Quick question: how far can you leap? Five feet? Ten? Maybe fifteen? Well Lara Croft can clear at least twenty-five and it’s amazing. Yes friends, Tomb Raider, in my extremely credible, unbiased opinion is SO GOOD. It’s the “is it self-aware or is it just really leaning in?” type movie we are usually only lucky enough to stumble upon at 3 am on the SYFY network. It’s the mix of questionable and near genius creative decisions we find in only the most entertaining, relentless titles. It’s the video game movie we both needed AND deserved. This iteration of the Tomb Raider film franchise hinges tightly to the 2013 reboot of the video game franchise, aptly titled, Tomb Raider. This means it’s bac
Title: An Actor’s Revenge Genre: Drama Director: Kon Ichikawa Stars: Kazuo Hasegawa, Ganjirō Nakamura, and Ayako Wakao Bias: With the word “revenge” in the title, I was really expecting an action movie. Grade: B In a Nutshell: In 19th century Japan, Yukitarō (Kazuo Hasegawa)is an onnagata, an actor who plays female roles in kabuki plays. He’s a very popular performer, capable of bringing his audience to tears, but his current life is a far cry from his old one. As a boy, Yukitarō lived in the slums of Nagasaki, where his father was once a rich merchant. After both his parents commit suicide, Yukitarō is adopted by Kikunojō Nakamura (Chūsha Ichikawa), an actor who raises him to be an onnagata
Pacific Rim (2013) – Giant robots? Check. Giant monsters? Check. GdT? Check. When I first saw this in theaters I probably had my expectations scaled a bit too high, but returning to it, it’s a lot of fun and gives you what you came for. Star Charlie Hunnam (King Arthur: Legend of the Sword) is still a charisma-void, but Idris Elba (Luther) makes up for it. And the leads are surrounded with fun supporting characters, including Charlie Day (It’s Always Sunny…) and Burn Gorman (Torchwood) as slightly-maddish scientists, Rinko Kikuchi (Babel) as Hunnam’s partner, and whatever the hell Ron Pearlman (Hellboy) is doing. Not a perfect movie, but a perfect weekend movie. Available to rent on Amazon V
Title: Black Vol. 1 (2017) Genre: Superhero Comic Book Publisher: Black Mask Studios Creative Team: Kwanza Osajyefo (creator/writer), Tim Smith 3 (creator/designer), Jamal Igle (illustrator), Robin Riggs (inker), Derwin Robinson (tones), David Sharpe (letters), Sarah Litt (editor), Matt Pizzolo (publisher), and Khary Randolph (cover artist) Bias: Comic nerd. Grade: A Synopsis (from the back cover): "In a world that already hates and fears them, what if only black people had superpowers? After being gunned down by police, Kareem Jenkins miraculously survives and learns that he is part of the biggest lie in history – only black people have superpowers. Now he must decide whether it’s safer to
Moon (2009) - The first feature film of director Duncan Jones, Moon tells the story of Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell), who is working a solo mission mining Helium on the moon. To avoid spoilers, I won't say much more about the film's plot, but I promise you that this slow burn is worth every minute. One of my all-time favorite science fiction films, Moon has great writing and acting, and layers of visual references to other classics of the genre. Streaming on Netflix. Mute (2018) - Okay, so I've heard that this one got overwhelmingly terrible reviews, but I still am looking forward to getting a chance to watch Duncan Jones' newest film over spring break. I've been avoiding reading too much about it
Title: Annihilation Genre: Science Fiction, Drama Director: Alex Garland Stars: Natalie Portman, Oscar Isaac, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gina Rodriguez, Tessa Thompson, Tuva Novotny, David Gyasi, Benedict Wong Bias: I've loved Alex Garland's work since I first read The Beach, many years ago. Although I thought Sunshine went off the rails in its third act, I would argue that Ex Machina is a perfect science fiction film. Given all that, I went into this film with very high hopes. Grade: B+ In a Nutshell: The film opens with John Hopkins professor and biologist Lena (Portman), one year after her husband Kane (Isaac) has gone missing in action while on a top-secret mission. Presuming him to be dead,
Ian Waldie - Get Out There’s not a movie this year more deserving of Best Picture than Get Out. While the other nominees are nice stories, Get Out is a rich, unendingly deep, culturally relevant text. From the opening title card showcasing the frail yet dense looking woods to the movie’s triumphant end, there is just so much to this movie. I’ve seen it four times, and I find new things I love about with each re-watch. Director Jordan Peele takes concepts from both Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner and The Stepford Wives and creates something completely his own, and it does not hurt that his voice as a black American reverberates throughout the entirety of the movie, without hesitation. I love the
The Kino Club 313 writing staff is getting amped up for the 2018 Oscars! In preparation, we watched a whole bunch of trailers for Oscar nominated films and wrote our first impression responses. This list includes all films that received two or more nominations. (Yeah, yeah, yeah, we know we forgot I, Tonya...please don't hire someone to bust our kneecaps, Margot Robbie). Enjoy! Baby Driver Nominations: Film Editing, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing Ian Waldie: Impressive Camera Work With Music Your Dad Likes: The Movie Matt Linton: Edgar Wright can do no wrong. Shelby Cadwell: Despite the fact that the trailer gives away 80% of the film, Baby Driver is still worth watching in its entirety if for
