The Movie Guy

If there were ever a movie to assuage the division in America after a turbulent presidential election and restore any faith lost in our country or ourselves, it’s “Loving,” Jeff Nichols’ film depicting the true story of Richard and Mildred Loving’s decade-long fight to make their interracial marriage a constitutional right. Easily one of the year’s best films, “Loving” is a movie of hope and serves as a reminder to all Americans that right is actually what makes might. Continue reading →

Last weekend, I was able to reconnect with my cousins Pam and Jerry DeSantis who invited me to join them in attending the 4^th annual Middleburg Film Festival a short drive from their Northern Virginia home. Ironically, the theme of reconnecting with family made watching Kenneth Lonergan’s “Manchester by the Sea” (in advance of its November 18^th release date) the perfect choice among the 28 films screened at this four-day festival. Continue reading →

Keeping the hook of the book intact, the film version of “The Girl on the Train” zips along nicely and makes Emily Blunt an acting force to be reckoned with.

If you’ve read the book, you’ll know “The Girl on the Train” is a mystery told from the viewpoints of three women, though mainly through its title character Rachel (Blunt), a woman on a commuter train who is fixated on a particular house along her route. In this house lives Megan (Haley Bennett), a beautiful young woman who is often seen by Rachel lounging on her deck or in the arms of her husband, Scott (Luke Evans). To Rachel, Megan lives the idyllic life- one that Rachel longs for. We soon learn that Rachel used to live in a house near Megan’s, that Rachel’s own marriage dissolved after her inability to have children led to her becoming an alcoholic, and that Rachel’s husband Tom (Justin Theroux) left her for Anna (Rebecca Ferguson), whom he was having an affair with while married to Rachel. Continue reading →

Fast-paced and fun, director Antoine Fuqua’s “The Magnificent Seven” is pure popcorn entertainment. Keeping the basic premise and giving an occasional “tip-of-the-hat” respectful nod to John Sturges’ 1960 original, the new “Seven’s” more in line with bringing back everything you’ve loved from the classic American Western film genre. With well-choreographed action scenes and a likable cast, the formulaic stays fresh and the stereotypes don’t get stale. Continue reading →

On this 15^th anniversary of 9/11, one movie stands to assure that I will never forget.

Growing up, I spent the majority of my formative years glued to a television gorging myself on a steady diet of B-horror movies. In 1976, while America celebrated its bicentennial, I was a 7 year-old celebrating an early Christmas with the release of Dino De Laurentiis’ remake of “King Kong.” Continue reading →

Set in the desert towns of West Texas, “Hell or High Water” is a bank heist movie that blooms like a cactus flower: colorful in its characters, organic in its plot progression, and beautiful despite its prickly environment. Like its locale with its undercurrent of “black gold,” its caper is just as sleek and slick. “Hell or High Water” is a film so complete that I don’t think I’ll see a better one this year. Continue reading →

Badly marketed as an arms dealing comedy, “War Dogs” is actually a war profiteering drama. While the film’s poster parodies Brian DePalma’s “Scarface,” it mirrors another gangster movie. With a similar real-life event story origin, storyline arc and directing style, “War Dogs” resembles Martin Scorsese’s 1990 film “Goodfellas.” Is that high praise? You bet. “War Dogs” is one of this year’s best films. Continue reading →

Mom said don’t play with your food; “Sausage Party” proves she was right.

After its initial set-up and the gag you know is coming- watching animated food groups panic as they realize they’re about to be eaten, “Sausage Party” inflates too much story around a funny idea. Adding subplots to make more of this central gag wears thin and backfires for writers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (“Superbad,” This Is The End”); the jokes and humor of the subplots aren’t nearly as fast or nearly as funny. Continue reading →

More trifle than triumph, “Suicide Squad” lacks the humor and exposition of its motley crew to elevate it to the blockbuster status audiences were expecting. However, it’s a decent enough diversion to occupy the time of rabid fans stuck in Gotham City awaiting the return of Superman and the formation of DC comics’ Justice League after this March’s Zach Snyder film “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice.” Continue reading →

In conveying my overall feeling about a film, I’ll usually point to another movie it reminded me of so you’ll get a sense of what you’re in for should you decide to see the film yourself. With the return of director Paul Greengrass and star Matt Damon, “Jason Bourne” has all of the trappings of “Godfather III”- a serviceable sequel that, in comparison to its predecessors, comes off as formulaic and flat. However, there are enough stylish elements attached to put it a notch above the norm. Continue reading →