Richard Schiff | www.jaredmobarak.com

REVIEW: Clemency [2019]

2019/12/082020/03/23 Jared Mobarak

I am alone and no one can fix it. Stories about death row inmates are so often shown from the convict’s perspective and his/her question of guilt that it’s easy to look past certain details concerning the other side. I don’t mean the prosecution, though. I mean those whose careers force them to carry out the execution itself. An example: most films of this sort have protestors screaming outside the prison’s walls for someone to intervene and erase the death penalty from American law books and it seems natural because…

REVIEW: The Lost World: Jurassic Park [1997]

2018/06/252020/04/04 Jared Mobarak

So you went from capitalist to naturalist in just four years. That’s something. It’s one thing for a movie to spawn a sequel for no other reason than money—especially at the Hollywood level where the capitalistic gains of producers usurp the artistic worth of its creators. But it’s another to ask the artist who spawned the property to go down that bankrupt well with them. This is exactly what happened when the time came to follow-up the smash hit Jurassic Park, however. The original book was a bestseller that only…

REVIEW: Take Me To the River [2016]

2016/10/272016/10/28 Jared Mobarak

“The beans have to come out of the oven” First-time feature writer/director Matt Sobel set out to create a film that allowed its viewers to become active participants in the story process and he’s succeeded. Take Me to the River is nothing if not ambiguous in a way that forces us to give meaning to unanswered questions and oddly truncated scenarios. It’s claustrophobically emotional with intense discomfort both for the characters and audience. How you interpret what’s happening beneath the surface of knowing looks, fierce provocations, and devastating guilt says…

REVIEW: Knife Fight [2013]

2013/01/172013/08/08 Jared Mobarak

“WWMD: What would Machiavelli Do?” With five nominations and two wins from the Academy Awards for documentary work, director Bill Guttentag set his sights on the world of political strategists with a potential for eye-opening revelations. Unfortunately it didn’t take long to realize acquiring usable, candid footage would be impossible when the presidential candidates he interviewed refused to be on the record. They weren’t going to allow their backhanded deals, amoral treachery, and back alley tactics see the light of day—especially not in their own words. No, for Knife Fight…