, Mark Hamill, Oscar Isaac, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Rian Johnson, Star Wars, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, The Last Jedi 1 Comment

Star Wars is and always has been an underdog story. An action-packed intergalactic odyssey about small legions of rebels rising against seemingly insurmountable adversaries, Star Wars is rooted in an idea of hope against all odds, and you don’t need C3P0 on hand to butt in for that calculation. After the politically-charged prequels, The Force Awakens (and Rogue One) returned to this central conceit of a Sisyphusian struggle – toil in the face of utter improbability – depicting new characters taking their turn against a tyrannical empire, its limitless armada and impossibly supercharged firepower and with Star Wars: The Last Jedi, hope has never seemed so out of reach and victory so unachievable. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘THE DISASTER ARTIST’

November 29, 2017 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged A24, Best of 2017, Dave Franco, Greg Sestero, James Franco, Michael H. Weber, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Scott Neudstadter, Seth Rogen, The Disaster Artist, Tom Bissell, Tommy Wiseau Leave a comment

There in perhaps no film in existence that better exemplifies “cult” status than Tommy Wiseau’s The Room. A titanic miff on every level imaginable, Wiseau’s self-produced “romantic drama” is often called the worst movie ever made. And rightfully so. Anyone who’s had the privilege of witnessing this filmic trainwreck is treated to a level of incompetence that is wholly endearing in its epic failure. If you however are among the many uninitiated, I would suggest you stop reading and run to your nearest video store (assuming it still exists) to grab a copy The Room. I guarantee they have one. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘ROMAN J. ISRAEL, ESQ.’

November 21, 2017 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Carmen Ejogo, Colin Farrell, Dan Gilroy, Denzel Washington, Esq., Out in Theaters, Reviews, Roman J. Israel 1 Comment

Writer/director Dan Gilroy burned up the screen with his rocking debut Nightcrawler, a deeply unnerving study of a social alien, scumbag nightly news journalism and unchecked professional ambition featuring one of Jake Gyllenhaal’s very finest onscreen performances. After a few years of anticipation, Gilroy returns with Roman J. Israel, Esq. a character-study-cum-legal-noir with the ever-reliable Denzel Washington decked out in an outdated plum-colored suit and a frizzly afro. Obviously, I was as game as a Michael Douglas in a David Fincher movie to see what Gilroy would deliver next. Read More

Out in Theaters: ’JUSTICE LEAGUE’

November 15, 2017 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Amy Adams, Ben Affleck, Ciarán Hinds, DCEU, Ezra Miller, Gal Gadot, Henry Cavill, Jason Momoa, Joss Whedon, Justice League, Out in Theaters, Ray Fisher, Reviews 1 Comment

For many DC comic fans, just the thought of a Justice League movie gets their panties all warmed up; finally seeing the Big Three (Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman) join forces with the Flash, Cyborg and Aquaman on the big screen in a live-action super-blockbuster enough to produce a seizure-inducing nerdgasm. Well prayers have been answered and after many years of waiting, we can finally stop wondering what a feature film Justice League might look like because it is here in all its ridiculous glory. And the result, well it ain’t too pretty. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘LAST FLAG FLYING’

November 14, 2017 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Bryan Cranston, Darryl Ponicsan, Last Flag Flying, Laurence Fishburne, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Richard Linklater, Steve Carell 1 Comment

You might not know by first looking at it but Last Flag Flying is actually a much, much, much belated sequel to the 1973 Hal Ashby film The Last Detail. In a way. That Oscar-nominated, Jack Nicholson-starring film followed two Navy Men who escort an offending enlisted man to military prison but decide to show him a good time along the way. The film was loosely based on the 1970 novel of the same name from Darryl Ponicsan and in 2005, Ponicsan produced a follow-up called, you guessed it, Last Flag Flying. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS’

November 9, 2017 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Agatha Christie, Alexandra Byrne, Daisy Ridley, Haris Zambarloukos, Johnny Depp, Josh Gad, Judi Dench, Kenneth Branagh, Michael Green, Michelle Pfeiffer, Murder on the Orient Express, Out in Theaters, Penélope Cruz, Reviews, Tom Bateman, Willem Dafoe 2 Comments

You can heave a sigh of relief everyone, Johnny Depp doesn’t make it far in Kenneth Branagh’s Murder on the Orient Express. An adaptation of the Agatha Christie novel of the same name, Murder quickly dispenses with the weaselly superstar, here playing a slimy criminal who ends up a pin cushion the very night the titular Orient Express departs. The attention then turns to the patrons of a first-class coach traversing the snowy countryside, each of whom may have reason to want Johnny Depp dead. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘LADY BIRD’

November 7, 2017 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged A24, Beanie Feldstein, Greta Gerwig, Lady Bird, Laurie Metcalf, Lucas Hedges, Odeya Rush, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Saorsie Ronan, Timothée Chalamet 1 Comment

Indie darling Greta Gerwig breathes life into directorial “debut” (she co-directed Nights and Weekends in 2008) Lady Bird with passion and pathos. Gerwig’s strong freshman feature strikes a balance between the mumblecore sensibilities of frequent collaborators Joe Swanberg and Noah Baumbach while bringing a refreshingly anarchical female voice into the choir. Lady Bird as a character and film manages both tenderness and lawlessness; caught in the confuddling mix of teenage hormones and perceived oppressive parenting; rebelling against the grain, oft to her own detriment; Gerwig’s capable filmmaking expertly capturing that claustrophobic feeling of teenage angst and insurgency; Saorsie Ronan performing the hell out of the role. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘MOST BEAUTIFUL ISLAND’

October 31, 2017 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Ana Asensio, Most Beautiful Island, Natasha Romanova, Out in Theaters, Reviews Leave a comment

Indelicate slow-burn thriller, Most Beautiful Island is a tragic immigrant story married to a Polanski-esque social horror film. Star, writer and director Ana Asensio filters the angst, hostility and debasement of the American immigrant experience through a seedy thriller film where pressure mounts impossibly minute by minute until it’s unleashed in a jaw-dropping finale, the less said about the better. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘SUBURBICON’

October 25, 2017 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Alexandre Desplat, Coen Brothers, George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Julianne Moore, Noah Jupe, Oscar Isaac, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Suburbicon 7 Comments

A Beaver Clever-era, suburbia-set take on the Fargo formula, Suburbicon manages to tack onto its strange plot plagiarism a tone deaf racial integration backdrop and a slew of characters unable to pass as either likable or interesting. It’s an oddly comfortless misfire from director George Clooney, one that seems promising on paper but never is able to click once the tape starts rolling. Snooze-inducing if stylish, Suburbicon takes a host of talent in front of and behind the camera and squanders it in on an effort that, while never outright stupid, is almost unbearably not as smart, clever or funny as it seems to think it is. Read More