The Gunman movie review: the yawn identity
A tired old piece of action junk that expects us to sympathize with a very bad man. We don’t.
based on a book
The Divergent Series: Insurgent movie review: being human
Sneakily undercuts tropes of the young-adult hero’s journey. But in a more adventurous movie environment, this wouldn’t feel this fresh as it does.
Suite Française movie review: enemy mine to love
An immediate and intimate tale of forbidden romance and other complex emotions and contradictory obligations. This ain’t history but a very human now.
Kill the Messenger movie review: all the news that’s fit to quash
A passionate and intense drama — fueled by a fierce Jeremy Renner — that furiously underscores the problem of lickspittle corporate “journalism.”
Fifty Shades of Grey movie review: neurotica
A charm-free hero with control issues and a passive, fretful heroine have coy and tediously vanilla pretend-sex. This is meant to be erotic?
Trash movie review: you know, for kids?
This isn’t a children’s movie… and yet it kind of is, too, with its odd mishmash of social realism, action thrills, misplaced comedy, and simplistic drama.
Mortdecai movie review: stinking mishap
This painfully unfunny spoof of teddibly British nonsense couldn’t be less amusing if it were actually calculated to be totally laugh-free.
American Sniper movie review: a pawn in the game, misplayed
A banal, bland tribute to things no one questions as laudable (though it has to misrepresent its subject to do so). But Bradley Cooper is very good.
Unbroken movie review: where war movies have gone before
Jack O’Connell is the most exciting young actor to break out in years, and he makes this overly familiar film worth your time… if only just.
Wild movie review (London Film Festival)
A film full of spectacular landscapes of both the natural world and the human spirit. This is what it looks like when women get to be people onscreen.
