Films – Page 53 – Spinning Platters

Eternally Grateful for Eternal Sunshine

Why Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is one of my favorite films (of all time) and should be one of yours, too!

Eleven years ago today (March 19, 2004), Michel Gondry’s award winning sci-fi romantic dramedy, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, starring Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet, was released – and how to categorize such a multifaceted film gem? At the time, it played strong in somewhat limited release, earning $34 million in the domestic box office while garnering very positive critical reviews and mass audience approval. More than a decade later, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is a widely respected title, but it often goes unrecognized for its lasting power and timelessness. It has so much going for it, even eleven years later, that one must wonder why it doesn’t frequent more award ceremony montages, more best film lists, and more casual conversations between friends about their favorite films of all time. The A.V. Club got it right, claiming Eternal Sunshine to be the best film of the 2000s. You may be thinking, ‘I liked the movie, but it’s not one of my all time favorites’. Well, I implore you to reconsider, and here’s why:

Continue reading “Eternally Grateful for Eternal Sunshine“

Film Review: Merchants of Doubt

No doubt about it: Kenner’s new film is mediocre

Physicist and climate change skeptic Fred Singer makes his case in Merchants of Doubt.

Documentarian Robert Kenner, who deservedly earned an Oscar nomination and several other awards for Food Inc., his last documentary, unfortunately doesn’t retain the same level of quality in his newest film, Merchants of Doubt. The picture, inspired by a book of the same name by science writers Naomi Oreskes and Erik Conway, doesn’t even come close to covering the range of topics promised by the book’s subtitle (which Kenner wisely drops): How a Handful of Scientists Obscured the Truth on Issues from Tobacco Smoke to Global Warming.

Continue reading “Film Review: Merchants of Doubt”

Film Review: Cinderella

Who ordered a ‘fairy tale straight up’? We all did.

Lily James emerging from her pumpkin-turned-coach.

First of all, did anyone else know that the new live action version of Cinderella was directed by Kenneth Branagh (Hamlet, Thor)? The man is an acclaimed thespian and director, and no wonder the cast of the new Cinderella is so perfect, and the direction so sure-handed. And of course, where there’s Shakespearean drama, like the death of a parent or the pining of a tortured soul, Mr. Branagh is sort-of becoming the go to master of capturing these moments quite touchingly and cinematically while still serving a popcorn flick. But the best part of Cinderella isn’t the acting or the direction or the vast array of vibrant colors. It’s the story. After torturing audiences for years with reinterpretations and re-imaginings of classic Disney properties like Alice in Wonderland and Maleficent, how wonderful it is to have Cinderella, which relies on the strengths of its original story. No crazy additions. Only a slight bit of silly CGI. The magic and romance of the classic Cinderella story is ever present, and so very welcome.

Continue reading “Film Review: Cinderella”

Film Review: CHAPPiE

I hated every character in this movie, including the stupid robot.

Let’s get what’s good about this movie out of the way quickly. It won’t take long. The effects are amazing. It’s incredible to think about how far we’ve come with effects, where you can watch a robot walk, talk and fight, and never for a moment think that it’s just a CGI creation. The visual effects team nailed it, and I would be absolutely OK with them winning whatever awards, or garnering any accolades, because they deserve it. Holy crap. The rest of the movie? I can’t believe I made it to the end.

Continue reading “Film Review: CHAPPiE”

Film Review: Focus

A smooth, fun star vehicle for Will Smith and Margot Robbie

I love a good con man movie. My favorites are The Sting, The Spanish Prisoner, House of Games, and Diggstown. Each of these movies features both the players in the film being conned as well as the audience. Focus doesn’t enter the realm of classic cinema, but it’s stylish, fun, and full of joyous reveals. Everything else I’m about to say is unnecessary exposition. Who wants to know the details of a good con?

Continue reading “Film Review: Focus”

Film Feature: Carrie and Chad Pick the Oscars

Film critics Carrie and Chad on who will – and who should – win the 87th Academy Awards

The 87th Academy Awards air this Sunday, February 22nd on ABC at 5:00pm PST (red carpet coverage begins at 4:00, if you want to dish on fashion highs and lows). There are some tight races this year – Best Picture and Best Actor are especially hard to call. Here are Carrie and Chad’s predictions – and hopes – for the major categories:
Continue reading “Film Feature: Carrie and Chad Pick the Oscars”

Film Review: Hot Tub Time Machine 2

Did everyone writing this go back in time to when they were nine years’ old?

Craig Robinson, Rob Corddry and Clark Duke, in the funniest scene in Hot Tub Time Machine 2

Comedy sequels always suck. Like a sketch being brought back on Saturday Night Live, they use the same catch phrases, the same jokes, and oftentimes even the same plot. Hot Tub Time Machine 2 is no exception, in that it sucks, but at least it’s different from the original in a few key ways: the star actor (John Cusack) has gone missing, our gang goes into the future instead of the past, and there are way more gross-out jokes. Did I say the changes were good?

Continue reading “Film Review: Hot Tub Time Machine 2”

Film Feature: Sundance Film Festival Spotlights #3

Sundance 2015 Spotlights: Six Documentary Films

Spinning Platters completes its coverage of the 2015 Sundance Film Festival with this third and final Spotlights post, focusing on six documentaries that screened at the Park City fest. Keep your eye out for many of these as they are widely released this coming year, and use our handy Sundance Viewing Priority Level (VPL) Guide to help you decide if they are worth your time:

Continue reading “Film Feature: Sundance Film Festival Spotlights #3”

Film Review: Kingsman: The Secret Service

What if you took all the story beats from a James Bond movie and turned them up to 11?

Colin Firth in Kingsman -- The Secret Service — Colin Firth in Kingsman: The Secret Service

When Casino Royale was being advertised a few years ago, the tagline often being used was “This is not your father’s James Bond.” Kingsman: The Secret Service is directed by Matthew Vaughn (X-Men First Class, Layer Cake, Kick Ass), who was under consideration for directing the James Bond reboot. This, then, is possibly a preview of what we might have seen from a James Bond film. But while it takes the basic framework of a classic spy thriller, the execution is much, much more.

Continue reading “Film Review: Kingsman: The Secret Service”

Film Review: Fifty Shades of Grey

‘Fifty Shades’ is caught between a book and a hard place.

Must. Stare. To. Create. Intense. Chemistry!

I sort of feel sorry for Francine Maisler, the casting director of Fifty Shades of Grey. Francine was given an impossible task — to cast the role of Christian Grey with an actor whose every physical characteristic would accurately reflect the subjective sexual fantasies of millions of female (and male) readers. 100 million, to be more exact. Once a Grey was found, the rest should’ve fallen more easily into place. To the filmmakers credit, and to Maisler’s, the casting job is almost as good as it could’ve been. Jamie Dornan makes for a sexy steely-eyed (see what I did there?) Christian Grey and Dakota Johnson makes for a very strong pretty-yet-plain Anastasia Steele. Oh, but there’s one problem…they have to have great chemistry together in order to pull it off. Oops. Fifty Shades of Grey is not as bad as you may think or hope, and if you’re brave enough to refrain from poking fun of it to look cool, it’s not hard to notice some strong cinematic merits and a strong yet simply central plot with a lot of interesting potential. Sadly, the lack of actor chemistry and the screenwriter’s loyalty to the book’s popularity sours the overall impact of the film, which, despite its effectiveness in pushing the boundaries of sex in a rated R film, should’ve had a stronger impact.

Continue reading “Film Review: Fifty Shades of Grey”