Tag: Film Review

By Matthew Parkinson

The Croods is an immensely funny, very charming animated film from DreamWorks Animation and co-directors Kirk DeMicco (Space Chimps) and Chris Sanders (How to Train Your Dragon). The film takes a while to get going — following one very entertaining chase sequence — but once it finds its comfort zone, The Croods winds up being… Continue reading Film review: The Croods

By Matthew Parkinson

It’s difficult to see Oz the Great and Powerful as anything other than a corporate film — a movie that was created simply because the studio behind it, Disney, knew it would make a ton of money at the box office. That’s how the trailers made it out to look and, after seeing it, those… Continue reading Film review: Oz the Great and Powerful

By Tamara Cottle

Imagine languishing in a Pennsylvania prison cell on death row for 31 years. Now imagine doing that while being innocent. For those who do not accept their fate at the hands of a terminally flawed justice system, their battle would unquestionably be for personal freedom, doing whatever they could to prove their innocence. Mumia Abu… Continue reading Film review: Long Distance Revolutionary

By Salimah Kassamali

The 2012 film Laurence Anyways introduces the raw directing and producing talent of Xavier Dolan. For his third feature film, 23-year-old Dolan has produced a beautifully cast, shot and designed film that sensitively and compassionately portrays a love story unique to our time. Released in May, it was the well-deserved winner of Best Canadian Feature… Continue reading Film review: Laurence Anyways

By Matthew Parkinson

Parker was a much better concept for a film before Jack Reacher underperformed at the box office — both films are adaptations of popular novels made into generic action movies that serve primarily as vanity pieces for their lead actors. However, instead of megastar Tom Cruise playing the lead role, Parker stars Jason Statham, perhaps… Continue reading Film review: Parker

By Matthew Parkinson

Helmed by the promising up-and-coming director Ruber Fleicher and featuring an all-star cast, including Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone, Gangster Squad looked to be one of the most promising movies of the year. Yet instead of being the impressive gangster film it could have been, it turned out to be an… Continue reading Film review: Gangster Squad

By Taylor McKee

When it became public knowledge that there was going to be another film adaptation of Les Miserables, many were pessimistic about the task of putting one of the world’s most beloved musicals properly onto the silver screen. However, director Tom Hooper — who recently won an Academy Award for The King’s Speech in 2011 —… Continue reading Film review: Les Miserables

By Matthew Parkinson

A part of me really wants to love Django Unchained, the newest film by director Quentin Tarantino. It is a film that serves as a harsh reminder of the horror that was slavery in America in the 19th century, and absolutely no punches are pulled — the depiction of how slaves were treated is brutal,… Continue reading Film review: Django Unchained

By Alexei Pepers

In the days leading up to the release of Peter Jackson’s newest epic fantasy, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the big question fans were asking was how he was going to stretch such a short story into three movies. The answer: with bullshit and melodrama. 
 As the first part of a planned trilogy, An… Continue reading Film review: The Hobbit

By Matthew Parkinson

Anna Karenina, a costume drama set in late 19th century Russia, is perhaps the most approachable of director Joe Wright’s films. It marks his third collaboration with Keira Knightley, who previously starred in Pride and Prejudice and Atonement. For Anna Karenina, he adapts Russian author Leo Tolstoy’s novel of the same name. Like other films… Continue reading Film review: Anna Karenina