Continuing the 2013 parade of science fiction on a smaller scale is The Last Days on Mars , the debut full-length feature film from Oscar-nominated short director Ruairi Robinson. After taking part in the Directors' Fortnight section of the Cannes Film Festival, it debuts in limited theatrical release on December 6th after primarily aiming for a Video On-Demand audience to stir up some buzz. Boasting a notable cast of steady performers and character actors, The Last Day of Mars , on premise alone, is aiming for that subtle suspense that made Moon and Sunshine surprise small-scale science fiction hits within the last decade. The result, however, is as laden with horror cliches as Saturn is encircled with rings.
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After seeing the second installment, the hotly anticipated The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, my gut feeling is that they are saving their best for their swan song and not the middle. While the budget and star power have increased with success and maturity from the comparatively modest first film 20 months ago, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire does not do enough to achieve that level of being a great middle trilogy film on the same scale as The Empire Strikes Back orThe Dark Knight.
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The Best Man Holiday pulls out many surprises, not the least of which is a heartfelt dramatic core that will warm your spirit and leave a lasting impression of friendship and fellowship. While it has its flaws and cheesy elements,The Best Man Holiday is one of the most flat-out entertaining and satisfying romantic comedy experiences to come to movies in years.
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BLIND SPOT REVIEW #6: All Quiet on the Western Front
Going back and seeing the movies I should have seen or always wanted to see, but missed.
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Bad Grandpa actually attempts to outline some semblance of a narrative around its pranks. Plenty of things want to be funny, but Bad Grandpa bites off more than its dentures can chew this time around.
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It's a shattering performance swinging between power and vulnerability minute-to-minute. It's the best Matthew McConaughey has ever been and might just be the role that puts him onstage at the Oscars this coming winter
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Dear Vince Vaughn,
Hey, buddy! How's it going? It's been a long time. I say that because I didn't see The Internship, The Dilemma, Couples Retreat, and covered my eyes in shameful embarrassment through most of The Watch. I don't know if I told you, but I ranked The Watch as the worst movie I saw in all of 2012.Sorry to open on a down note, but I wanted to be upfront about where I've been and wanted to come clean.
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Thor: The Dark World, the next chapter in the God of Thunder's journey, is Marvel's "spaciest" movie yet, diving in and out of several worlds and exotic settings. In going full fantasy, Thor: The Dark World has plenty to entertain the masses, but loses a little of the coherence we enjoyed from other better Marvel films.
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Keanu Reeves has two features this second half of 2013. The headliner is 47 Ronin, a samurai spectacle slotted to join the blockbusters on Christmas Day with a wide release. The other is the smaller-scale Man of Tai Chi, which premiered at screenings in competition at the Beijing, Cannes, and Toronto Film Festivals. The film is Keanu's directorial debut is now playing in limited release here in the United States (including three locations here in the Chicagoland area) concurrently with Video On Demand offerings on several platforms.
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BLIND SPOT REVIEW #5: The Road
Going back and seeing the movies I should have seen or always wanted to see, but missed.
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Strong work equals strong results, which is the catalyst to examine Ender's Game, the latest 2013 science fiction blockbuster-to-be. Ender's Game is based on one of the more illustrious pieces of science fiction written in the last half century. Originating as a 1977 short story, author Orson Scott Card's 1985 Cold War-era and Hugo Award-winning military science fiction novel has long been a required reading staple of high school literature classes, college courses, and even our own U.S. Marine Corps.
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