The saving grace for Tron: Ares is the dose of splashy big screen entertainment it provides this fall. Continuing forward from the jaw-dropping dazzle of Tron: Legacy, Rønning’s dexterity and set pieces show off the prominent talent showing off across many artistic areas. True to its lasting cult success, no imaginative action idea was squelched or expense was spared in the set construction, prop creation, costume design, second unit, and stunt departments.
Read MoreThe film’s energy comes from how Candy’s co-stars and collaborators talk about him. Leaning heavily on his old SCTV mates Eugene Levy, Dave Thomas, Catherine O’Hara, Dan Aykroyd, and the continuing Murray, no one is reading from an encyclopedia entry or reciting a biography. This circle of talent speaks about living those moments and what it was like to collaborate beyond when the cameras were rolling. Their asides and memories help frame a fuller picture of John Candy’s mindset and spirit.
Read MoreWhat could have been a morose, listless slog about a bitter whiner is energized into something of a soul-stirring seance in many layers and moments. If you’re taken away for 100 minutes to think about your life—what you’ve done and haven’t done—and what kind of man or person you want to be, one could do far worse than swoon to Gabriel Byrne and groove to Leonard Cohen.
Read MoreStill, how many times have we written Dwayne Johnson off? How many times have folks rolled their eyes at another beefy piece of blockbuster cheese with his name at the top of the poster? Well, those days are hopefully over. A corner has been turned with The Smashing Machine, and the trust granted to him by Benny Safide to make this character piece and hoist his talent to a higher plane.
Read MoreThanks to a strong third act monologue from Ejiofor speaking on approaching loss as the “inevitable outcome of the love that unites us all,” we want what we he wants and have to remove cynicism to accept that outcome from Johansson’s film with warmth. There’s plenty for the new director to be proud of and a high value to being a mouthpiece for human connection as this film intends.
Read MoreIncontrovertibly, the loudest word reverberating out of Paul Thomas Anderson’s imposing crime saga and instant awards season juggernaut, One Battle After Another, is “revolution.” When an ambitious movie, no matter the subgenre, invokes that term as its core for conflict, it sets out to establish a setting and context of corruption while positioning a potentially dramatic and dangerous chessboard of characters prepared to take risks and fight against their marked opposition.
Read MoreStarring the multi-talented Lilly Singh, the sex farce comedy flies a bunting’s worth of freak flags, all of them willfully fluttering with pride and wantonness in the face of pearl-clutching prudeness and opposition. While it stumps for modernity to do away with antiquated thinking on a few topics, Doin’ It also turns back the clock to bring back a downright horny level of raunch, a tone setting long abandoned by studios and missed by plenty of audiences.
Read MoreTrue to the old recipe, the improvisational nature of the conversations and interactions shows its essentialness for the cast and storytellers. For the audience who has missed the casualness of this style, The Baltimorons is comfort food not unlike the hearty plates both these characters wouldn’t mind partaking in with loved ones before the day is out.
Read MoreYet, Rachael Abigail Holder makes her choice. She leans on love and lets the rest of the issues orbit like an accompanying breeze. In doing so, Love, Brooklyn offers a bountiful, conversation-driven romantic drama that exudes intelligence, not only in its portrayal of the neighborhood's dynamics but also in its exploration of the hurdles modern relationships face in such a culturally affluent setting.
Read MoreMissing children are an unsettling movie crisis, often rapt in thriller-sized peril. The helplessness is crippling, even if a happy ending arrives. As well, the fear and uncertainty hit very close to home, even if the viewer is not a parent themselves. More often than not, films about missing or kidnapped children amplify the danger to an exasperating and overwrought level. Stranger Eyes encapsulates the aforementioned proliferating dangers in an almost entrancing, methodical way
Read MoreIn a movie where being present without the cares of future jobs or the outside world becomes a unifying emotional investment sought by two normally different people, The Map That Leads to You is missing a little bit of that extra level of dramatic bond. Jack’s path of tracing the journal’s exploits—a noble endeavor for sure—feels one-sided at times, more than something broadened to include Heather or a tsunami of pure destiny and rapturous swoon.
Read MoreBetween his signature stylistic flourishes and incendiary thematic infusions, Spike Lee’s flair of exceptionality is what makes him one of the best and boldest storytellers of his generation. Dare him to take a run at Akira Kurosawa, return the incomparable Denzel Washington to his call sheet, and watch his cup, and ours, runneth over with Highest 2 Lowest.
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