MOVIE REVIEW: ARGO

When militants seize control of the U.S. embassy in Tehran during the height of the Iranian Revolution, CIA agent Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck) creates a fake Hollywood film production in order to rescue a group of American diplomats who have sought refuge at the home of the Canadian ambassador. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Director: Ben Affleck

Cast: Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, Alan Arkin, John Goodman, Taylor Schilling.

Release Date: Oct 12, 2012

Rated R for language and some violent images

Runtime: 2 hr. 0 min.

Genres: Drama, Suspense/Thriller

Review:

Argo is a wonderfully crafted film. The fact that Ben Affleck did not get an Oscar nomination for work behind the camera is nearly criminal. His skill is readily on display throughout culminating with a tension filled 30 minute climax. The film itself is easily accessible and immediately engaging, an impressive feat considering the subject matter. Affleck onscreen delivers an understated and subtle performance as Mendez. He gets plenty of help from some excellent supporting players. Alan Arkin chews up the scenery with gleeful delight. He and John Goodman make for an impressive team leaving you wishing there was more of them in the film. It’s always good to see Bryan Cranston get good film roles and here he’s given a nice part that lets him flex his acting chops. Argo is one of those films you know the ending to already but it doesn’t detract from the experience in the slightest.

A

MOVIE REVIEW: SINISTER

A struggling true-crime novelist stumbles into a grim supernatural mystery that threatens the lives of his entire family in this nightmarish horror yarn from director Scott Derrickson (The Exorcism of Emily Rose, The Day the Earth Stood Still). Ellison (Ethan Hawke) is seeking inspiration for his latest book when he moves his wife and children into a home where an entire family perished under gruesome circumstances. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Director: Scott Derrickson

Cast: Ethan Hawke, Fred Dalton Thompson, James Ransone, Michael Hall D'Addario, Rob Riley

Release Date: Oct 12, 2012

Rated R For some Terror and Disturbing Violent Images

Runtime: 1 hr. 49 min.

Genres: Horror, Suspense/Thriller

Review:

Sinister is the type of horror movie that’s heavy on atmosphere and tension with a sporadic sprinkling of gore and violence. Scott Derrickson returns the horror genre after his failed attempt at remaking a sci-fi classic. Derrickson understands mood and how to shoot a film in order to give it an overreacting sense of dread. It’s visually dark but beautiful as well capturing something a lot of horror films miss. Ethan Hawke is solid in the lead even if sweater loving character is written as an outright jerk. The script limits our empathy for him since he seems to have very little regard for his family and their wellbeing. The aforementioned family is terribly under developed which is a shame since it would have made the film stronger overall. Strangely, a police officer is given more meat than the writers wife. James Ransone plays the character about as hockey as possible killing the mood anytime he shows up on screen. The payoff is solid if a tab bit obvious due to the overuse of certain ghosts.

C+

MOVIE REVIEW: SNITCH

In the fast-paced action thriller SNITCH, Dwayne Johnson stars as a father whose teenage son is wrongly accused of a drug distribution crime and is looking at a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 10 years. Desperate and determined to rescue his son at all costs, he makes a deal with the U.S. attorney to work as an undercover informant and infiltrate a drug cartel on a dangerous mission -- risking everything, including his family and his own life.

Director: Ric Roman Waugh

Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Susan Sarandon, Jon Bernthal

Release Date: Feb 22, 2013

Rated PG-13 for Sequences of Violence and Drug Content

Runtime: 1 hr. 35 min.

Genres: Action/Adventure, Suspense/Thriller

REVIEW:

by Cindy Prascik

Dearest Blog, yesterday I headed up to the cinemas to check out Dwayne Johnson's new film Snitch.
Spoiler level here will be mild, limited to tidbits you'd get from the trailers.
When his son faces a minimum of ten years in prison for a minor drug infraction, a father (Dwayne Johnson) goes undercover with local drug dealers and a major cartel to get the sentence reduced.

If you're a fan who sees Dwayne Johnson movies looking only for two hours of him kicking the ever-lovin' crap out of people, I'm sorry to say you'll be disappointed in Snitch. The good news is, that'd be about the only reason you'd have to be disappointed.
Snitch is a solid drama/thriller that had me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. However accurately it does or does not depict the actual events on which it's based, as a movie it gets it right. The story is strong, if a little implausible in spots, and I chewed my nails to bits worrying about the outcome!

Dwayne Johnson is good in the lead and gets to show off a bit of extra depth with that natural charisma that's gotten him where he is. The supporting cast is fleshed out by notable names and faces such as Susan Sarandon, The Walking Dead's Jon Bernthal, Boardwalk Empire's Michael Kenneth Williams, Barry Pepper, Benjamin Bratt, Harold Perrineau, and Melina Kanakaredes. Rafi Gavron is especially good as the terrified boy facing a stiff jail term for a stupid mistake.
Snitch clocks in at a tense 112 minutes and builds to an ending that's satisfying without feeling forced or hokey, definitely worthy of your movie-going dollars.

Of a possible nine Weasleys, Snitch gets seven.
And nearly three decades removed from my days as a high-school Spanish honor student, apparently all that's left is that I speak "drug dealer."

Until next time...




I don't really need a reason to post this, do I?

Introducing The Random White Woman Movie reviewer Cindy Prascik.…

In a decision to expand my blog and reviews, both in style and perspective, I’ve added a good friend to mine who’s been reviewing films for just as long as I have.
Cindy Prascik has graciously accepted my offer to join my little movie blog. Together, I hope we can expand the scope of my blog and get Cindy some exposure outside of Facebook.

First and foremost, I want to say thank you again for joining me. I know it’s going to be great.
I wanted to run through a few questions to introduce you and your style to the readers.

Q: How long have you been writing movie reviews and what got you started?

A: I started on my old MySpace page…I’d guess mid-2000s? Time does funny things when you get to my age. Jumped over to Facebook when it became clear MySpace was as dead as most of the characters Gary Oldman plays!


I’ve always enjoyed your style because it’s very conversational and your passions really come through.

Q: Care to tell us about some of your favorite genres, films or actors?

A: Favorite genre is an easy one: If every movie could be The Expendables, I’d be a happy camper!

Favorite movies are too numerous to count, but if there’s a Lord of the Rings movie on somewhere, chances are a Prascik is watching it!

Other perennial list toppers include Nolan’s Batman trilogy, all the Harry Potters and Pirates of the Caribbeans, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, How to Train Your Dragon, The Crow, Tombstone, Slap Shot, Real Genius, Clue, The Three Musketeers (1993), Big Trouble in Little China, The Full Monty, Hot Fuzz, Streets of Fire, District 9, Watchmen, The Warriors, Tropic Thunder, and The Blues Brothers.

My Acting Holy Trinity has been firmly set for more than two decades: Gary Oldman, Johnny Depp, and Russell Crowe. Rarely does another actor have a real chance of cracking the Trinity, but Sharlto Copely and Ben Foster are close.

Wish Copely didn’t have so many irons in the fire, so he had more time for acting. Oh, and I will always...always...see a Jason Statham movie the minute it hits the cinema!

Q: We generally like a lot of the same films but there are a few that we couldn’t be more opposed to, like The Master and Prometheus in recent memory. Is there a certain style of film that really bugs you or that you really like?

A: I have sooooooooooo little patience for rom-coms, and see those only under duress (read: if a favorite actor is in one).


Mostly, I just try to be an educated consumer, so I’m never really disappointed by a movie unless it’s been misrepresented in its advertising; otherwise, even the bad ones are a good time…if only because I enjoy making fun of them!



Q: Last one, I rate my movies on the A-F scale because I’m lazy and couldn’t come up with anything funnier. Tell us about where the Wesley scale came from.

A: I’m a proud Potter-head! Grading on the Weasley scale seemed like a great idea at the time…though I’ve stuck myself with having to mention in every single review that there are only nine Weasleys, lest anyone miss when I’m giving a film full marks!


Well there’s a brief intro to my new partner on this site, I hope everyone reads and enjoys her reviews as much as I do!

MOVIE REVIEW: BEAST OF THE SOUTHERN WILD

A six-year-old girl from the southern Delta searches for her long-lost mother after her father falls ill and her world spins out of balance in the film from director Benh Zeitlin that took home the Grand Jury Prize and Best Cinematography award at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Director: Benh Zeitlin

Cast: Quvenzhané Wallis, Dwight Henry, Lowell Landes, Levy Easterly

Release Date: Jun 29, 2012

Rated PG-13 for child Imperilment, Brief Sensuality, Language, Some Disturbing Images and Thematic Material

Runtime: 1 hr. 33 min.

Genres: Drama

Review:

Benh Zeitlin’s first full length film is a magical experience that’s deceptively simple but incredibly dense. Zeitlin’s film is a visual marvel which captures the childlike wonder of innocence with a tangible authenticity which seeps through the screen. It’s the type of film which if instantly engaging and mesmerizing as well. Quvenzhané Wallis & Dwight Henry serve as the film’s core throughout. Zeitlin’s decision to cast non actors really adds to the feel of the film. Quvenzhané Wallis is just as impressive as I’d heard. She carries herself with a wonderful sense of strength and awareness of self throughout. It’s always tough to gauge with child actors if it’s a performance or just their innate personality seeping through, regardless she’s perfect in the lead role. I was just as impressed with Dwight Henry’s work especially since he’s truly a non actor, he owns a bakery. Together they work with a fascinating chemistry which is endearing and heartbreaking at the same time.

A

MOVIE REVIEW: AMOUR

An octogenarian couple find their love put to the ultimate test when one of them suffers a stroke, and the other must assume the role of the caretaker in this compassionate yet unsentimental drama from director Michael Haneke. Georges (Jean-Louis Trintignant) and Anne (Emmanuelle Riva) are retired classical-music teachers savoring their golden years in a comfortable apartment when Anne experiences a stroke that leaves her partially paralyzed. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Director: Michael Haneke

Cast: Jean-Louis Trintignant, Emmanuelle Riva, Isabelle Huppert, Alexandre Tharaud, William Shimell.

Release Date: Dec 19, 2012

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material including a disturbing act, and brief language

Runtime: 2 hr. 7 min.

Genres: Art House/Foreign

Review:

Micahel Haneke has made a career of turning the mundane into something disturbing and unsettling. He’s also been a didactic director even if you don’t notice it. Early on in Amour, his deeply moving yet tragic love story, the director holds a shot of an audience. Haneke is telling us that this tale is about something that will affect all us at some point. It’s an interesting starting point into a brutally honest tale of love and devotion that goes into the depths of our hearts and limitations of our bodies. Haneke confines the film to the octogenarian’s well worn apartment creating a sense of claustrophobia throughout. In this confined space is a pair of legendary French actors who deliver incredibly powerful performances throughout. Emmanuelle Riva has received plenty of praise and awards for her performance here and it’s well earned. Riva’s work portraying Anne’s increasingly degraded state is masterful and shockingly realistic. Riva has a showier role but Jean-Louis Trintignant work shouldn’t go unnoticed. Trintignant’s turn is just as strong. His ability to convey a plethora of emotion through a single look or facial expression is just masterful. Together with Haneke’s direction they create a film which takes us through the end of a love story in all its naked truth.

A

TV SHOW REVIEW: House of Cards

Francis Underwood is Majority Whip. He has his hands on every secret in politics - and is willing to betray them all to become President.


Cast: Kevin Spacey, Michael Gill, Robin Wright, Kate Mara, Michael Kelly, Corey Stoll

Executive Producers: David Fincher, Kevin Spacey, Eric Roth, Joshua Donen, Dana Brunetti, Andrew Davies, Michael Dobbs, John Melfi, Beau Willimon


Netflix’s decision to give original programming a shot was something that could have gone very badly. It could have been some cheaply produced muck with low rent actors. The decision to remake the British series House of Cards, after outbidding the cable networks, with A-list talent in front and behind the camera was a master stroke. With David Fincher at the helm for the first 2 episodes, allowing him to establish is distinctive style, gives the series instant legitimacy. The cast instantly shows you they are on their A game with an incredibly magnetic performance by Kevin Spacey at its center. The supporting cast such as a luminous Robin Wright textures the world being presented. Robin Wright’s performance as Underwood’s wife is just as interesting and complex as Spacey’s, a lesser actress could have faded into the background. Kate Mara continues to leave a noticeable impression even when working with some grade A talent. Other supporting players like Corey Stoll and Michael Kelly round out an impressive cast. The story and characters are all incredibly rich giving all these actors so much to work with throughout. Its plot feels like a MacBeth, King Lear hybrid blended into a modern day Washington all of it handled in an incredibly watchable and engrossing manner. Season 1 only failing speaks to effectiveness, the finale leaves you wishing you could watch season 2 instantly, a real triumph for Netflix.

A

Netflix Streaming Exclusive with all 13 episodes available

MOVIE REVIEW: FLIGHT

FLIGHT




A pilot with a substance-abuse problem has to land a crippled airliner in this Robert Zemeckis-directed drama for Paramount Pictures. Real Steel's John Gatins provides the script. Denzel Washington heads up a cast that includes The Hurt Locker's Brian Geraghty, along with John Goodman and Don Cheadle. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi

Director: Robert Zemeckis

Cast: Denzel Washington, Don Cheadle, Kelly Reilly, John Goodman, Bruce Greenwood

Release Date: Nov 02, 2012

Rated R for Intense Action Sequence, Drug and Alcohol Abuse, Language and Sexuality/Nudity

Runtime: 2 hr. 18 min.

Genres: Drama

Review:

After watching Flight I’d come to the realization that Denzel Washington had been churning interesting and impressive performances in some rather lackluster films for a good while. So much so that I’d almost consider him unappreciated, considering how some Academy Award winners have been known to phone it in more often that not. Flight is a bloated ham fisted film that’s elevated by its incredible leading man. Denzel Washington is the show here and the film dips significantly whenever he’s off screen. Thankful he’s onscreen for the better part of the film and he’s entrancing even though he’s dealing with a script that rams every cliché it could think of into the characters and plots. Washington performance is so much more impressive considering what he’s handcuffed with and I shudder to think of what a lesser actor would have done in this role. Robert Zemeckis has been removed from live action film directing for a while and outside of truly spectacular and horrifying crash sequence he overdoes everything. There’s a scarcity of quiet moments where he’s just pulls back and lets Denzel do his thing. Instead there’s are some eye rolling bad musical cues to hammer home each point not to mention an overused religion slant which is just as frustrating as the rest of the script. Denzel doesn’t just carry this film he drags it kicking and screaming to respectability that alone deserves kudos and awards.

C+

MOVIE REVIEW: WARM BODIES

WARM BODIES




A tormented zombie (Nicholas Hoult) experiences a profound transformation after entering into an unusual relationship with the daughter (Teresa Palmer) of a military leader charged with eradicating the walking dead. As the unlikely pair build a tenuous bridge between the living and the dead, those on both sides of the battle begin to sense that nothing in their world will ever be the same again. Warm Bodies is based on the novel by Isaac Marion. Rob Corddry and John Malkovich round out the starring cast. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Director: Jonathan Levine

Cast: Nicholas Hoult, Teresa Palmer, Rob Corddry, John Malkovich, Dave Franco

Release Date: Feb 01, 2013

Rated PG-13 for zombie violence and some language

Runtime: 1 hr. 38 min.

Genres: Comedy

Review:

Warm Bodies is a simple film which a bit of a statement for a zombie rom-com. Director Jonathan Levine keeps things as simple as possible while giving us a self aware version of Twilight with a much better sense of humor. Its light fare at it’s fluffiest. Its center is an incredibly fun, charming and ultimately engaging performance from Nicholas Hoult. From the moment we hear his internal monologue the audience is sucked into his plight and quest for zombie reinvention. R is pretty much Buddy from Day of the Dead with a romantic heart. Love truly conquers all, even rigor mortis. As mentioned the plot is thread bare and while it’ll keep you grinning throughout you can’t help but think it could have been streamlined or that it’s rather neutered to keep that sacred PG-13 rating. Teresa Palmer is rather bland but serviceable. Rob Corddry and a steady John Malkovich do solid work in limited roles. Warm Bodies is an almost sugary sweet zombie love story, it’s not perfect but who is.

B-