Films – Page 52 – Spinning Platters

Film Review: Seventh Son

Looked good on the drawing board; looks terrible up on the screen.

"Go away, or I shall taunt you a second time!" - Jeff Bridges in Seventh Son — “Go away, or I shall taunt you a second time!” – Jeff Bridges in Seventh Son

When a movie is supposed to be released in February, you worry a bit about the quality. The best movies don’t usually come out in the dumping grounds of January and February. When a movie is supposed to come out in February of 2013, but is finally released in February of 2015, that’s a big worry. The best movies usually don’t sit on the shelf for two years. But anyone seeing the trailer or the story of Seventh Son isn’t expecting much more than some tight world building, clever and maybe funny dialog, and some cool special effects set pieces. On those counts, how does Seventh Son deliver?

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Film Review: Jupiter Ascending

A Jupiter-sized mess (and Jupiter is big).

Channing Tatum "surfing" around shooting and being shot at. — Channing Tatum “surfing” around shooting and being shot at.

There’s a line in Jupiter Ascending where a former alien soldier stationed on Earth tells a newly-discovered woman of royalty, “Bees don’t lie.” With or without context, you should get a sense of how ridiculous this sounds, because it is. Completely. Ridiculous. Jupiter Ascending, from the Wachowskis, whose credibility is descending rapidly, is a silly overwrought mess. Too much is packed into too complex a premise. The tone shifts back and forth between silly and serious, imaginative and derivative, from The Fifth Element to Dune (minus the intelligence). When a movie gets pushed from a summer tentpole position (May-July) to the cinema graveyard shift (January-February), it’s obvious that something is wrong. In the case of Jupiter Ascending, it has all the makings of a sci fi summer blockbuster, but fails to execute on all fronts aside from some nifty special effects that look quite pretty.

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Film Review: Black Sea

A few leaks can’t sink this thrilling submarine flick.

About halfway through Black Sea I realized that I wasn’t breathing. It was a scene in which a few members of the submarine crew exit into the blackness of the ocean floor, and the claustrophobic intensity got the best of me. I had to take a moment to inhale and exhale and remind myself that it’s just a film, and soon after I was sucked back into it. Kevin Macdonald’s Black Sea is not just a deep sea treasure hunt that entertains with its thrills. The film sinks in deeper intellectually by the way it weaves in post-war sentiments, economic tensions, and the battle between war-torn human nature versus basic human values. Black Sea is the best submarine film released in many years, and one of the tightest thrillers in recent memory.

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Film Feature: Sundance Film Festival Spotlights #1

Sundance 2015 Spotlights: Five Feature Films

Braving the chill, the dry air, and the self-importance of the L.A. film industry folks who don’t turn off their cell phones during screenings, Senior Film Reviewer Carrie Kahn brings you these first spotlights (more to follow) from the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, UT, which closes this Sunday, February 1st.

From the good, the mediocre, to the downright horrific, some of these films may receive distribution deals and be widely released in the coming year. Lucky for you, we here at Spinning Platters are ready and willing to let you know which films to see and which to miss. We’ll start with five feature films, and our handy Viewing Priority Level (VPL) Guide will steer you in the right direction. Continue reading “Film Feature: Sundance Film Festival Spotlights #1”

Sketchfest Review: But I’m A Cheerleader Hosted By Peaches Christ at The Castro Theater, 1/27/15

At one point in time, Natasha Lyonne was a cult icon that did quirky, low budget indie films. Then, something strange happened. A little TV show about life in a women’s prison became one of the most popular shows on TV, bringing Lyonne up from cult icon to bonafide star. Sketchfest, by some force of magic, was able to get this big star to come to SF and slum it with us for an evening, discussing a film that’s nearly 20 years old.

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Film Review: A Most Violent Year

Top-notch thriller explores the underside of the American dream

Oscar Isaac’s Abel and Jessica Chastain’s Anna discuss their business problems.

Jessica Chastain and Oscar Isaac were overlooked during yesterday’s Oscar nominations, which is a bit disheartening, since they both give tremendous performances in writer/director J.C. Chandor’s newest film, A Most Violent Year (which opened in New York and L.A. in December, making it eligible for this year’s Oscars). Chandor, whose previous pictures include the pulse-quickening, terrific Margin Call and last year’s lost-at-sea thriller All is Lost, is a master at pulling his audience into a visceral time and place, and his skill remains exceptionally sharp, as evidenced here in his latest film.

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Film Review: Blackhat

Blackhat is a real hack job.

Hacker Hemsworth looking as confused about 'Blackhat' as we are. — Hacker Hemsworth looking as confused about ‘Blackhat’ as we are.

Blackhat is a film about a good guy hacker team trying to stop an elusive bad guy hacker. It had a lot going for it, considering it’s directed by Michael Mann (Collateral, Heat), stars ultra-manly Chris Hemsworth (Thor), and as we can all attest to, its cybercrime theme is very relevant. So why is Blackhat such a bad movie? It’s bad because it’s messy, miscast, and poorly put together. Not Michael Mann’s trademark digital lensing nor Hemsworth’s chiseled abs can save Blackhat from plodding through grating dialogue, an unrealistic plot and a pointless romantic subplot. Aside from a solid supporting job from Viola Davis and some beautiful night shots of cities around the world, Blackhat basically fails on all fronts.

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Film Review: Inherent Vice

Weird. Beautiful. Funny. Convoluted. Meandering. Forget it Jake, it’s Pynchon.

Joaquin Phoenix and Katherine Waterston in P.T. Anderson's Inherent Vice — Joaquin Phoenix and Katherine Waterston in P.T. Anderson’s Inherent Vice

Paul Thomas Anderson has made his name with movies that feel very important, and are chock full of big ideas about life. If you come looking for that in Inherent Vice, you’re going to leave disappointed. This movie is essentially a comedy, full of visual gags and walk-o- length comedic performances by a series of excellent actors. The story isn’t much to hang your hat on, but the cast, the dialog and gorgeous images should keep you entertained, as long as you keep your expectations in check.

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Film Feature: Chad’s Top 10 Films of 2014

Spinning Platters film critics present their top 10 films of 2014

Spinning Platters film critics Carrie Kahn and Chad Liffmann each share their ten favorite films of 2014. Here is Chad’s list, presented in reverse order of greatness; you can also see Carrie’s list here.

10.) Snowpiercer

Snowpiercer, Bong Joon-ho’s masterful post-apocalyptic thriller, was forced to fly beneath the radar since it was released on the same day as the horrific yet unfortunately box office dominating Transformers: Age of Extinction. Set in a human-created ice age in which the last survivors on the planet ride around on a crazy-long bullet train, Snowpiercer uses its science-fiction fantasy premise to punctuate some terrifying reflections on the socio-political tensions of modern day society. Chris Evans turns in another solid action hero performance (duh, Captain America) and Tilda Swinton is wicked good as the cruel and quirky “voice”/messenger of the upper class.

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Film Feature: Carrie’s Top 10 Films of 2014

Spinning Platters film critics present their top 10 films of 2014

Spinning Platters film critics Carrie Kahn and Chad Liffmann each share their ten favorite films of 2014. Here is Carrie’s list, presented in alphabetical order. And you can see Chad’s list here.

1.) Boyhood
Patricia Arquette and Ellar Coltrane are outstanding as a mother and son who grow and change together.

Filmed intermittently over 12 years, Richard Linklater’s film chronicling a boy named Mason (Ellar Coltrane) from ages six to 18 in real time is both a technical marvel and a cinematic masterpiece. There has been nothing like it before on screen, and there will no doubt be nothing like it again. Utterly unique in scope and vision, the film lets us watch a life develop in front of our very eyes, with all of its attendant hopes, dreams, achievements, and disappointments. Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke play Mason’s parents, changing and growing right alongside him and his older sister (Lorelei Linklater). An absolutely dazzling achievement that will leave you breathless and awed, Linklater’s picture is sure to be the one to beat for Best Picture come Oscar time. (You can also read Gordon’s full-length review here).

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