Director: Brad Furman (The Take)
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Ryan Phillippe, Marisa Tomei
On Blu-Ray + DVD: July 12, 2011
The Lincoln Lawyer is basically Dirty Harry in the courtroom. McConaughey plays Mickey, a lawyer who, like Harry Callahan, does whatever it takes to win the case: he bribes clerks and bailiffs; he organizes meetings with biker gangs in the middle of the highway; he even works out deals with informants to get them to lie. However, just like Harry, he has a conscience, and the core of Lincoln is about how this conscience is wearing down his ability to defend people that he knows are guilty. I'm not much of a fan of the courtroom drama genre, but this movie was exceptional. While the case that the movie revolves around is interesting and trying to figure out whodunit is actually fun, what really made Lincoln stand out to me was that it didn't rely solely on the case for drama. There's a surprising amount of layers and subplots for a movie about a lawyer just doing lawyerly things. The acting is also very good all around. McConaughey proves that he can actually carry a film if he tries hard enough, and the supporting cast is even better, specifically from William H. Macy, who plays Mickey's detective. Overall, The Lincoln Lawyer doesn't break any new cinematic ground, but when it's this entertaining and interesting, it shouldn't have to.
Starring: Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Ty Simpkins
On Blu-Ray + DVD: July 12, 2011
I haven't seen his other films, but Saw is, in my opinion, a horror masterpiece. It's paced perfectly, it's a plausible concept, and it's extremely tense, three of the most important elements of a horror movie to me. Hell, even its twist ending is done perfectly, and I don't really like twist endings. Haters gonna hate, but the first Saw is awesome (not so much for the others, but Wan didn't direct those). And while Insidious is no horror masterpiece, it's still a very good, very creepy movie. One of the coolest parts of the film is how it has this kind of old-school horror feeling to it. What I mean by that is that, for example, a lot of new films in the horror genre put a large emphasis on gore or violence and make it their selling point. Even Wan's other great film, Saw, relied heavily on gore. Insidious, on the other hand, has no gore at all, and instead relies on the situation simply being so freaky that you can't help but being creeped out. However, it's not a flawless movie. There are far too many scenes that go for the cheap scare, using jarring, unexpected imagery and loud, sudden noises to freak out the audience. Those are actually two of my biggest problems with the horror genre today. It really speaks to how good Insidious is that, despite its use of this technique, it still ends up being one of the better horror movies in recent years.
Director: Ruben Fleischer (Zombieland)
Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Aziz Ansari, Danny McBride, Nick Swardson
Currently In Theaters
30 Minutes or Less isn't the worst movie I've seen this year, but it may be the most disappointing. I'm a pretty big fan of Eisenberg, and I like Ansari and McBride, too, though I haven't seen as much from them. The premise also sounded hilarious and Fleischer's last outing, Zombieland, was pretty cool. However, 30 Minutes just doesn't really stack up to any of the talent involved. The film's biggest problem is that it isn't funny. Yes, I laughed during one or two scenes (when the cop ran away after seeing the bomb, for instance), but my laughs were scant and sporadic. Relatedly, Nick Swardson is not funny and I don't understand why he keeps getting roles. Anyways. The second main problem with this movie is that the plot doesn't really make sense, and even when it does, it doesn't really go anywhere. For instance, near the beginning, Eisenberg goes home after work and sees Ansari, his roommate. They get into this huge fight involving some really weird admissions and awkward fighting, and then the next day they're cool again. The film also has a really dumb ending. I'll stop ranting on it now, though. It's not horrific; it's not really even that bad. It's just mediocre, and with the talent involved, mediocre isn't nearly enough.
Director: Mike Cahill (debut film)
Starring: Brit Marling, William Mapother
Currently In Theaters
I really enjoyed Another Earth, but I'll just start this review off with a warning. Do not go into this film expecting sci-fi, because you're not going to get very much of that here. Yes, there is an Earth in the sky, and yes, the characters obviously discuss this throughout the film. But that's not really what this story is about. Marling plays Rhoda, a girl who kills a woman and her son in a drunk driving accident, and Mapother plays John, the husband and father of the deceased. At its core, Another Earth is about grief and regret and second chances, and that's also the real purpose of the other world. The characters in the film mostly discuss the second Earth in philosophical terms, not scientific, and the concepts that the film wants you to ponder are those what-ifs that could occur if we ran into parallel versions of ourselves. I really enjoyed this side of the film, and my biggest complaint is that they don't do more philosophizing. Then again, I guess the actual plot needs to be told, too. The acting here is great between the two leads, and in a weak year so far for leading ladies, Marling is the best I've seen. There's also some classic scenes that have stuck with me; a scene where John plays the musical saw comes to mind. Like I've said before, Another Earth is a really great movie, but don't be expecting some epic sci-fi adventure, because this ain't that.
You can hear music from the movie 'Another Earth' (the musical saw scene) on the composer's website: http://www.scottmunsonmusic.com/news/music-in-film-another-earth-soundtrack/
ReplyDeleteadooma:
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reply, and for the link. It's really interesting how something so beautiful can be made by simply bending a household tool.