The preview for this arthouse film drew me in at once; Ohio well-driller and family man Michael Shannon begins to see (and dream about) signs which may well point to a coming apocalypse. It all ties in with weather, so […]
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Johnny English Reborn (2011) ✰ ✰ ½
Eight years after his bland and desultory original spy spoof Johnny English, Rowan Atkinson returns in a totally unnecessary sequel. Surprisingly, perhaps amazingly, it’s pretty good. The producers have spent a good deal of money and effort to create a […]
Continue reading »50 / 50 (2011) ✰ ✰ ✰
Some subjects seem to demand reverential treatment in movies or real life, and cancer is one of them. So a movie that dares to dilute the horror of the disease with humor seems refreshing. Even though there is nothing funny […]
Continue reading »The Big Year (2011) ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
So far my favorite film of 2011 is The Big Year. I loved it. Truthfully, I cannot say that it is a great movie — it is a rather formulaic comedy-drama that breaks no new ground cinematically — but I […]
Continue reading »The Guard (2011) ✰ ✰ ✰
American movies are notoriously short on surprises, but that isn’t always the case with global fare. The Irish film The Guard has several surprises, mostly character-driven, that make it seem fresh and original. It has the same casually profane tone punctuated […]
Continue reading »This Island Earth (1955) ✰ ✰ ½
The 1950s, as the webmaster of Filmbobbery can tell you, were the golden age of science fiction cinema. This Island Earth is an interesting effort from Universal that mixes some real cinematic strengths with glaring weakness that keep it below […]
Continue reading »Real Steel (2011) ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Richard Matheson’s story “Steel” was first adapted as a memorable “Twilight Zone” episode starring Lee Marvin. Now it has found new life as a futuristic robot boxing feature film — and it’s very good. Director Shawn Levy has created a […]
Continue reading »Drive (2011) ✰ ✰ ½
The set-up is intriguing: movie stunt driver Ryan Gosling moonlights as a getaway driver for whoever is willing to pay for his services. He becomes attached to a neighbor woman (Carey Mulligan) with a young son (Kaden Leos) — and […]
Continue reading »The Ides of March (2011) ✰ ✰ ✰
George Clooney deserves credit for directing another film that is smart and classy without reducing its melodrama into fights and gun battles, as so many modern movies do. The Ides of March, based upon Beau Willimon’s play “Farragut North,” is […]
Continue reading »The Thing (2011) ✰ ✰ ½
Having loved both the 1951 and 1982 editions of this sci-fi classic (and written a comparison of them in Volume 4, Issue 2), I was dubious about yet another version. Especially after seeing the first preview, which I felt was […]
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