Tag: Review

Peggapalooza!: A Fantastic Fear of Everything

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A Depressed Press SeriesPart 2 of 8 of Peggapalooza

IMDB, A Fantastic Fear of Everything“A Fantastic Fear of Everything” on IMDB

Comedy, 100 Minutes, 2012

This celebration of things Simon Pegg [IMDB] (not Simon Pegg’s thing) starts with this 2012 dark comedy. Pegg plays Jack, an unstable author who’s spent the better part of a year researching Victorian serial killers for a new book. He began the project simply to lose the stigma of his unexpected success as a children’s author, but his obsession has led to intense paranoia. When his agent arranges a meeting with an American film producer, his already fragile grip on reality snaps.

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Movie Review: Norman

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IMDB, Norman“Norman” on IMDB

Comedy/Drama, 99 Minutes, 2010

Similar to 2011’s excellent “The Lie” [My Review], this explores how the pressures of life can sometimes force good people to make poor choices and, ultimately, how they deal with the consequences. Here, snarky, unpopular high-schooler Norman (Dan Byrd [IMDB]), has recently dealt with the death of his mother and is now watching his father (Richard Jenkins [IMDB]) succumb painfully to stomach cancer. When berated by a schoolmate about his recent flakiness, he blurts out that he has cancer.

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Movie Review: Suicide Squad

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IMDB, Suicde Squad“Suicide Squad” on IMDB

Action/Adventure, 123 Minutes, 2016

This is the third film in the contiguous DC cinematic universe. It follows Man of Steel [My Review] and Batman v. Superman [My Review]. I enjoyed the first for its careful initial character development, but recognized its many flaws. I bemoaned the fact that character development was forgotten in the vapid, overwrought follow-up. Both left fans wanting more and Suicide Squad with every chance to be the first truly great entry in the series.

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Movie Review: Bait

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IMDB, Bait“Bait” on IMDB

Horror, 93 Minutes, 2012

The “sharks in places that aren’t the ocean” genre has been woefully under served lately. Sure, we have enough “Sharknado” movies to field a Little League team, but purists rightfully scoff at these periodic, vacuous money grabs. They know that real “sharks in places that aren’t the ocean” movies have something more, something truer. They have heart.

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Movie Review: The Killing Joke

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IMDB, The Killing Joke“The Killing Joke” on IMDB

Action/Crime, 116 Minutes, 2016

Alan Moore and Brian Bolland’s 1988 graphic novel, “The Killing Joke” was considered the quintessential Joker story of the modern era. It became the definitive origin story of the character and starkly highlighted the depths of his depravity. More importantly, it delved more deeply than ever before into the dark, codependent relationship between Batman and the Joker. It remains, nearly thirty years later, one of the most influential stories in all of comics.

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Movie Review: London Has Fallen

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IMDB, London Has Fallen“London Has Fallen” on IMDB

Action/Drama, 99 Minutes, 2015

[This is the 600th movie review that I’ve posted. Hooray for arbitrary large, round numbers!]

This is a sequel to the 2013 blockbuster “Olympus has Fallen” [My Review]. That review summarized the movie as, “Action fans will find a lot to like but unfortunately it lacks the soul to make it truly great.” This entry in the increasingly unlikely series could be summed up in much the same way.

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Movie Review: Hardcore Henry

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IMDB, Hardcore Henry“Hardcore Henry” on IMDB

Action/Sci-Fi, 96 Minutes, 2015

Films have toyed with first person perspectives for decades, usually only in small doses. Thrillers show us what the killer sees while horror and sci-fi let us stalk the heroes through heavily filtered monster-vision. Heat-vision, night-vision, x-ray-vision, robot-vision and whatever-vision have all been simulated time and again. It’s an effective gimmick, but can it carry an entire film?

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Movie Review: The Legend of Tarzan

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The Legend of Tarzan“The Legend of Tarzan” on IMDB

Action/Adventure, 110 Minutes, 2016

Fans of Edgar Rice Burroughs Tarzan stories have a rough row to hoe with modern interpretations of the character. Johnny Weissmuller’s [IMDB] primitive portrayal in the 1930’s set specific, but utterly incorrect, expectations of a grunting man-brute. A characterization that’s since been parroted repeatedly by hollywood.

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Movie Review: Odd Thomas

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IMDB, Odd Thomas“Odd Thomas” on IMDB

Thriller/Mystery/Horror, 97 Minutes, 2013

[Personal Note: my wife and I finished this movie and, as you’ll see, enjoyed it thoroughly. I began writing the review and, a short while later, learned that Anton Yelchin had died. Considering the subject matter of the film, this created some eerie sensations to say the least. He was a damn good actor and seemed like a damn fine human.]

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