Not every film has to be a masterpiece. Not every film needs top-notch visual effects, storyline and Oscar-worthy performances. Sometimes, as with the recent The Man from U.N.C.L.E. [read my review], a style and a playful sense of the backstory can be sufficient to create something entertaining. And let’s be frank, Hitman: Agent 47 is based on a popular series of ultra-violent video games that posit a world where genetic manipulation, DNA splicing and a childhood world…Read More
Review: Avengers: Age of Ultron
Do superheroes get bored? Is it possible that being constantly on call to save the world every time something bad happens might get just a bit in the way of having a pleasant life, a family and a social life? That’s the central question of the terrific new Marvel movie Avengers: Age of Ultron. And I’ll make this easy: Just go see it. The story is propelled by a question that’s on a lot of…Read More
Review: Stalingrad (Сталинград)
There’s something fascinating about movies set during wartime. Some of the best movies ever made are set during war, often World War II. The most recent American film related to WWII, however, was the slick but lackluster The Monuments Men [see my review of The Monuments Men]. War isn’t pretty, though, which is why the films, like Saving Private Ryan, Lawrence of Arabia, Apocalypse Now and Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, are gripping, anxiety-provoking and even frightening to…Read More