
Focus movie review: con inartistry
Unpleasant, humor free, and contrary to accepted codes of movie morality. And that’s before it shows its hand as a pile of implausible sentimental mush.
film criticism by maryann johanson | handcrafted since 1997
Unpleasant, humor free, and contrary to accepted codes of movie morality. And that’s before it shows its hand as a pile of implausible sentimental mush.
Writing my review of I Love You Phillip Morris made me realize that I had not posted a female gazing for Rodrigo Santoro, which is an omission that could no longer be overlooked…
Bad Santa writers Glenn Ficarra and John Requa graduate to writer-directors here, and give us a warmly human and hugely funny story that’s almost a sendup of both prison melodramas and hetero romantic comedies… yet is also a truly amorous and very satisfying tale about the extremes to which a man will go for love.
I noted recently in connection with the Jim Carrey/Ewan McGregor movie I Love You Phillip Morris, a gay love story starring two straight men, that the writers of the film pointed out that they couldn’t hire gay stars because no one is gay in Hollywood… or at least not out about their sexuality, anyway. It’s … more…
If anyone had asked you, a decade ago, to predict who would be the biggest star of 2010, you might have said Jim Carrey. Or Tom Hanks. Or Tom Cruise. They headlined the biggest movies of 2000, after all (respectively, Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas — yes, that was the biggest movie of … more…
And Sandra Bullock dropkicks previous football flicks: 1. Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang: £2.6 million (NEW) 2. Alice in Wonderland: £2.5 million (4th week; drops 48%) 3. The Blind Side: £1.3 million (NEW) 4. Shutter Island: £1.1 million (3rd week; drops 37%) 5. The Bounty Hunter: £.99 million (2nd week; drops 52%) (actual numbers, … more…
But will the unstoppable movie be stopped next week? 1. Alice in Wonderland: £4.8 million (3rd week; drops 34%) 2. The Bounty Hunter: £2.1 million (NEW) 3. Shutter Island: £1.8 million (2nd week; drops 19%) 4. I Love You Phillip Morris: £1.1 million (NEW) 5. Green Zone: £1 million (2nd week; drops 51%) (actual numbers, … more…
Take a break from work: watch a trailer… Interestingly, the name of the movie is misspelled in its own trailer. Phillip should have two l’s. Philip with one l is Philip Morris, the tobacco company… which is what I originally figured the title referred to. I thought this was gonna be another satire along the … more…