REVIEW: St. Vincent [2014]

“It is what it is” The Toronto International Film Festival appears to be embracing the quasi-family friendly odd couple comedy with R-rated color after last year’s Bad Words and this year’s St. Vincent, written and directed by Theodore Melfi and currently receiving theatrical release a month after its debut. Whereas the former went all-in with f-words and curry-holes, however, the latter is intent on retaining a strong sense of sentimentality. This isn’t necessarily bad—it simply forces the film into a sort of limbo existence. Because despite its PG-13 rating, the…

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REVIEW: See No Evil, Hear No Evil [1989]

“You’re a dumb idiot” TriStar Pictures—in a bid to put Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor back onscreen together after Stir Crazy and Silver Streak proved successful a decade plus earlier—agreed to the former’s understandable stipulation. They’d act in See No Evil, Hear No Evil only if Wilder was allowed to take a crack at rewriting its script, one that already passed through two separate screenwriting teams and producer Marvin Worth‘s hands during preproduction. It makes sense: no one of their incomparable comedic stature would want to simply cash-in without ensuring…

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REVIEW: The Bad News Bears [1976]

“Took on the whole seventh grade?” Talk about an example of how stringent the ratings board has gotten in the past 30+ years. Who knew a PG film targeted for young children to see with their families could have so much swearing, alcohol, fighting, smoking, and examples of psychologically abusive parents? The Bad News Bears—the original 1976 version mind you—shows that we were once able to make smart movies with morals that didn’t have to pander to the lowest common denominator. Not only is the film actually good, it also…

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REVIEW: Charade [1963]

“Punch and Judy” After seeing the dismal Jonathan Demme film The Truth About Charlie, I was left aghast. The film had so much going for it. But it was a major letdown besides the surreal New Wave feel of the sequence just before the end credits. I flipped the disc over upon completion to check out the bonus movie Charade on which it was based. I fast-forwarded a bit and discovered the dialogue was pretty much the same in that part, so I took it out and returned the rental.…

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