Skyscraper: A Better Die Hard Sequel Than the Real Ones
Skyscraper is an derivative yet tremendously entertaining action flick, offering nothing new but a whole lot of fun.
Hashtag Activism and Bastille Day’s Unrelenting Cynicism
Action flick Bastille Day opens with a naked Frenchwoman (Stéphane Caillard) strolling through Paris. We soon learn that her nudity is intended to serve as a particularly dramatic distraction, allowing pickpocket Michael Mason (Game of Thrones’ Richard Madden) to pilfer a few wallets and passports at the orders of a local fence (Eriq Ebouaney). With…
The Night Before Delivers Christmas Laughs from Festive Formula
Great Christmas films are always about family. Whether it’s the traditional soppy Santa Claus tale à la Miracle on 34th Street, Will Ferrel trying to reunite with his dad in Elf or John McClane blasting through Eurotrash terrorists to get back to his wife in Die Hard, at these films’ core remains a deeply conservative…
Nightcrawler (2014)
Let me introduce you to Lou Bloom (Jake Gyllenhaal). Who is Lou Bloom? Well, in his own words, he’s a hard worker. He sets high goals and he’s been told that he’s persistent. He’s looking for a job, and now he’s thinking that television news might be something that he could love as well as…
The Raid: Redemption (2011)
Gareth Evans’ Indonesian action movie The Raid: Redemption (original title Serbuan maut) opens on a static shot of a wristwatch and a gun. It’s an important opening shot because it tells us two things about the film: it’s going to be precise, and it’s going to be violent. The Raid, as you’d expected, revolves around…
Extended Cut: Hot Fuzz (2007)
Hot Fuzz is a modern classic of the comedy genre. It’s the kind of film we’ll point to decades from now with a toothless grin and say, “See! They don’t make ‘em like they used to!” It’s widely loved and yet woefully underrated; this can be blamed on the marketing, which frames the film as…
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