“It gives me acid reflux” Tonight’s gold star goes to the duo of Deborah Aquila and Mary Tricia Wood for their deal with the devil to compile a star-studded cast for the blatantly lackluster affair that is Valentine’s Day. I don’t know how they pulled it off—I’m sure the promise of a hefty payday for minimal work helped—but the name recognition on the poster and advertisements alone will go a long way in cementing the film’s number one status at the box office over it’s titular holiday weekend. The actual…
Read MoreMonth: February 2010
REVIEW: Logorama [2009]
“No feeding the animals, grrr” I don’t care if the story is weak, the gimmick is copyright infringement, or the subject matter crass and off-the-wall—H5’s animated short Logorama is a helluva great time. With all the safe bets that went into this year’s Oscar nominees, the fact this 17-minute film was even included sheds some light on its inventiveness. Do not go trying to find the full piece to show your young kids, though; just because it’s a cartoon does not make it family-friendly. Between disgruntled cops, played by the…
Read MoreREVIEW: Surrogates [2009]
“Honey, I don’t know what you are” The first thing that came to my mind while watching Surrogates is how rushed it felt using technology that wasn’t quite ready to pull off what it was the filmmakers desired. Whereas James Cameron waited years to hone his computer systems to achieve the realism Avatar needed to succeed, the Hollywood machine appeared to say “screw it, we have to finish this thing now”. I don’t want to fault director Jonathan Mostow as he most certainly was just a hired hand here, but…
Read MoreREVIEW: Peeping Tom [1960]
“He won’t be doing the crossword tonight” The Criterion Collection has always been at the forefront of delivering the general masses with contemporary classics for years now. Some may question the selection process and a few mainstream hits being graced with the askew ‘C’, but I do believe they should be given the benefit of the doubt. When it comes to Michael Powell’s psychological horror film Peeping Tom, I do think they have chosen a piece of work that, while it may not be great cinema, is important to the…
Read MorePicking Winners at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards
Some Oscar nomination thoughts, the morning after: William Altreuter: Best Picture: The Hurt Locker. James Cameron backlash, plus Hollywood self-seriousness = victory! Best Actor: Jeff Bridges. Everybody loved Clooney, but he’s in something good every year. Supporting Actor: Stanley Tucci. Just a hunch. Best Actress: Sandra Bullock. Did you realize she’s forty-five years old? Not exactly the best argument against the proposition that there are no roles for women over twenty-four, since she plays at least ten years younger, but still. Plus the Streep movie wasn’t that good (even though she…
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