Jean-Marc Vallee directs the biographical film written by Nick Hornby, Wild. This film is based on the memoir, Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail, written by Cheryl Strayed. Vallee’s Dallas Buyers Club last year elicited two Oscar-winning performances, setting a high standard for Reese Witherspoon in the lead role and Laura…
Jennifer Kent wrote and directed the Australian horror film, The Babadook. Based on the short film, also by Kent, The Babadook rose to critical acclaim after being premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. This is Kent’s debut feature film, drawing inspiration from early horror, fairy tales, and magic. Kent puts a hand-crafted twist on a…
Jason Reitman, of Thank You for Smoking and Juno, brings us his latest comment on modern society: Men, Women, and Children. This film follows the lives of several teenagers and their parents, befitting the title. It focuses on the constraints of our technological world, loss of human connection, with an overarching theme of insignificance. The…
Director Justin Simien makes his feature film debut with the satirical drama Dear White People. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival; leaving with the Special Jury Award for Breakthrough Talent, which was certainly deserved. The movie focuses on several students’ experiences at an Ivy League college during a pseudo- race war. Dear White People…
Dan Gilroy makes his directorial debut with Nightcrawler, which he also penned, starring Jake Gyllenhaal. A gripping psychological thriller, Nightcrawler follows Louis Bloom (Gyllenhall), a persistent young man eager to break into the world of L.A. crime journalism. Having first screened on the Toronto International Film Festival, Nightcrawler claims a Halloween release date, a fitting…
In the spirit of Halloween, I found it fitting to discuss one of the greatest horror cult classics of all time: The Rocky Horror Picture Show. If you haven’t already been exposed to this ostentatious parody now is the time. With exceptional music and campy feel, Rocky Horror is the perfect flick for movie-lovers and…
Annabelle is the prequel to 2013’s The Conjuring, directed by James Wan, which received generally favorable reviews. James Wan handed the directorial baton over to his cinematographer, John R. Leonetti, whose previous experience includes Mortal Kombat: Annihilation and The Butterfly Effect 2; safe to say that this may not have been a wise choice. The…
Craig Johnson takes the directorial reigns of his second film with the dark family dramedy, The Skeleton Twins. Having debuted at the Sundance Film Festival and won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award, this film offers a gorgeous commentary on the strength of blood and revival of hope. Former SNL costars, Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig,…
