"Everything we've read about digital technology and studio greed suggests we should greet any movie proclaiming to be “real” with an armor of disbelief. But in the heat of the moment, it's actually pretty convincing and really quite creepy. Wherever its truths and fictions really lie, The Fourth Kind — like Paranormal Activity — is an effective experiment/event rather than a film to be heralded. Creepy enough during their initial unspooling, these aren't movies that will reward multiple viewings — neither for entertainment nor education's sake." Click here to read my review in The L Magazine
"The Devil’s Advocate isn’t as evenly paced as the classic horror titles mentioned above but it does strive to be more than a special effects extravaganza. While the film occasionally succumbs to overwrought melodrama and the sheer lunacy of its proposition (like in Angel Heart, the Devil sure seems to do a lot of micro-managing), it’s hard to begrudge the film’s questionable moments given the strong production value and talented crew." Click here to read my review, part of Not Coming to a Theater Near You's 6th Annual 31 Days of Horror
"Malian filmmaker Souleymane Cissé’s reputation precedes him, and for a director that can be both a blessing and a curse. It may help open doors and smooth over the pre-production process but it can also set unrealistic expectation upon the finished product. Cissé returns to the cinema after 14 years with Min Ye (Tell Me Who You Are), his third film to play the New York Film Festival. Best known for 1987’s Brightness (Yeelen) (which a colleague describes as Star Wars in Africa), Cissé has been praised for his social realism and is a pivotal figure in African cinema. Min Ye is the first film of his that I’ve seen, but I don’t need to have seen his others to recognize it as an underwhelming offer, high expectations or not."
"Lebanon isn’t quite the pivotal war document or riveting suspense narrative it could have been, but it is confidently made with piercing sound design and arresting visuals that aid in the effective illustration of the range of people directly affected by war."
"...without a clear plot trajectory, the film struggles to maintain momentum, relying on the tired period-piece mainstays of sweeping landscape shots accompanied by swelling orchestral music before concluding with little impact."
In the tradition of Raising Arizona comes Skiptracers, a low-budget, Southern fried comedy about a family of bail bondsmen – who also coach the local peewee football team in their hometown of Yellow Hammer, Alabama. Overseen by their surly, drunken patriarch, brothers JD (Porter Harris) and Tucker (Dustin Kerns) are fugitive recovery agents, but their minds are on other things. JD, the slightly more sensible of the two has dreams of flying fighter pilots while Tucker, the dashing one, is more interested in philandering around town.
Tired of scraping by on the company’s meager income, JD decides to take a gamble on a high-profile parolee named Rusty (Andy Stuckey, who also wrote and produced the film). Rusty, a livewire in the truest sense, quickly becomes more than they can handle and the brothers find themselves embroiled in a feud with the town’s rival bondsmen company.
Characters from the South frequently serve the purpose of easy jokes in the movies (think anything by Sacha Baron Cohen) but Skiptracers joins the group of emerging filmmakers who better care for their brothers from the South. Like David Gordon Green and Phil Morrison, director Harris Mendheim is happy to present his characters as eccentrics but they’re never repulsive or despicable (unlike the Staten Island inhabitants depicted in Big Fan for example). Some of the minor characters, while memorable, are occasionally overdrawn but Porter Harris gives a well grounded performance and Andy Stuckey has an admirable energy that makes a challenging character hard to resist.
Even if it may have trouble connecting with audiences on the coast, Skiptracers will likely be well received in the South and mid-West, where audiences will enjoy the familiarity of its milieu and its tender touch.
Skiptracers opens at New York’s Village East Cinemas this Friday, September 11th. In a savvy move of cross-promotion, opening night attendees can get a free Colt 45 from the nearby bar, Finnerty’s.
"Melancholic and pragmatic, Sugar is not a rousing Saturday night sports movie. But it is a brilliantly executed film that provides insight into a world most viewers rarely think about. As far as sobering sports movies go, Sugar would make a strong double-feature with last year’s The Wrestler, as both films are dedicated to examining the psychology of minor league athletes just outside the spotlight." Click here to read my review at PopMatters
"Unassuming and naturalistic, Adventureland has a remarkable sense of pathos for a young adult comedy. But its appealing ensemble, pitch-perfect soundtrack, and controlled filmmaking help the tougher moments go down smoothly. It’s a hugely enjoyable blend of humor and agony that captures the confused, painful, but open-ended state of late adolescence. "
There is still a lot to appreciate about the film: the open-minded camerawork (so much happens outside of the frame), the long, expressive close-ups, the natural dialogue and the very funny moments that it creates and its general unpredictability. But truthfully, these pleasures are on display in Cassavetes’ other films too. And they don’t come with the same self-involvement and frustrating incoherence that permeates Husbands. Click here to read my review at PopMatters
"The film's strengths lie in the natural performances and Dresden's minimalist direction. The locations feel lived-in and the performers do so much with just their eyes. But what will inevitably leave the longest lasting impression on viewers is the frankness of the love scenes which are energetic, starkly shot and — believe it or not — sexy."
"Fans of British television – and British scenery – should be perfectly satiated by the 464-minutes of Doc Martin contained in this package. Like a good doctor, it’s dependable, easily accessible and comfortingly familiar."
Not Coming to a Theater Near You is currently running a very entertaining feature on action movies. The inspired collection of films being covered includes the entire Rambo series, obscure Chuck Norris movies and even a Buster Keaton silent classic. I chose to contribute a piece on Mission: Impossible, of my favorite summer blockbusters directed by one of my favorite directors, Brian De Palma. There's a lot of nostalgia present - I still vividly recall my Mom taking me to see it on the opening Saturday night (I was just young enough that it wasn't uncool) - but I also think it's a very well constructed blockbuster whose enjoyment factor hasn't waned over the past 13 years. Click here to read my essay at Not Coming to a Theater Near You
