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In: 2015, Hot Take

Hot Take: For Quentin Tarantino’s 8th film, there are plenty of Tarantino calling cards and some truly exquisite cinematography (especially if you see the “Roadshow” version). There’s some “haven’t we kind of seen this from QT before?” element but not the overriding factor. In the end, it’s violent, funny, foul, controversial and a hell of a lot of fun (in the sickest and most twisted sense).

Quentin Tarantino is a polarizing filmmaker. His films typically are loved or hated. For those who hate Tarantino’s previous work, it’ll likely be more hate for The Hateful Eight. This isn’t that “very different” Quentin Tarantino film you’ve been waiting for. (Just a guess, you’ll probably never get it.) For those who love his work, The Hateful Eight is loaded with things you’ll love. The casting, the characters, the dialogue, the humor, the score, the violence… it’s all there.Read More →

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In: 2015, Hot Take

Hot Take: Ever see a Will Ferrell movie before? Well, it’s about the same as the others. That’s not the worst thing in the world but it isn’t the best, either. If movies were segmented, the last 15 minutes might be up for an award. The rest is forgettable but entertaining.

Give Daddy’s Home credit for great timing. Thanks to it’s release date, the winner of the best alternative to Star Wars at the box office has been the Will Ferrell/Mark Wahlberg comedy. However, it feels awfully familiar (partially because of trailer fatigue but partially because it’s kind of like every other Will Ferrell movie) and you’ll probably compare it to 10 other movies you’ve seen. It’ll also feel like it could have been a lot better which the studio must have thought throughout the development process since 5 different writers received a screenwriting credit. (Note to studio: It could have been punched up a few more times.)Read More →

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In: 2015, Hot Take

Hot Take: Eddie Redmayne’s transformation is surreal. Alicia Vikander shines. However, The Danish Girl is boring and panders toward a more mainstream audience by trading edginess for accessibility. It’s almost as if the writer and director are saying playing dress up can make someone want to change genders thanks to a very vague and underdeveloped back story.

Last year, Eddie Redmayne turned in an incredible performance as Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything. Because of Hawking’s condition, Redmayne had to spend a lot of energy telling the story through non-verbal communication, facial expressions and even eye movement. Director Tom Hooper must have loved what Redmayne did her because he was asked to do a lot more of this type of communication in The Danish Girl. Unfortunately, such painstaking effort was unnecessary since Redmayne’s Einar/Lili was not paralyzed and was able to speak without the help of a computer. Furthermore, the device was actually rather distracting and sometimes even annoying.Read More →