Gone Girl (2014) Review

So, I went to see Gone Girl in theaters a couple of weeks ago. In Mexico. In Puebla to be exact. First time seeing a movie in a Mexican theater for me. And wouldn't you know it, Spanish subtitles are not as distracting as I feared they would be. And I've been lazily sitting on my notes since then. But enough of that nonsense, let's get to the review, shall we?

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005) Review

Don't we all love Robert Downey Jr.? What a guy, funny, quick-witted and with a great talent as a leading man. But things haven't been that rosy all the time. Back in the late 90s and early 2000s he was more known for his public escapades as a drug addict than for his films. But after arrest and rehab he went trough a drastic change and became one of the biggest box office stars of our time. Nonetheless he didn't immediately get high profile roles as a super hero, TV reporter or journalist. First, there was a little film in 2005 named "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang".

The Dark Knight Rises (2012) Review

So here it is, the conclusion to probably one of the most epic superhero stories ever told on the big screen. Years of anticipation, intense excitement and high hopes come to end now that "The Dark Knight Rises" is finally released. But I can't help but feel a little let down.

The Escapist (2008) Review

What a neat little film. Flawed but neat. "The Escapist" is the feature length debut of Rupert Wyatt and the fact that he directly went on to direct "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" after this gig should tell you something about its quality.

Law Abiding Citizen (2009) Review

I love a good guilty pleasure. "Law Abiding Citizen" is not a good guilty pleasure. It is a guilty pleasure, just not very enjoyable. Do you see where I am coming from?

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2011) Review

I don't know what's everyone's problem, the US American adaptation of "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" is a really, really good movie. Yeah, yeah, I can already hear all the whiners and complainers: "The Swedish version was SO much better", "This film was made for people who are too lazy to read subtitles", "So dumbed down for the stupid American audience", bla bla bla. Truth is, get over it, you rotten internet wanks because David Fincher's film is at least as good as the Swedish one.

The Lincoln Lawyer (2011) Review

Suprise, I liked this film! Not that I expected it but it was actually a fun if very basic legal thriller. Matthew McConaughey who's normally wasted in terrible Kate Hudson vehicles or some other romcom crap finally reminds us again that he can act. Ok, I don't want to praise him too much but as a slick and sleazy lawyer he gives his best performance in ages.

We see him handle the case of a shady woman beater, played by former teen icon Ryan Phillippe. But while he first tries to prove his innocence he soon realizes that taking over this case is potentially life-threatening.

The plot is not too great and often feels more at home on TV than on the big screen but what makes this film stand out is the above-average acting by everyone involved. I already said that McConaughey is good in the lead but I especially enjoyed the always delightful William H. Macy and Marisa Tomei, probably two of the most undervalued actors of cinema nowadays.

This film won't make an impact on film history but it is refreshingly simple in its approach and doesn't try to be more than it is and that's what makes it enjoyable to watch. If you're sick of heavy overblown Hollywood genre thrillers, give this one a try, it's great for a lazy Sunday afternoon.

Zodiac (2007) Review

It's interesting to see how director David Fincher has evolved as a filmmaker over the last 20 years. Initially blamed in 1992 for the misfire that was "Alien 3" he made the (arguably) definitive serial killer movie "Se7en" in 1995. Movies like "Fight Club", "The Social Network" and the upcoming adaptation of "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo" just helped cement his status as a diverse and talented director. But in my opinion there is one movie in his filmography that often gets overlooked and that film is "Zodiac".

Upon its release in 2007 Fincher hadn't made a feature length film in almost 5 years so people were excited to see him back as a director and have him also return to the genre that made him famous, the serial killer thriller. But while critics mostly gave out favorable reviews the general public dismissed "Zodiac" with an underwhelming gross of just $33 million in the US. What happened?

"Zodiac" is the true story of how journalists and the police tried to track down the Zodiac killer who haunted San Francisco in the late 60s and early 70s. Just like in his other masterpiece "Se7en" Fincher focuses on the detectives and sleuths instead of the killer but the approach is very different. While "Se7en" had two main characters in Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman the audience could emotionally connect with, "Zodiac"'s focus constantly shifts from wannabe detective Jake Gyllenhaal to reporter Robert Downey Jr., inspector David Toschi and a couple others. This gives the film an almost documentary feel with great attention to detail. There are no unnecessary subplots, the main purpose is to document the obsessive work behind the case. The actual killings are almost insignificant to the overall story as they only serve as catalysts for the main protagonists. Not to give anything away but the Zodiac case was never solved.

I think the main reason for the film's poor box office was the audience's expectation of a second "Se7en". Of course, if you watch "Zodiac" with the hope to see another gore based serial killer film you will most likely be disappointed. But taking it for what it is, a very precise reworking of the Zodiac case and by that an exciting dedication to people's fascination for puzzle solving, this movie will be worth your time.

I heard criticisms that the performances were lacking emotional depth and the movie was too slow paced. In my opinion that couldn't be more wrong. As I said before there are no subplots distracting from the grand topic of solving the case so the performances are all precise and realistic, especially Mark Ruffalo as inspector David Toschi is great in his role. And the slow pace? Nowhere to be found, the dialogue-driven scenes create tension and excitement in an old-school way that probably doesn't translate well to the visually overfed crowd of brain dead "Transformers" fanboys.

So if you haven't seen "Zodiac" yet, go check it out, it is one of Fincher's best.

Animal Kingdom (2010) Review

Think Australian movies. No, not Crocodile Dundee, think again. No, also not Russell Crowe beating up paparazzi. One more try. NOOOO, no frickin' Mad Max.

Ok, here's the right answer: Gritty urban gangster movie Animal Kingdom. The movie made a little splash last year when it was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress Jacki Weaver and had critics around the world get a collective cinematic orgasm. How come that a small film from the other end of the world gets this sort of recognition? I wanted to find out for myself and got around to watch the flick last night.

The movie is about 18 year old J who, after the drug death of his mother, moves in with the rest of his dysfunctional crime family of psychos and drug dealers. And from here on shit really starts hitting the fan. So does a film with a premise that simple live up to the hype?

Well, kind of. While I was really drawn in by the extremely uncomfortable atmosphere the film is creating and the stellar acting throughout in combination with a highly hypnotic and unusual soundtrack the film was lacking originality plotwise. I felt any of the characters was fascinating enough to have a movie on their own but Animal Kingdom's plot just didn't live up to the level of tension and atmosphere it deserved. That doesn't make it a bad movie though, there's a lot to adore in this film and talent to be watched for the next years.

So go and give this one a try, while it might not be the best possible movie it has glimpses of perfection that will stick to your mind.

Timecrimes (2007) Review

Let me get one thing straight: There are two absolutely awesome movie magazines, Empire and Total Film, both british, both genius. But only Total Film also has a great website, http://www.totalfilm.com/, which is awesome because of one thing: the features!

They just had one on the best time travel movies and on this list I found Timecrimes (Los Cronocrímenes) by Nacho Vigalondo. I knew all the movies on the list besides this one. So I went and finally got my hands on a DVD of the movie and watched it last night.

The setup is interesting with a guy just accidentally stepping into a whole time travel mess and trying to get out of it without causing more trouble. It's mindbending, sometimes ludicrous and at times just plain illogical and silly but boy, this movie kept me at the edge of my seat. It has a dark tone, almost black humorous and is anything but pretty and that's exactly what I liked about it.

So if you're into time travel and like to think while you're watching a movie, give this one a try, you shouldn't be disappointed.