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In: 2015, Hot Take

Hot Take: Pawn Sacrifice captures all the genius and paranoia of Bobby Fischer without much of the drama. At times, the biopic feels more documentary than movie. Not the worst thing… but it keeps a very good film from being great.

Historically accurate, Pawn Sacrifice tells the story of bigger than life chess grandmaster Bobby Fischer and his ascent to the top of the chess world. Edward Zwick’s biopic about Fischer powers through much of his early life so briskly, once the film hits the meat of the story, the meticulous detail and more lumbering pace throw off the film.Read More →

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In: 2016, Hot Take, Trailers

Anticipation (Before Trailer): 20/100

Anticipation (After Trailer): 40/100

The Forest warns “stay on the path.” For movie goers, staying on the path includes tempering any excitement for a January release.

So, even though The Forest is the feature-length directorial début of Jason Zada who launched a highly successful viral marketing campaign for OfficeMax (“Elf Yourself”) and the acting talents of Natalie Dormer (Game of Thrones) and Taylor Kinney (Zero Dark Thirty), don’t get your hopes up.

Also, for what it’s worth, horror trailers that have a habit of revealing too much often fall short. The Forest does boast a solid trailer, a “true” back story (Aokigahara Forest is a real place in Japan where people go to commit suicide) and the backing of a re-tooled Gramercy Pictures. Maybe, just maybe, The Forest can break the “dump month” mold.

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In: 2015, Hot Take, Trailers

Anticipation (Before Trailer): 45/100

Anticipation (After Trailer): 60/100

Lake Bell and Simon Pegg come across as having great chemistry in the blind date mix-up Man Up. The trailer was released 6 months ago but now that Man Up has a theatrical release date (November 13) in the U.S., the preview has resurfaced.

Bell looked capable of better in No Escape and Pegg always delivers a charismatic, highly watchable performance.

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In: 2016, Hot Take, Trailers

Anticipation (Before Trailer): 50/100

Anticipation (After Trailer): 50/100

The Choice is your standard Nicholas Sparks novel-to-movie Valentine’s Day date release. And the trailer does nothing to prove otherwise. Not that there’s anything wrong with it but it is what it is.