Author: Brandon Fibbs
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REVIEW: Eat, pray, love and watch
My biggest fear with “Eat Pray Love” was that, as with so many adapted works of a more intimate, interior nature, it would be Hollywood slick, overproduced, and about as subtle as a bull in a china closet. Thankfully, my concerns were unfounded. The film, which admittedly stumbles in the home stretch and just misses…
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REVIEW: Critic vs. Scott Pilgram
Dear “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World,” I think we should break up. It’s not you, it’s me. I admitted when we first met that I’d never read Bryan Lee O’Malley’s graphic novel on which you’re based, but that hasn’t stopped me from enjoying similar films I was ill equipped to see. I think you’re great.…
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Review: ‘The Expendables’ delivers ’80s-style action
“The Expendables” oozes testosterone from every pore the way stale alcohol oozes from the pores of a drunk. The film, a class reunion of some of the biggest action genre stars of the last three decades — particularly the 1980s — is about 20 years too late. Yet preposterous and honestly awful as it is,…
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REVIEW: Star-studded action flick proves expendable
“The Expendables” oozes testosterone from every pore the way stale alcohol oozes from the pores of a drunk. The film, a class reunion of some of the biggest action genre stars of the last three decades — particularly the 1980s — is about 20 years too late. Yet preposterous and honestly awful as it is,…
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Review: ‘Scott Pilgrim vs. the World’ truly a hybrid film
Dear “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World,” I think we should break up. It’s not you, it’s me. I admitted when we first met that I’d never read Bryan Lee O’Malley’s graphic novel on which you’re based, but that hasn’t stopped me from enjoying similar films I was ill equipped to see. I think you’re great.…
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Review: ‘Winter’s Bone’ rings true
“Winter’s Bone,” a Sundance winner about what happens when a primal need for justice crashes violently into abiding and intractable tradition, is a gothic film noir set in the cold and cheerless Ozark mountains. Though it is a decidedly American tale, at its heart beats an almost Greek odyssey. The film also boasts one of…
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Review: ‘The Other Guys’ is straight-forward fun
“The Other Guys” is the second buddy police comedy to come out this year. But unlike the highly anticipated, but roundly dismissed, Kevin Smith outing, “Cop Out,” “The Other Guys” is actually, well, funny. Will Ferrell plays Det. Allen Gamble, an emasculated, Prius -owning, milquetoast forensic accountant with a compulsion to dot every I and…
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MOVIE REVIEW: ‘Other Guys’ a funny cop comedy
THE OTHER GUYSB+ Cast: Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Eva Mendes, Michael Keaton, Steve Coogan, Samuel L. Jackson, Dwayne JohnsonDirector: Adam McKayTheaters: Carmike, Cinemark, Chapel Hills, Hollywood, TinseltownRated: PG-13 (for crude and sexual content, language, violence and some drug material)Running Time: 1 hour, 47 minutes “The Other Guys” is the second buddy police comedy to come…
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MOVIE REVIEW: ‘Winter’s Bone’ harshly realistic
WINTER’S BONEA- Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, John Hawkes, Kevin Breznahan, Dale Dickey, Sheryl Lee, Lauren Sweetser, Tate TaylorDirector: Debra GranikTheater: Kimball’sRated: R (for drug dealing, drug use and profanity)Running time: 1 hour, 40 minutes “Winter’s Bone,” a Sundance winner about what happens when a primal need for justice crashes violently into abiding and intractable tradition, is…
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Review: ‘The Kids Are All Right’ is better than all right
“The Kids Are All Right” is an odd little film to find in the middle of an overstimulated Hollywood summer. Heartfelt and funny, the film is like a cool shower on an oppressively hot day — refreshing and invigorating, the sort of unexpected surprise that catches you off guard and sticks with you for days.…