And here we are again, with Andy staring down the barrel of a movie asking himself a fundamental question: “Who the hell is this stupid thing for?” That movie is Deepwater Horizon, the first of two Peter Berg/Mark Wahlberg collaborations in 2016, both of which revolve around real-world tragic events. (The other one is Patriots Day, which … Continue reading
“Asking whether we really needed a sequel to 2012’s Ted is almost unfair to Ted 2. Sequels, follow-ups, and part twos (and threes and fours) make up an ever-increasing percentage of our moviegoing diet these days. Questioning their necessity has nearly become reflexive. Treat it like a Mad Lib if you like. (Did we really … Continue reading
Seth MacFarlane takes his first jaunt into feature filmmaking with a really, really fantastic premise, a solid cast, and an utter inability to get past the tics that make his television shows so mundane and useless. Continue reading
If we’re left with but a single takeaway for Peter Jackson’s 2010 effort, The Lovely Bones, it’s that even a visionary director of Peter Jackson’s caliber has opportunity to soil their sheets with the lights on. Make no mistake, The Lovely Bones— based on Alice Sebold’s novel of the same name– is nothing short of … Continue reading
Taking an everyperson– that’s an everyman or an everywoman for you PC types out there– and throwing them into an extraordinary circumstance can provide a path to success in storytelling if the person spinning the yarn knows what they’re doing. In a way, I think we respond more to the everyperson than we do to … Continue reading
What makes the efforts of one director superior to those of another? If one person wins Best Director, does it stand to reason that they should also win Best Picture? I had these two questions– and sub-questions pertaining to both, as well as variations on each of said questions– rolling around in my head after … Continue reading
2010 dwindles down to its final hour with the passing of each day. It’s been a pretty mixed year, filled with movies worth watching but not necessarily worth getting excited about; only a handful here and there, for my taste, have really been exceptional and stood out amongst the crowd of good-but-unmemorable releases. But what … Continue reading
Wow, Adam McKay– what’s gotten you so worked up? Watching The Other Guys, the answer isn’t particularly secret and nor does McKay seem terribly interested in trying to disguise it. For a bonkers, slapstick, off-the-wall comedy featuring Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg swapping back and forth between being the straight man and acting like lunatics, … Continue reading
A Constant Visual Feast 