Movie Reviews


All in "The Family:" Mob life satisfies as dark comedy Published on Sep 19th, 2013 1 comments The Family ***Starring: Robert De Niro, Michelle Pfeiffer, Tommy Lee Jones, Dianna Agron, John D'Leo Director: Luc Besson Rated R, 111 minutesPlaying at: Stonefield, Zeus In most mob...
Mandela rescued: Film tries to resurrect wife's role Published on Sep 12th, 2013 19 comments If you don't remember hearing much about a Winnie Mandela biopic starring Jennifer Hudson, that's probably because it was filmed more than three years ago, showcased to negative reaction at the 2011...
Cheers! These "Drinking Buddies" are cool Published on Sep 5th, 2013 0 comments By Richard Roeper Everything about Drinking Buddies seems just about right. Take the fight, for example. There's this guy, Luke, who's helping his co-worker move. They rent a truck, but it won't...
Violent mess: Sequel doesn't Kick Ass Published on Aug 29th, 2013 2 comments By Richard Roeper Jim Carrey played THIS character in THIS movie, and he was troubled by the violent content only after the fact? Flashback: About six weeks ago, Carrey tweeted, "I...
Unique view: 'Butler' offers riveting history of race relations Published on Aug 22nd, 2013 1 comments By Richard Roeper By the time Jane Fonda shows up as Nancy Reagan and we realize that's Alan Rickman beneath the makeup playing Ronald Reagan in Lee Daniels' The Butler, we've been conditioned...
Foster disbelief: Elysium soars despite Oscar winner's failure Published on Aug 15th, 2013 3 comments By Richard Roper Jodie Foster delivers an unbelievably terrible performance in Elysium. Maybe the worst acting ever done by a two-time Oscar winner. A...
Cross it off: Don't do "To Do List" Published on Aug 8th, 2013 1 comments By Richard Roeper It's official: The 1990s are the olden days. Set in 1993, wallpapered with the music of Mazzy Star, 2 Live Crew and Gin Blossoms, filled with references to Home Improvement, three-...
Stunted: Sandler's film not so 'Grown up' Published on Jul 25th, 2013 1 comments Pop quiz and SPOILER ALERT! The visual humor in Grown Ups 2 includes but is not limited to: A. Grown men striving to sneeze, burp and fart in rapid succession. ...
Good sports: 'Idiots' is a laugh-a-thon Published on Jul 18th, 2013 1 comments By Richard Roeper Some comedies make you laugh out loud. Some are more interested in getting you to smile in quiet recognition of the sublime intelligence at work. Dealin' With...
Oh no, Silver: Stay away from 'Lone Ranger' Published on Jul 11th, 2013 6 comments By Richard Roeper In the unholy mess that is The Lone Ranger, we finally have a movie that combines the slapstick antics of a live-action Road Runner cartoon with a villain so bloodthirsty...
Overblown: Tatum can't save action flick Published on Jul 4th, 2013 3 comments By Richard Roeper Everyone in White House Down is an idiot, clinically insane, a cliché or a vehicle for shameless exploitation. Some characters go for the combo platter. For example, one guy's an...
Fresh zombies: Pitt brings life to walking dead flick Published on Jun 27th, 2013 3 comments By Richard Roeper Like the heroes in just about every end-of-the-world thriller ever made, Brad Pitt's Gerry in World War Z has the ability to see things no one else can see, figure out things...
'Steel' yourself: Latest Superman flick not so super Published on Jun 20th, 2013 3 comments By Richard Roeper ** "Ah, so that's where Superman comes from!"— something nobody will say after watching Man of Steel. Can we just please hit the ground running with the next...
Old friends: Third in Hawke/Delpy series satisfies Published on Jun 13th, 2013 0 comments By Richard Roeper Early on in Richard Linklater's Before Midnight, we see an extended sequence more daring and in some ways just as thrilling as anything we're likely to experience in any 2013 movie...
Superficial flash: Heist flick offers only illusion of greatness Published on Jun 6th, 2013 0 comments By Richard Roeper The first few scenes of Now You See Me deliver the promise of the best film about magic since the release of two meticulously crafted and thoroughly entertaining 2006 films: The...
Genre crossing: Third 'Hangover' more action, less laughs Published on May 30th, 2013 0 comments By Richard Roeper SPOILER ALERT! I have to tell you about some of the things that happen in The Hangover Part III to tell you what I think about The Hangover Part III, so...
Unspectacular: Latest Star Trek not the best Published on May 23rd, 2013 0 comments By Richard Roeper Note to hardcore Trekkers and non-Trekkers alike: multiple but mild spoiler alerts just ahead! Trust me, I'm holding back on the big surprises. At times Star Trek Into...
Commanding laughter: Cohen surprises audiences with a tight regime Published on May 23rd, 2013 0 comments THE Dictator is funny, in addition to being obscene, disgusting, scatological, vulgar, crude and so on. Having seen Sacha Baron Cohen promoting it on countless talk shows, I feared the movie...
Prose flows: Gatsby's over the top, but book shines through Published on May 16th, 2013 0 comments By RICHARD ROEPER Given the wretched and sometimes wonderful excesses of Baz Luhrmann's Romeo and Juliet and Moulin Rouge, not to mention a trailer that gave the impression Luhrmann's interpretation...
Elusive wonder: Director's bold vision gets last Ebert thumbs up Published on May 9th, 2013 0 comments This was the last movie review Roger Ebert filed. Released less than two years after his The Tree of Life, an epic that began with the dinosaurs and peered into an uncertain future, Terrence Malick's...
Still got it? Redford stars, not quite like old times Published on May 2nd, 2013 1 comments By Richard Roeper For nearly 50 years, Robert Redford has been on quest to prove he is more than a golden boy matinee idol. Of course, Redford has succeeded in spectacular fashion, starring in such...
The Other Fanning: Elle acts beyond her years Published on Apr 25th, 2013 0 comments by Richard Roeper Born in 1945 in the shadow of Hiroshima, Ginger and Rosa grow up in a London of weary shortages of food, living space and cheer. Who could have guessed Swinging London and the...
Going beyond: Gosling excels as daredevil Published on Apr 18th, 2013 0 comments by Richard Roeper We begin the movie by following a tattoo-spangled man as he makes his way through a carnival crowd, arriving in a tent containing a few hundred cheering fans and a globe-shaped...
Hosting aliens: Meyer flick invades Published on Apr 11th, 2013 0 comments Stephenie Meyer, whose books inspired the Twilight movies, now presents a new way for true love to struggle against itself. In the Twilight world, characters were invited to become vampires to share...
Beautiful 'Road': Kerouac adaptation has charms but does it have soul? Published on Apr 4th, 2013 0 comments Although Jack Kerouac's On the Road has been praised as a milestone in American literature, this film version brings into question how much of a story it really offers. Kerouac's hero, Sal...
Rejection: Tina Fey's Admission fizzles Published on Mar 28th, 2013 1 comments by Richard Roeper Has Tiny Fey ever played a character we weren't rooting for? In smart features such as Mean Girls, Baby Mama and Date Night, on the just-completed NBC series 30 Rock, on Saturday...
Incredible Carell: If Michael Scott were a magician Published on Mar 21st, 2013 0 comments by Richard RoeperWelcome back, Hilarious Jim Carrey. We've missed you.In The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, a predictable but often terrific absurdist comedy, Carrey plays Steve Gray, a long-haired,...
Witch backstory: New 'Oz' offers twist on an old classic Published on Mar 14th, 2013 0 comments By Richard Roeper You can be a good witch or a bad witch or even a little of both, but a bland witch? Then we'll have to talk. Some of the surprises in Oz the Great and Powerful, the much-...
Between a Rock and a Snitch: Dad saves the day Published on Mar 4th, 2013 1 comments by Richard Roeper Who would have guessed Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson would deliver the best work of his career playing a guy who squares off against a pack of small-time street thugs — and winds up...
Understated Ultima: Iconic book gets worthy film treatment Published on Feb 28th, 2013 0 comments Although it was published only in 1972, Rudolfo Anaya's Bless Me, Ultima has achieved the iconic stature as such novels as The Grapes of Wrath and To Kill a Mockingbird. Now comes a...