Movie Rentals Releasing Tuesday May 24, 2016
Plan B Entertainment, Regency Enterprises,
Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Brad Pitt, Melissa Leo, Marisa Tomei, Tracy Letts, Hamish Linklater, John Magaro, Byron Mann, Rafe Spall, Jeremy Strong, Finn Wittrock
Several separate and distinct stories are being told simultaneously based upon the real events and real characters who had the audacity to bet against the mortgage industry when they were the only ones smart enough to foresee the housing crash of 2007. Nobody bets against the mortgage industry because it was as solid as America itself, and everyone pays their mortgage, right? This story tries to break it down and show us what happened, and how a few made a bundle off of betting against the world economy. Hysterically funny at one moment and a tragedy at the next, this is based on the real story and the actual characters who saw it coming.
First off, the cast is fantastic. So many big names are here and they bring all their skills with them to these roles. Sometimes is is absolutely hysterical, but the seriousness of what they are playing with is one of the greatest scams in human history. These guys just foresaw what was going down and jumped in with both feet to try to profit over it. Using many different techniques (such as totally annihilating the forth wall and having “cameo” celebrities explain the concepts using every day examples) they try to fill us in on what was actually happening. This is the thing I liked most about this film, as it does try to let us in on what the hell happened to the banks, and how the government managed to give billions of dollars (which the banks happily passed out to their executives as giant bonuses) to try and save the economy. This is a cleverly put together film, and if you are at all interested in what the Big Short was about, then this is fine way to learn about it. This is not a mind blowing blockbuster, but it is a solid little film that is quite interesting, and well worth the time to watch it.
EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog
Blumhouse Productions, Chapter One Films,
Kevin Bacon, Radha Mitchell, Lucy Fry, David Mazouz, Ming-Na Wen, Paul Reiser
The Taylor family comes home from the Grand Canyon bringing something back! The family consists of the Father (Kevin Bacon), and the Mother (Radha Mitchell) and two children, anxiety ridden drama queen Stephanie (Lucy Fry) and autistic son Michael (David Mazouz). An ancient curse has befallen the family causing havoc and destruction unless the find out the cause of the curse and rid themselves of it before it’s too late.
This is a solid horror film with surprisingly good acting from all the major characters. I expected, walking in, a cheesy B horror movie with no budget and no special effects. That’s not what i got. Surprisingly, the acting was good, the effects were really well done, and the suspense was on point. What is holding this movie back is the fact that there are only so many horror films to write and it’s really, really hard not to look like a rip off of something else. The plot of this film has been done many times over. Still, I enjoy a good horror film, and this one satisfied me. I did not run out screaming it’s praises as the best film I’ve ever seen, but it was exactly what I wanted. The suspense was real, and the story made sense. There was a general feeling of dread over what would or could happen to this poor family that grew and built up until the end. Meanwhile, there was some good old fashioned scares that came from things you didn’t expect heightened by a loud sound at the right moment. I typically call these cheap scares, but in this case they worked, although I’m not sure I could put a finger on why. There are a lot of haters out there toward this film, mostly because of the similarity to other films of the same genre, but I don’t see how this could be helped. I enjoyed the film, I admit to it’s flaws, but I didn’t really case as I had a good time and that’s all that mattered. If you’re a fan of horror, then this is not a bad investment of your time.
EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog
Movie Rentals Releasing Tuesday May 17, 2016
New Artists Alliance,
Brandon Routh, Caity Lotz, Ben Feldman, Dane Cook, Tom Cavanagh, Grant Bowler, Sally Pressman, Fernanda Romero, Dominic Bogart
As this movie begins, the base commander is holding a press conference to explain a 400 day mission that a select group of astronauts are about undertake in a buried mock up of a space ship underground. To assess the effects of being trapped in a tiny cylinder simulating deep space with no chance to get out, the group sets out to complete the mission. But it’s a difficult mental and physical experience and it brings a number of surprises. To fully test the crew a series of surprise tests is thrown at them in the way of mock failures and they are tested on their ability to cope and solve solutions sometimes without the help of mission control. But when they suddenly lose connection with the outside, tension grows as they wonder if this is really a test, or is it something much more catastrophic.
This, like any concept film, has its lovers and its haters. I really enjoyed the film, but did not get sucked into the tale, but took it much more cerebral in thinking about the effects of what they were portraying. The haters hate this movie because it offers no resolution, and I don’t mean a cliff-hanger ending. What I mean is that we’re not told what really happened. There are major issues between some of the characters that could be just a dream, or just mental health issues, or it could be a simulation for real, and the ending could have happened or been an elaborate setup. Expecting a resolution you get none, and you have to think your way through it. I think I know what I believe, but I’m not sure that I am right, but I have worked my way through the film, and appreciate the attempt to make this open ended and to allow you to interpret. There have been a few good films like this. Now, I must admit, usually I hate movies that don’t have a point, and just end. Sometimes it drives me crazy. But this time I found it much better that it allowed you to figure out what you will. It presents what it shows, and no interpretation follows. There is a lot of clues, such as the very ending frames of the picture, but those can be interpreted a number of different ways. The haters blame the writer and director for being lazy and not resolving the film, or give us enough clues to know what he intended. But perhaps these folks are being lazy in waiting for someone to tell them a story with a nice surprise ending that wraps it all up. To be honest I enjoyed the experience of not knowing what it really was. I also enjoyed reading the 3 or 4 or more major theories on what it all means. It’s an interactive movie that you have homework to do after it’s over. The story is not in the actors, nor is it in the presentation or the dialog. It’s not in the sets. It’s all there for you to absorb, but the point of the story is in your mind, and there’s time for you to work it out after it’s over. I’m ready to watch this one again.
EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog
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