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In: 2016, Hot Take

Hot Take: Financial thriller where the female characters appear to be filled with testosterone and the male characters are one dimensional. Even when the genders are reversed, this still makes for a mediocre movie.

In Equity, women wield a lot of power. It’s the most refreshing element of the latest Wall Street spawn. The 1987 film has had a lot of offspring. With Equity, it finally has a niece. It’s almost amazing to think it took Hollywood nearly three decades to put women in the role of power in a movie about greed being good. Then again, with Hollywood’s track record of their treatment of women, it should come as no surprise.Read More →

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In: 2016, Hot Take

Hot Take: Bipolar historical telling of Operation Anthropoid has a plodding first half filled with paranoia and a long, slow fuse. The second half is bloody, brutal and proof that war is hell.

Anthropoid is the type of film that could be great. It has the historical context and enough elements that lend themselves to being embellished by Hollywood in just the right way that historians won’t get too tweaked. So, why isn’t Anthropoid great?Read More →

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In: To See or Not To See

With three new movies on 3,000+ screens this week, one could break out and take down Suicide Squad. Will the monumental upset happen? With Kubo and the Two Strings, War Dogs and Ben-Hur all vying for box office bucks and 2 platform releases, let’s take a look at what to see and not see for the week ending August 19th:Read More →

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In: 2016, Hot Take

Hot Take: Subtly heart-wrenching. Pete’s Dragon is a rare reboot. The storytelling is timeless and moving and the visuals are stunning. The best family movie of the summer.

I sort of remember seeing the original Pete’s Dragon as a child. It isn’t something that really stuck with me though. So, when I heard they were rebooting this film, the first word that came to mind was not the usual “unnecessary” but “why?” After seeing this Disney reboot which turns a trippy, live action/animation hybrid musical into a classic family drama, the answer to why was quickly discovered and the new version of Pete’s Dragon delivers something welcoming and worthwhile in the genre of family films.Read More →

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In: 2016, Hot Take

Hot Take: Racist, stereotypical jokes aren’t edgy. They’re lazy.

I’ve mentioned previously how comedy is personal and laughter is contagious. For me, Sausage Party was one of those films that beats the drum of comedy being personal but flies in the face of laughter being contagious. As the film reached its raunchy, ridiculous climax and the audience I was seeing the movie with was doubled over in laughter, I realized I may not have laughed out loud once during the entire showing.Read More →

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In: 2016, Hot Take

Suicide Squad is now officially the biggest movie to ever hit the cinema in August and basically a lock to own the box office for a 2nd consecutive week. This week’s battle will be for the #2 spot where Pete’s Dragon should take the title unless Sausage Party rises to the occasion with a bigger than expected opening. In addition to these two movies, Florence Foster Jenkins and 4 other movies hit theaters. Here are the recommendations for the week of August 12th:Read More →

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In: 2016, Hot Take

Hot Take: Action overload! The first hour is 90% action and 10% plot. By the time the movie settles in and gets good, you’re too worn out. Maybe I’m just getting old or maybe not much really happens here.

Having never seen a movie in the Bourne franchise makes me an outsider when discussing the appeal of Jason Bourne. However, when I say Jason Bourne feels all too familiar, I’m not referring to the fact that it is the fifth installment in the Bourne franchise. Unfortunately, all the hyperkinetic action that takes place in the film (which is actually some pretty impressive action, by the way) can’t hide the fact that Jason Bourne doesn’t really have anything fresh to offer.Read More →

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In: BuRStS

After last week’s crowded slate of releases, this week’s list of releases is the shortest since starting BuRStS. With only 2 movies to choose from for the week of August 9th, there isn’t much of a selection for the week of August 9th. Here’s this week’s recommendations on what to buy, rent, stream or skip:Read More →

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In: 2016, Hot Take

Hot Take: What a mess! Nowhere near as bad as last year’s Fantastic Four but with an eerily similar feel. Suicide Squad is the most disappointing mediocre film since, well, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

Suicide Squad had such promise. The trailers were about as good as trailers can be. The cast assembled for the film had plenty of proven talent with a track record of making excellent movies. Writer/director David Ayer wasn’t a sure thing but has plenty of watchable flicks on his resume to give you confidence he could pull this off. Despite the excellent marketing, cool concept, solid cast and competent writer/director, Suicide Squad fails to deliver the goods. Read More →