So we're all cool with Chris Brown again, right? It's ok that I actually kinda dug him in this all-testosterone, all flash and style heist flick? I'm sure his presence won't score them too many viewers of the female variety, but then again people still buy R. Kelly records so maybe I'll be proven wrong. Takers isn't a groundbreaking film, in fact it has a lot in common with Armored, another masculine heist film from a few months ago. Not the least of which is the presence of Matt Dillon, who seems to have taken the haggard, beaten down guy routine to a new level. You can check out my review of Takers here.
You won't find a more intense experience this year than Animal Kingdom, an Australian crime flick that's small in appearance but equally as epic as The Godfather. David Michaud's film has been greatly received, taking a coveted Jury Prize at Sundance. For good reason, as it features one of the scariest portrayals of the year by Jacki Weaver, as a manipulative mommie dearest who will do anything to keep her boys free from the law. My review of Animal Kingdom can be found here.
What's old is new again, thanks to Paranormal Activity's revival of the "found footage" horror film. Daniel Stamm, working alongside horror master Eli Roth as producer, looks to use the technique in film that's part Blair Witch, part The Exorcist. For the most part it works, mostly thanks to the dyanmic performance of Patrick Fabian as a former evangelist experiencing a crisis of faith. My review of The Last Exorcism can be found here.
Director Jean-Francois Richet's last foray on these shores was the completely average action remake, Assault on Precinct 13. Now he's back in the much anticipated, globally acclaimed film chronicling the rise of gangster Jacques Mesrine(Vincent Cassel). This is merely the first part of the two-act film, the second of which will be released here in just a couple of weeks. I'm hoping that Landmark E Street will be holding a double feature.
The Lebanon War has been the highlight of a number of amazing films over the last few years, most recently 2008's Waltz with Bashir
. Lebanon, directed by Samuel Maoz, has been the subject of a ton of controversy surrounding it's depiction of the military, based mostly on Maoz's own wartime experiences. The outcry didn't stop it from winning numerous awards, including the prestigious Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival.
. Lebanon, directed by Samuel Maoz, has been the subject of a ton of controversy surrounding it's depiction of the military, based mostly on Maoz's own wartime experiences. The outcry didn't stop it from winning numerous awards, including the prestigious Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival. 
