Fans of Middle-Earth, rejoice! A new movie is out, ready to take you to that land of Elves, Hobbits, and Dwarves. It’s also making use of the new high frame-rate technology available for 3D projection, so if you’re a film tech nerd, it’s doubly exciting. This isn’t a non-stop action thriller, of course; as...
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Abraham Lincoln is one of our most beloved presidents, and an incredibly complex figure. Steven Spielberg’s new film wisely focuses only on the last four months of the man’s life, and still has more than enough material to fill the film’s two and a half hours. This is a powerhouse of a movie, and...
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Time travel is hard to handle well in fiction: it leads to paradox, weird philosophical discussions, and massive plot holes as often as not. Thankfully, "Looper" wisely gives us a firm footing to anchor our suspension of disbelief, tips its hat politely at the inevitable issues, and gets on with the business of telling...
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First, in the interests of full disclosure: I am a huge Mike Birbiglia fan, and have been for years. His blend of self-deprecating humor and spot-on social (and occasionally political) commentary make him one of my favorite stand-up comedians working today. I've been looking forward to this movie since I first heard about it....
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Directed by: Chris Butler, Sam Fell Starring: Kodi Smit-McPhee, Tucker Albrizzi, Anna Kendrick, Casey Affleck, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, John Goodman Rated: PG for scary action and images, thematic elements, some rude humor and language Laika, the studio behind stop-motion hit “Coraline,” have done it again with “ParaNorman,” another tale of a child who doesn’t fit...
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It seems like just about every movie whose protagonist is a young woman has to have a love interest for her. In some cases (Disney, I'm looking at you), the young woman's entire adventure revolves entirely around getting her man. Not exactly inspiring for young girls who are more interested in adventures than in...
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Directed by: Tomas Alfredson Starring: Gary Oldman, Mark Strong, John Hurt, Toby Jones, David Dencik, Ciaran Hinds, Colin Firth, Benedict Cumberbatch Rated: R for violence, some sexuality/nudity and language It's rare to see a film with the courage to be as slow and quiet as "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" is, but director Tomas Alfredson is no stranger...
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Directed by: Bennett Miller Starring: Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Chris Pratt, Robin Wright, Stephen Bishop Rated: PG-13 for some strong language A movie about the pioneering use of cost-benefit analysis in baseball shouldn't be exciting, but somehow, "Moneyball" is. It traces the efforts of general manager Billy Beane to turn around the failing Oakland...
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Directed by: Gavin O’Connor Starring: Tom Hardy, Joel Edgerton, Nick Nolte, Jennifer Morrison Rated: PG-13 for sequences of intense mixed martial arts fighting, some language and thematic material. Films in which boxing or other forms of physical violence stand in for verbal communication between men are hardly new, but "Warrior" sets its conversation-with-fists in the Mixed Martial...
Read more →Written & Directed by: J.J. Abrams Starring: Joel Courtney, Elle Fanning, Ryan Lee, Riley Griffiths, Kyle Chandler, Noah Emmerich Rated: PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence, language, and some drug use
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