Shrek the Third: An Ogre the Hill Franchise?

"Perhaps the reason I am able to enjoy Shrek the Third so much stems from never loving Shrek the first enough to be disappointed by a sequel."

Click here to read the entire review at TheCinemaSource.com

That Thing You Do!: Extended Cut

"It’s difficult for me to approach the new extended cut DVD of That Thing You Do! without stooping to rabid fanboy zeal as it is a film I unabashedly cite as one of my favorites of all time."

Click here to read the entire review at TheCinemaSource.com

The Ex: Suspicious Minds

"A dark comedy that’s never as mean as it wants to be, the snide humor and pratfalls start out pretty favorably but as the film progresses, the laughs peter out at an unforgiving rate."

Click here to read my review at TheCinemaSource.com

Lucky You: For Love or Money?

"The offbeat decision to stage a poker film under the auspices of a chick flick (or is it the other way around?) has made for a marketing nightmare for Warner Brothers but it has also made for a compellingly watchable fairy tale – the only way to describe it because the Las Vegas depicted in Lucky You only exists in the magical world of movies."

Click here to read my review at TheCinemaSource.com

Jindabyne: Apathy Indicted

"Jindabyne may not be an easy film to like, but it is an important one to experience. "

Click here to read my entire review at TheCinemaSource.com

I also participated in a round table interview with the film's stars, Laura Linney and Gabriel Byrne, last week. Articles on both celebrities can be found at the following links.

Laura Linney

Gabriel Byrne

Hot Fuzz: Armed for Laughs

"Hot Fuzz may resonate most strongly with rabid fans of the buddy-cop genre due to its hard-edged and in-character aesthetics but its high-spirited zest will appeal to film lovers of all shapes and sizes."

Click here to read my entire review at TheCinemaSource.com

Live Free or Die: Give My Grievances to the Granite State

"The performers and the filmmakers’ intentions are in the right place but Live Free or Die never picks up enough steam to really elicit the kind of guffaws that the talent promises."

Click here to read my entire review at TheCinemaSource.com

The Hawk is Dying: Animadversion on Wings

"...director Julian Goldberger raises the question, how long can a movie featuring an off-kilter Giamatti running around with a frenzied hawk on his shoulder exist before devolving into self-parody? The answer is, surprisingly long."


Click here to read my review at TheCinemaSource.com

Maxed Out: Debt of Dishonor

"...in the end, I can’t deny that I did come away with a stronger impulse for being weary of credit card companies in the future. "

Click here to read my entire review at TheCinemaSource.com

300: Spartan Aesthetics

"...every single element is so explicitly artificial that the viewer is forced to question everything, even the tiny ripples of inflation and deflation on Butler’s sizeable six-pack while he barks orders."

Click here to read my entire review at TheCinemaSource.com

A Good Year: Sour Grapes

"What was a quaint, modern-day fairy tale on page has turned into a glib, overcooked film so hung up on causality that it lacks any of the organic grace present in Mayle’s prose. "

Click here to read my entire review at TheCinemaSource.com

The Number 23: Literature & Paranoia

"Despite the generic constraints becoming oppressive in the conclusion, The Number 23 still serves as a kooky entry in the realm of late night Sci-Fi channel repeats. Secondly, and more subtly, it manages to effectively create a recognizable depiction of what it can be like to find oneself consumed by an engrossing book."

Click here to read my entire review at TheCinemaSource.com

Norbit: The Fat Lady Just Keeps Singing

"Not only is Norbit a vile, unfunny, and all-around-awful movie, it effectively impugns many of Murphy’s substantial comedic achievements over the past twenty years."

Click here to read my entire review at TheCinemaSource.com

Because I Said So: Dismal Weening

"From the opening scene, the plotting is of the sitcom variety and anyone who can blithely make it through these torturous first twenty minutes of contrivance should really start demanding more from their movie-going experiences."

Click here to read my entire review at TheCinemaSource.com

Seraphim Falls: The Good or the Bad?

"These performances, combined with the ambiguity of their characters’ intentions, hint at something really special but the film isn’t quite able to perform as a whole."

Click here to read my entire review at TheCinemaSource.com

I also had the opportunity to participate in a roundtable interview with the lead actors earlier this week.

Click here to read my interview with Pierce Brosnan

Click here to read my interview with Liam Neeson

Catch and Release: Dead in the Water

"There’s a lot of room for quaint pleasantries andhonest, human drama but things evidently became very artificial en route to the big screen. "

Click here to read my entire review at TheCinemaSource.com

Extras: Squirming Riotously

"While Extras is probably more Curb Your Enthusiasm than The Office in its commingling of improvisation and celebrity self-sacrifice, it still operates in the same realms of foot-in-mouth comedy perfected in The Office."

Click here to read my entire DVD Review at the TheCinemaSource.com

Fantasy Oscar Ballot

On the eve of the announcement of the official Oscar Nominations, I figured I'd take a page out of my good friend/fellow critic John Young's book and post a list of names I would vote for in the top eight categories.

Best Picture
Half Nelson
The Departed
The Queen
Little Children
Children of Men

Best Actor
Ryan Gosling, Half Nelson
Aaron Eckhart, Thank You For Smoking
Leonardo DiCaprio, Blood Diamond
Daniel Craig, Casino Royale
Greg Kinnear, Little Miss Sunshine

Best Actress
Helen Mirren, The Queen
Judi Dench, Notes on a Scandal
Kate Winslet, Little Children
Gretchen Mol, The Notorious Bettie Page
Meryl Streep, Devil Wears Prada

Best Supporting Actor
Eddie Murphy, Dreamgirls
Brad Pitt, Babel
Michael Sheen, The Queen
Bill Nighy, Notes on a Scandal
Clive Owen, Inside Man

Best Supporting Actress
Cate Blanchett, Notes on a Scandal
Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls
Diane Lane, Hollywoodland
Emily Watson, The Proposition
Toni Collete, The Night Listener

Best Director
Alfonso Cuaron, Children of Men
Martin Scorsese, The Departed
Ryan Fleck, Half Nelson
Todd Field, Little Children
Steven Frears, The Queen

Best Original Screenplay
Russell Gewirtz, Inside Man
Peter Morgan, The Queen
Rian Johnson, Brick
Guillermo Del Toro, Pan’s Labyrinth
Ryan Fleck & Anna Bowden, Half Nelson

Best Adapted Screenplay
Todd Field & Tom Perrotta, Little Children
William Monohan, The Departed
Andrew Birkin, Bernd Eichinger & Tom Tykwer, Perfume: The Story of a Murderer
Frank Cottel Bryce, Tristram Shandy: A Cock & Bull Story
Armistead Maupin, The Night Listener

As for predictions, the only risky pick I'll make is that DiCaprio gets snubbed for both performances and both Gosling and Cohen make it into the finalists. Very unlikely, yes, but what the heck.

Alone with Her: A Stalk to Remember

"It’s certainly an experiment of sorts and for what it is, it’s rather interesting, although it will probably play best on the small screen."

Click here to read my entire review at TheCinemaSource.com

Top 10 of 2006

1. Half Nelson

2.The Departed

3. The Queen

4. Little Children

5. Brick

6. Children of Men

7. Cars

8. Tsotsi

9. Casino Royale

10. Inside Man


Read my List with Commentary at TheCinemaSource.com