Excision (2012)

Genre: Horror

Directed by: Richard Bates Jr.

Starring: AnnaLynne McCord, Traci Lords, Ariel Winter

Running time: 81 minutes

Pauline is a socially-awkward, disturbed et delusional high school students with aspirations for pre-marital sex and a career as a surgeon. Between her difficult relationship with her mom and her desire to help her younger sister who suffers from cystic fibrosis, things have the potential of going very wrong.

It was a treat to see greats like Malcolm McDowell and John Waters have cameos in this film. There is also former porn actress Traci Lords playing the mother. The acting was really good, and the story keeps you guessing until it finally dawns on you that something really bad is bound to happen.

To say that Excision packs a punch is an understatement. That final sequence stayed with me for quite a while after the movie was done. A little over the top, but highly recommended, though not for the faint of heart.

Rating: ««««

Bravo Two Zero (1999)

Genre: TV / Action

Directed by: Tom Clegg

Starring: Sean Bean, Kevin Collins, Steve Nicolson

Running time: 121 minutes

This UK TV miniseries is based on the true story of a group of British SAS patrol soldiers that were given the task of finding Iraqi Scud missile launchers during the Gulf War. Some were killed and a few of them were capture and tortured.

While the subject matter had promise, the delivery was so awfully bland that I never could connect to this. I wanted to like it: It is a part of history. I even tried backing up a few times to give it a chance. But, the acting was so bad. With the accents and the mumbling, I could barely make out most of the dialogues. When Sean Bean is your best hope for a good acting performance, you are behind the 8-ball for sure.

Rating: «

The Edge (1997)

Genre: Thriller

Directed by: Lee Tamahori

Starring: Anthony Hopkins, Alec Baldwin, Elle Macpherson

Running time: 117 minutes

Billionaire Charles Morse is involved in a plane crash, with photographer Bob Green and his assistant Stephen. The three men find themselves stranded in a remote area of Alaska. As they fight their way back to civilization, dealing with the elements and a very dangerous bear, underlying tensions between Charles and Bob are bound to be the most dangerous thing to contend with.

This is a pretty good survival thriller. The storyline is compelling and the action is fast-paced, though in does not go overboard in that regard. The acting was decent, though I found Baldwin a little weak here, compared to Hopkins. I love a good story where a man survives thanks to brain over brawn, and this is the case here, though I found the ending a little lackluster.

Rating: ««««

Hotel Transylvania 2 (2015)

Genre: Animated / Comedy

Directed by: Genndy Tartakovsky

Starring: Adam Sandler, Andy Samberg, Selena Gomez

Running time: 89 minutes

Count Dracula’s daughter Mavis has now married Johnny, and they have a son together named Dennis. Fearing that, since her son has not developed his fangs, he might be human like his father and thus not feel normal in Transylvania, Mavis sets her mind on moving her family to Los Angeles, where the in-laws live. In a last ditch effort to keep his family near him, Count Dracula tries to scare the fangs out of his grandson, trying to prove that he is indeed a vampire in the making.

Just like the first installment in this trilogy, this sequel is cute, albeit cheesy. It is easy to recognize Adam Sandler’s fingerprints on this one. It is decent family entertainment while it lasts, but it is easily forgettable afterwards.

Rating: «««

Conception (2011)

Genre: Drama / Comedy

Directed by: Josh Stolberg

Starring: Pamela Adlon, David Arquette, Aaron Ashmore

Running time: 87 minutes

The film starts with a group of school children asking their teacher how children are born. Then, we move to the stories of 9 different couples, centering mostly around the subject of conception.

This is a very charming film. We have 9 distinct stories, but they blend together quite well. There is also a good diversity in there, which is bound to still please people in 2020. The acting is pretty good too. Really, this was a nice surprise.

Rating: ««««

Guibord s'en va-t-en guerre (2015)

Genre: Franco / Comedy

Réalisateur: Philippe Falardeau

Distribution: Patrick Huard, Suzanne Clément, Irdens Exantus

Running time: 108 minutes

Steve Guibord est un ancien joueur de hockey devenu député fédéral indépendant. Il représente une circonscription du nord du Québec et à la Chambre des Communes et il se retrouve à être le vote décisif à savoir si le gouvernement canadien doit envoyer des troupes à la guerre. Accompagné de sa femme, de sa fille et de son stagiaire haïtien, Guibord part en tournée de son comté pour sonder leur opinion à l’égard de la guerre.

Ce film est une satire fort efficace de la situation politique au Canada. Il est facile d’y reconnaître des allusions à des situations fort réelles, malgré les exagérations. Le jeu des acteurs est très bon, et l’histoire est fort intéressante, au-delà de quelques longueurs. Somme toute, c’était un film très divertissant qui m’a bien fait rire.

Rating: ««««

Volcano (1997)

Genre: Thriller

Directed by: Mick Jackson

Starring: Tommy Lee Jones, Anne Heche, Don Cheadle

Running time: 104 minutes

When an impromptu volcano erupts underneath Los Angeles, Mike Roark, the director of the city’s Office of Emergency Measures, has to find a way to divert the massive flow of dangerous lava, all the while worrying about the safety of his teenage daughter. Roark gets some assistance from geologist and seismologist Amy Barnes.

This is your run-of-the-mill generic disaster movie where the end seems dire, but you never really doubt that someone will same the day. Most of the acting is good, except for Anne Heche, who felt widely out of place in there. Not a bad movie, just nothing special.

Rating: «««

Hotel Transylvania (2012)

Genre: Animated / Comedy

Directed by: Genndy Tartakovsky

Starring: Adam Sandler, Andy Samberg, Selena Gomez

Running time: 91 minutes

Count Dracula has Hotel Transylvania built, where he hosts monsters, offering them shelter from humans, that he has grown to fear, blaming them for the death of his wife. As he is about to celebrate his daughter Mavis’ 118^th birthday (her majority as a vampire) with friends, Johnny, a 21 years-old human ventures into the hotel, creating chaos. The overprotective father will try to get rid of the boy before his daughter falls for him and his monster guests realize there is a human in the place.

This is a cute animated film. The story is fine, in a thin sort of way. Some of the comedy made me chuckle, though it is pretty tame for adults. Children will sure appreciate. There is a little message here about acceptance, which is fitting for these times.

Rating: «««

Heaven Strewn (2012)

Genre: Drama / Thriller

Directed by: Jeremiah Gurzi

Starring: Wyatt Denny, Rob Tepper, Alexandra Williams

Running time: 78 minutes

Mickey is trying to make up for his losses encountered in a botched counterfeiting transaction by making a play on a looming drop by those who played him. To accomplish this, Mickey convinces his best friend Jasper to drive him, under the guise of a meteorite hunting expedition. Soon enough, this little adventure lands the two friends in more trouble than they bargained for.

Honestly, I never managed to get into this film. It got some great reviews, but it kept losing me. I gave it multiple chances, and it still put me to sleep. Gave up. It’s only quality is that it is short.

Rating: «

The Indian Runner (1991)

Genre: Drama

Directed by: Sean Penn

Starring: David Morse, Viggo Mortensen, Patricia Arquette

Running time: 127 minutes

Based on the Bruce Springsteen song called Highway Patrolman, The Indian Runner is the story of two Nebraska brothers, Joe and Frank Roberts. Joe took a job as deputy sheriff after losing his farm and he lives with his wife Maria and their young son. Frank has been in trouble all his life. After coming back from Vietnam, Frank is soon plagued by restlessness, which is bound to get him in trouble.

The Indian Runner is a very subdued film. It is a compelling character study, as the two brothers represent the opposition of the two extreme opposite sides of manhood. One would probably say that it is probably an illustration of both sides within director Sean Penn’s personality. In this film, what is not said is far more important than what is not said, and bother lead actors do a great job with the tough material. The pace is slow and deliberate, and it takes effort to get into this one, but it is well worth it.

Rating: ««««

Beautiful Boy (2018)

Genre: Biographical / Drama

Directed by: Felix van Groeningen

Starring: Steve Carell, Timothée Chalamet, Maura Tierney

Running time: 120 minutes

New York Times writer David Sheff has a very difficult relationship with his teenage son Nicholas, who is battling through sessions of therapy and relapses of a severe addiction to methamphetamine. The father stands by his son and fights for him constantly, though it might look from the outside like a losing battle. This film is based on the memoirs published by David Sheff and Nicholas Sheff.

I so wanted to love this movie, but I had a hard time getting into it. Over the first half, the story kept jumping back and forth in a way that I would not call seamless. Steve Carell and Timothée Chalamet did their best to carry their roles through, and they were quite good, but the storytelling felt very muddled and confusing.

Rating: ««

The Day After Tomorrow (2004)

Genre: Science-fiction

Directed by: Roland Emmerich

Starring: Dennis Quaid, Jake Gyllenhaal, Ian Holm

Running time: 123 minutes

Climatologist Jack Hall has been trying to convince the American government that climate change could very well bring another ice age somewhere down the life if nothing is done, but he never expected to see it in his life time. When it comes, Jack has to travel in the cold from Washington to New York to rescue his teenage son, who is taking part in an academic decathlon.

Visually-speaking, this is a breath-taking film. The special effects and visuals are great. Most of the acting is pretty good. As for the story itself, while it is scientifically inaccurate and melodramatic at times, it is still quite entertaining.

Rating: ««««

End of Watch (2012)

Genre: Action / Thriller

Directed by: David Ayer

Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Michael Pena, Anna Kendrick

Running time: 109 minutes

This film, written and directed by David Ayer, follows Brian Taylor and Mike Zavala, two young LAPD cops, around in their day-to-day job as police officers, their relationships and their friendship. They cover an area where drugs and gangs are prevalent.

The acting is mostly good here, except maybe for Anna Kendrick, who I found to be very non-believable. The story is also quite compelling and the action feels realistic. Unfortunately, while it might have been good for realism, the parts shot with a hand-held camera were more distracting than anything else to me.

Rating: «««

The Last Rites of Joe May (2011)

Genre: Drama

Directed by: Joe Maggio

Starring: Dennis Farina, Jamie Anne Allman, Ian Barford

Running time: 106 minutes

Joe May is a low level aging hustler who comes out of a long stay in the hospital for pneumonia to find out that he has nothing left, with his car being taken away and his apartment being rented to someone else. As he tries to find his way back into a productive life, Joe strikes an unlikely friendship with Jenny, the new tenant of his old apartment, and her young daughter Angelina. Jenny lets Joe live with them in exchange for help with the rent. When Jenny’s boyfriend, an abusive police detective, gets too violent, Joe makes a decision that will have serious consequences.

This is a bleak but very compelling film. Dennis Farina is absolutely solid as Joe May. He makes that character of an aging hustler trying to hang on for dear life to finally find his deal come alive on screen. You have no problem embarking on that character’s trek through the later part of his life and you feel for him. Some of the supporting cast was also good, though there were a few weaker performances.

That last fight scene was not the best choreographed fight I have seen, but, overall, this is a very interesting character study brought to the screen by talented folks. I enjoyed it very much.

Rating: ««««

The Fugitive (1993)

Genre: Action / Thriller

Directed by: Andrew Davis

Starring: Harrison Ford, Tommy Lee Jones, Sela Ward

Running time: 130 minutes

Based on the television series of the same name, The Fugitive tells the story of Dr. Richard Kimble, a vascular surgeon who gets wrongfully convicted of his wife’s murder and sentenced to death. There is a bus crash on the way to the prison, so Kimble manages to escape the authorities. The doctor tries to stay on the loose long enough to prove his innocence, all the while being pursued by Deputy US Marshall Samuel Gerard and his team.

This is such a good action movie. It is long, but it keeps you on the edge of your seat all the way through. Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones are extremely good in their respective roles and it is easy to root for Dr. Kimble in his quest to clear his name.

I have always loved a story where a man that is not necessarily a powerhouse manage to survive and conquer thanks to his brain. This is one of those cases.

Rating: «««««

Wimbledon (2004)

Genre: Romantic Comedy

Directed by: Richard Loncraine

Starring: Kirsten Dunst, Paul Bettany, Sam Neill

Running time: 98 minutes

Peter Colt, a British tennis player on the decline who benefits from a wildcard spot at the Wimbledon tournament, falls for Lizzie Bradbury, an up-and-coming American player. Their relationship seems to motivate him to perform beyond expectations on the court.

This is your middle-of-the-road romantic comedy. Nothing spectacular. Paul Bettany is a decent lead here. Kirsten Dunst was uneven in her performance. She had a few moments where I felt a disconnect. The story itself was okay, with a potable but predictable ending.

Rating: «««

The Perfect Game (2009)

Genre: Drama

Directed by: William Dear

Starring: Clifton Collins Jr., Cheech Marin, Moisés Arias

Running time: 118 minutes

Based on true events, The Perfect Game tells the story of César Faz, who goes back to Monterey, Mexico, after getting let go by the St. Louis Cardinals. As he is wasting his life away, a group of Mexican boys convince him to help them form a baseball team and to coach them. Faz manages to lead these inexperienced kids to the 1957 Little League World Series.

While the ending of this film is predictable, as most underdog tale is, it is such a feel-good movie. And to think it was inspired by true events. The cast is solid here and the storytelling is straight-forward nut really good. I thought it was a nice touch to go from black and white a couple of times in the movie to show that this story was coming alive from the history books.

I really loved this one. I was touched, I was entertained; I smiled, I laughed and I got misty-eyed a little bit.

Rating: «««««

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (2008)

Genre: Drama

Directed by: Mark Herman

Starring: Vera Farmiga, David Thewlis, Ruper Friend

Running time: 94 minutes

Based on the novel of the same name, written by John Boyne, this film tells the story of Bruno, a young boy who moves from Berlin to occupied Poland with his family during World War II. Bruno’s father is a Nazi soldier who just got promoted. Exploring near his new home, Bruno finds an extermination camp. Across the barbed wire fence, he sees Shmuel, a Jewish boy his age. Not understanding that he is supposed to hate the “enemy”, Bruno strikes up a friendship with Shmuel.

This film was accused of being historically inaccurate, of trivializing the Holocaust for the purpose of a story and of diverting the role of victim in the end. Those are all good points. There is also the fact that you have a mostly British cast playing German characters.

Nonetheless, this is a compelling story that will be sure to pull on the heartstrings. When kids are involved, it that much more emotionally-charged. The cast itself does a good job. I was moved, without a doubt, though this film is certainly not without fault. It remains a nice story about the innocence of youth still uncorrupted by the hatreds of adults. It still applies today.

Rating: «««

A Beautiful Life (2011)

Genre: Romance

Directed by: Andrew Lau

Starring: Shu Qi, Liu Ye, Tian Liang

Running time: 124 minutes

Fang Zhendong, a police officer who also takes care of his adult handicapped brother, meets Li Peiru, a young and beautiful real estate agent with great aspirations. Their personalities are very different, but, after that awkward chance meeting one evening, their paths seem destined to cross more and more.

This Chinese film is a beautiful romance story with good acting and solid storytelling. It required effort from a Western viewer such as myself, as it requires me to read the subtitles. But it is well worth the effort. It felt a little overly long towards the end, but I am glad I made it through.

Rating: ««««

Pawn Shop Chronicles (2013)

Genre: Comedy

Directed by: Wayne Kramer

Starring: Brendan Fraser, Elijah Wood, Vincent D’Onofrio, Thomas Jane

Running time: 112 minutes

The stories of a group of various odd characters overlap and in all involves objects bought or sold at a pawn shop.

Considering the ensemble cast involved here, this should have been so much better. A time or two, there was a glimpse of hope, where I thought it would lead somewhere. Alas, it was not to be.

Rating: ««