Arts
Review: London Has Fallen
Three years ago, director Antoine Fuqua and Gerard Butler surprised the masses with Olympus Has Fallen, so this critic was excited about the follow-up. However, once it was revealed that Fuqua refused to direct this sequel because he didn’t like the script, director Fredrik Bond left due to creative differences, and the original release date was in October 2015, my critic sense started tingling, and my hopes diminished. My instincts were correct. … read more
Review: The Bronze
If you’ve ever wondered what the world would be like if Olympic champion gymnast Mary Lou Retton returned to her hometown of Fairmont, West Virginia, and acted like an egotistical maniac for years after her career was finished, then director Bryan Buckley and married writing team Melissa and Winston Rauch have the filthy dark comedy you’ve been craving. … read more
Review: 10 Cloverfield Lane
In 2008, the world was introduced to Cloverfield, a first-person, found-footage production that set viewers in the middle of a monster attack. Now, producer J.J. Abrams suggests that we revisit the cinematic universe in a different location. … read more
Film Review: Deadpool
It’s been 10 years in the making to get the foul-mouthed mercenary on the screen in appropriate form with a correlating R-rating. After “leaking” the script and test footage, 20th Century Fox finally gave into screaming fans’ demands, but with an unusually low budget for a superhero film. As I type these words, the film has already grossed more than $280 million in four days. Obviously, we’ll be seeing a sequel. … read more
Review: Eddie the Eagle
Since he was a child, the thick-glasses-wearing, socially awkward Edwards (Taron Egerton) always wanted to be an Olympian. However, it wasn’t until his teenage years that he focused on skiing and the Winter Olympics. It would be quite difficult to walk out of this movie without a smile across your face. It’s that charming and motivating. … read more
Review: The Dicks From Texas
The Dicks From Texas pays tribute in the best way possible to a band like these guys—it’s raw, unpolished, and choppy in some places, the lighting and audio isn’t perfect, the live footage is all bootlegged, and you definitely get the feeling that it went through a single editing process in someone’s basement. But, you know what? That’s punk rock! And that was the Dicks! … read more
Review: Punk’s Dead: SLC Punk 2
Before I moved to the Beehive State in the fall of 2000, one of my only references to this fascinating city was an independent movie titled SLC Punk. I watched it more times than I can remember and enjoyed every viewing for its exciting acting, energetic soundtrack and local resonance. It’s been 18 years since its release with multiple rumors that a sequel was on the horizon. As much as I enjoyed the first installment, I questioned whether or not it required or deserved another engagement. … read more
Review: 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi
There was a time, not so long ago, when this movie buff would get excited for a new Michael Bay movie. Sure, I was 13 years old, but there was nothing better than explosions, car chases and fire fights on the big screen. For the next 10 years, things were mostly decent (sorry, Pearl Harbor), but then Bay got his hands on the Transformers franchise, and everything went to hell. … read more
Sundance Film Review: Yoga Hosers
My introduction to Kevin Smith began early in my life. My older brother rented Clerks and threw it into our VCR (yep. That long ago) without really considering the fact that his eighth-grade kid brother was in the same room. The Mallrats soundtrack was the first CD that I ever bought with my own money, and Weezer’s “Suzanne” still manages to fill me with high school nostalgia. … read more
Sundance Film Review: Captain Fantastic
Regardless of a filmmaker’s talent, making a meaningful drama about a quirky family is like navigating a minefield. Celluloid families are typically plagued with some degree of syrupy sweetness or sappy tragedy, but Matt Ross’s Captain Fantastic captures the emotional core of what makes all families tick and his stellar cast promptly follows suit. … read more