TIFF ’15 Review: ‘WOMEN HE’S UNDRESSED’

September 15, 2015 by Madelyn Sutton Posted in Festival Coverage, Festival Reviews Tagged Darren Gilshenan, Documentaries, Gillian Armstrong, Orry Kelly, Reviews, TIFF, TIFF 2015, Women He’s Undressed 1 Comment

Women He’s Undressed, Gillian Armstrong’s new documentary about Hollywood costume designer Orry Kelly, opens over an unnaturally-saturated view of a blue sky, with a quote from actress Fanny Brice: “Let the world know who you are because sooner or later, if you are posing, you will forget the pose; then where will you be?” The stage is thus set for a bio-documentary that will reveal some hidden aspect of its subject, guaranteeing an interested viewer who will surely be surprised – and likely touched – by the revelation to come. Read More

TIFF ’15 Review: ‘MAGALLANES’

September 14, 2015 by Matt Oakes Posted in Festival Coverage, Festival Reviews Tagged Bruno Odar, Federico Luppi, Magallanes, Magaly Solier, Reviews, Salvador del Solar, TIFF, TIFF 2015 Leave a comment

Primary Peruvian exports include non-monetary gold powder, cooper ores, concentrates, cathodes and non-crude oil. You can now add to the list supremely compelling cinema as Magallanes, the product of first-time Peruvian director Salvador del Solar, is a true festival stunner. Soaked in a gleeful amount of real world suspense and intensified by rich dramatic character work from its apt principal cast, the slow-but-steady-building drama-thriller is a certifiable symphony of hard-won victories – both from a narrative and practical standpoint. Read More

TIFF ’15 Review: ‘DER NACHTMAHR’ (The Nightmare)

September 11, 2015 by Matt Oakes Posted in Festival Coverage, Festival Reviews Tagged Akiz, Carolyn Genzkow, Der Nachtmahr, Festival Reviews, Reviews, The Nightmare, TIFF 2015, Toronto International Film Festival 1 Comment

If you wiggle a pencil fast enough, it appears soft. Rubbery. Made of flesh. It’s only when you reach out and touch the pencil that you realize it’s made of hard wood. In a film, we cannot reach out, we cannot exert force or physical contact, so we rely on cues that the filmmaker plants within the picture; clues that help us distinguish the realm of the real from that of the imaginary. Der Nachtmahr (The Nightmare) is an exercise in distinguishing the real from the imagined through the lens of what is essentially ET’s aborted fetus. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘SLEEPING WITH OTHER PEOPLE’

September 11, 2015 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Adam Scott, Alison Brie, Jason Mantzoukas, Jason Sudeikis, Lesyle Headland, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Sleeping With Other People 4 Comments

*This is a reprint of our 2015 Sundance review

Leslye Headland arrived on the cinematic scene in a roundabout kind of way. Her debut film Bachelorette divided audiences – Reelview’s James Berardinelli gave it zero stars and labeled it “the worst movie of 2012” (we gave it a soaring review) – though it’s gone on to achieve a quiet cult status. Originally written as a screenplay then adapted for the stage, her raunchy theatrical production was discovered, altered back into movie form and green lit with an inspired cast (Kirsten Dunst, Lizzy Caplan, Isla Fisher, Rebel Wilson.) The outcome was a lewd female Hangover bursting with genuine laughs. In 2013, Headland got back on the horse for a new project, one that she just described as “When Harry Met Sally with assholes.” And so came Sleeping With Other People, a satirically formulaic though gravely side-splitting whooper. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘THE BEAUTY INSIDE’

September 11, 2015 by Brittany Cullen Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Baek Jong-yeol, Foreign Film, Out in Theaters, Reviews, The Beauty Inside Leave a comment

Categories are powerful. If I were to classify this film as a “romantic comedy” at this point in the review, a substantial portion of potential viewers will have dismissed the idea of going to see it by the end of this sentence. Our hard-wired categorization processes simultaneously serve as the lighthouse and blind spot of all facets of decision-making. The Beauty Inside half-heartedly sets out to explore this complex aspect of cognitive function in the context of romantic relationships. It tracks the life and love of protagonist Woo-Jin, a 29 year-old man with a highly unorthodox affliction: He is devoid of all social categories because his race, age, and gender changes every time he falls asleep. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘THE VISIT’

September 10, 2015 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Deanna Dunagan, Ed Oxenbould, Kathryn Hahn, M. Night Shyamalan, Olivia DeJonge, Out in Theaters, Peter McRobbie, Reviews, The Visit 2 Comments

I could spend the bulk of this review talking about the precipitous rise and fall of M. Night Shyamalan. I could praise The Sixth Sense and Unbroken, give small credit to Signs and even portions of The Village and bury later “horror” duds like Lady in the Water and The Happening. I could extend a wilted rose towards the cinematic sharts that were The Last Airbender and After Earth but what’s the fun in that? After all, we’re no longer celebrating a funeral so much as a man’s comeback, because make no mistake The Visit is a comeback and a pretty damn entertaining one at that. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘BLOODSUCKING BASTARDS’

September 4, 2015 by Madelyn Sutton Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Bloodsucking Bastards, Brian O'Connell, Fran Kranz, Out in Theaters, Reviews Leave a comment

With this year’s very successful science fiction hits Mad Max: Fury Road and Turbo Kid already being referred to as “cult classics” in the making, the definition of the B-movie in the digital era must fit a different rubric beyond, for example, the use of practical effects or references to earlier films and aesthetics. The horror comedy has always been a genre prone to B-status – but can they all achieve the love that the ironically-adored low-budget classics of the past have? That’s the question facing a film like this week’s new release, Bloodsucking Bastards. Read More

Out in Theaters: A WALK IN THE WOODS

September 1, 2015 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged A Walk in the Woods, Bill Bryson, Emma Thompson, Ken Kwapis, Michael Arndt, Nick Nolte, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Robert Redford Leave a comment

*This is a reprint of our 2015 Sundance review.

Robert Redford‘s adaptation of Bill Bryson‘s popular 1998 memoir A Walk In the Woods is an unremarkable journey with a short sprinkling of low-key chuckles and a heaving dose of schmaltzy sentiment. As Redford’s travel companion, co-star Nick Nolte manages to give this low-percolating buddy comedy/road-movie-on-foot at least some minor footing, but its not enough to balance the overwrought equilibrium. Mining the material for all its geriatric sitcom worth, director Ken Kwapis‘ internal clock ticks with the fervor of a retiree, as he fails to charge the material with any sense of driving momentum. As much as Nolte’s character drags his feet, it’s Kwapis who lags most. For a film all about the journey forward, that presents a major problem. Read More

Out in Theaters: MEMORIES OF THE SWORD

August 29, 2015 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Heung-Sik Park, Memories of the Sword, Out in Theaters, Reviews, South Korea Leave a comment

From the very first shot of Memories of the Sword, the taste of Asian martial arts cinema at its most gravity-defying floods your palette. Much of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’s DNA has been spliced into Heung-Sik Park‘s South Korean swashbuckler what with all the running up bamboo, nonchalant wind-walking and artful swordsmanship. Its similarities to that cornerstone of modern Asian cinema do not however prove to be its undoing as Memories of the Sword is an often beautifully realized, artfully photographed cinematic experience filled with rich characters and even richer histories. Read More

Out in Theaters: 7 CHINESE BROTHERS

August 28, 2015 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged 7 Chinese Brothers, Bob Byington, Jason Schwartzman, Olympia Dukakis, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Tunde Adebimpe Leave a comment

The old “I could watch so-and-so read a phone book” adage speaks to an ability to turn the banal into something unexpected and has been liberally applied to the works of anyone from Bill Murray to Daniel Day Lewis. In a similar but distinctly different vein, there’s something mundanely alluring about planting Jason Schwartzman in a room and allowing him to made snide riffs on each and every thing. The Rushmore-starrer possesses uncommon command over his ability to make you feel lesser, even if he’s day drunk, mostly unemployed and in the middle of getting punched in the face and Bob Byington capitalizes insanely on his ability to do such. Read More