February 2015 Movie Reviews

Boyhood
Director: Richard Linklater
Paramount
Street 01.16
Director Richard Linklater (Dazed And Confused) creates a risky concept movie with Boyhood. The story is not all that special—it’s a typical coming-of-age movie. Rather, the risk factor comes from the fact that the movie was filmed over a course of 12 years using the same cast of actors. It’s amazing considering anything could have happened to the actors in that stretch of time. The “boy” in the title is Ellar Coltrane, who plays Mason. The viewer watches as he develops from a boy to a young man over the course of the film. Ethan Hawk and Patricia Arquette play his parents, who are divorced and share joint custody. Hawk does a great job at playing the hippie-esque father, whereas Arquette plays the repressed housewife who has taken in a new, abusive lover. The DVD is nothing to write home about in the way of special features—Q&A with the cast and a “Making Of” is all there is. This makes sense considering the movie is almost three hours, which is a lot to fit on a Blu-ray/DVD combo. Check out Boyhood for yourself and watch something that probably won’t be attempted again. –Kenny Tadrzynski

Dolphin Tale 2
Director: Charles Martin Smith
Warner Home Video
Street: 12.09.14
It’s a cruel trick to base a mediocre movie on an admirable, true story—how can one badmouth a film that has helped the Clearwater Marine Hospital rescue even more adorable sea creatures? To those who take a peek at the film’s special features on Blu-ray, that question might be a bit easier to answer. It’s not because of the featurette about Bob Talbot, a marine photographer who stepped in to film some of the movie’s prettier underwater scenes; nor is it because of the piece that focuses on professional surfer Bethany Hamilton and her scenes with Winter, the dolphin. They’re a little hokey, but fair representations of two genuinely talented people who are worthy of the viewer’s time. Oddly enough, the problems start bubbling up with the gag reel. While it managed to capture some of the enthusiasm that the cast had while filming at the CMH—Harry Connick, Jr. does a pretty decent Morgan Freeman impression, truth be told—it devolved into a self-congratulatory piece that appeared to have been engineered by director Charles Martin Smith. Throw in a few syrupy music videos—one of which is performed by film star Cozi Zuehlsdorff, and it all comes apart. –Alex Springer

Foxcatcher
Director: Bennett Miller
Sony Pictures Classics
In Theaters: 11.14.14
Based on the book of the same name, Foxcatcher is the weird, true crime story of eccentric multi-millionaire John Du Pont (Steve Carell) and his efforts in trying to win over wrestling champion brothers, Dave and Mark Shultz (played by Channing Tatum and Mark Ruffalo, respectively). Bennett Miller (Moneyball) directs Academy Award-winning performances out of the three leads in what could be one of the year’s best. Du Pont is your classic, elitist one-percenter, heir to the Du Pont chemical fortune. Like most rich people, he wants something money can’t buy—for him, it’s trophies and awards. With a hard-on for wrestling, Du Pont uses his extreme wealth to amass his own team hell-bent on Olympic glory. Enter the Shultz brothers, who, at the behest of Du Pont, are flown to his estate to live and train. Du Pont takes Mark under his wing as his mentor, but it’s here that Du Pont shows his true colors as he feeds Mark compliments and cocaine while Mark becomes increasingly jealous of Dave. Tatum and Ruffalo are great as the Shultz brothers, but Carell really shines as Du Pont. Wearing prosthetic makeup to the point of resembling Mr. Burns, he gives a performance so creepy that you’ll forget that he was ever in The Office. –Kenny Tadrzynski