Tagged with 2010 films

Review: Tron Legacy, 2010, dir. Joseph Kosinski

Review: Tron Legacy, 2010, dir. Joseph Kosinski

There’s really no way around the blatant awfulness and stupidity of Tron Legacy. Apologists may fashion an array of defenses to shield it from criticism, which is fine and all except that this kind of picture is indefensible. From all angles, it’s a mess; it’s bloated but explains far too little, it’s an action spectacle … Continue reading

Review: Cyrus, 2010, dir. Jay and Mark Duplass

Review: Cyrus, 2010, dir. Jay and Mark Duplass

Can we really associate mumblecore to indie filmmaking any longer and remain completely honest after 2010’s Cyrus? While the movement-essential Duplass brothers, Mark and Jay, don’t relinquish the personality and character of the cinema that they champion, they do work with a cast that strikes a watermark far, far above what past entries in their … Continue reading

Review: Four Lions, 2010, dir. Chris Morris

Review: Four Lions, 2010, dir. Chris Morris

Who knew radical fundamentalist terrorism could be so hilarious? Chris Morris, the twisted and brilliant mind behind 2010’s Four Lions, came to that exact realization himself and put his ideas to celluloid with a tale of utterly incompetent homegrown Jihadists conspiring to carry out an attack in London. If at a glance the film’s premise … Continue reading

Review: The Illusionist, 2010, dir. Sylvain Chomet

Review: The Illusionist, 2010, dir. Sylvain Chomet

For all of its moving excellence, The Illusionist may be almost as enrapturing for the turmoil surrounding its creation as it is for its artistry. Two arguments, one originating from writer Jacques Tatischeff (from here on out referred to affectionately as “Tati”) family and the other from director Sylvain Chomest (of 2003’s The Triplets of … Continue reading

Review: True Grit, 2010, dir. the Coen Brothers

Review: True Grit, 2010, dir. the Coen Brothers

True Grit— via the Coen brothers– represents a landmark in the oeuvre of Ethan and Larry as the first pure genre movie they’ve attempted together. Even Blood Simple only dabbles in genre cinema; True Grit on the other hand can (and arguably should) be treated and appreciated as an uncomplicated and honest contemporary Western movie. … Continue reading

Review: Easy A, 2010, dir. Will Gluck

Review: Easy A, 2010, dir. Will Gluck

Did we need a Saved! for the Facebook and Twitter generation? If Easy A gets remembered for anything apart from Emma Stone’s excellent performance, as well as the supporting turns by Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson, it will be for the social networking metaphor the film presents in the alacrity with which the lies and … Continue reading

Review: The Runaways, 2010, dir. Floria Sigismondi

Review: The Runaways, 2010, dir. Floria Sigismondi

I didn’t know a whole lot about Joan Jett, Cherie Currie, Kim Fowley, or, well, any character involved when going into Floria Sigismondi’s biopic about the 1970s all-girl punk rock band, The Runaways. Unfortunately, I didn’t know much more about them coming out of it, either. Films in general, and biopics and documentaries in particular, … Continue reading

Review: Date Night, 2010, dir. Shawn Levy

Review: Date Night, 2010, dir. Shawn Levy

Taking an everyperson– that’s an everyman or an everywoman for you PC types out there– and throwing them into an extraordinary circumstance can provide a path to success in storytelling if the person spinning the yarn knows what they’re doing. In a way, I think we respond more to the everyperson than we do to … Continue reading