Movies You've Probably Never Heard Of

2/7/12 11:28 PM

  The Secret of Kells (2009) Directed by Tomm Moore and Nora Twomey Written by Tomm Moore (original story) and Fabrice Ziolkowski (screenplay) Starring Brendan Gleeson and Evan McGuire Not Rated (animated with stylized action and some violence; suitable for young kids IMO) 75 minutes Of everything on this list, you’re most likely to have heard about this one because it won a bunch of awards when it came out and it’s been adopted by Christian organizations. But I’d say that it’s Christian like C.S. Lewis stuff is Christian– despite the undertones, you don’t need to be a Christian to enjoy it, and it’s actually less preachy than anything that’s come out of Narnia (regarding the books, at least; of the series,...

A Dangerous Method, or: Cronenberg + Psychoanalysis= lots of awkward sexual tension

1/29/12 7:45 PM

Directed by David Cronenberg Screenplay by Christopher Hampton (Based on the book “A Most Dangerous Method” by John Kerr) Starring Michael Fassbender, Kiera Knightley, Viggo Mortensen, and Vincent Cassel Rated R for Sexual Content (most of which surfaces in the kink of early psychoanalysis), Brief Nudity, Brief Language, and Adult Situations Don’t go see this movie because of the cast, or because it’s a David Cronenberg film. Don’t go see this movie because you want to see Kiera Knightly get spanked. Those are all great reasons to see a movie (Kiera Knightley's character is actually pretty distraught for most of the movie, especially at the beginning where she’s consumed by hysterical spasms, which is hopefully not much of a...

Martha Marcy May Marlene

11/28/11 11:51 PM

  Written and Directed by Sean Durkin Starring Elizabeth Olsen, Sarah Paulson, and John Hawkes Rated R for Language, Some Violence, Strong Sexuality and Brief Nudity  “Martha Marcy May Marlene” (I can’t say it five times fast) is a subtle thriller that has repeatedly been described as “haunting,” and that’s actually a really good description. It’s both the main character who is haunted, by her memories and fading grip on the present, and her sister, who is haunted by Martha herself.  It’s clear that Martha (Elizabeth “Yes, Mary Kate and Ashley’s Little [and much more talented] Sister” Olsen) and her sister Lucy (Sarah Paulson) have never quite existed on the same page, and it’s...

The Skin I Live In

11/20/11 10:52 PM

  Written and Directed by Pedro Almodovar Starring Antonio Banderas, Elena Anaya, and Marisa Paredes Rated R for Language, Violence, Strong Sexual Content and Nudity In Spanish with subtitles   If I didn’t have to actually write a review about this movie, I would simply say:  “Weird movie about a crazy plastic surgeon(Banderas) who keeps this woman (Anaya) captive so he can experiment on her to create a synthetic skin that’s fire proof. There’s gender-bender stuff and it’s got a kinda mad-scientist-creates-monster vibe. Then some rape. Probably not a good date movie. But you should definitely see it.”  But I have to write a review, and so that requires me to think more about the movie. And...

Margin Call

11/13/11 9:47 PM

  Written and Directed by J. C. Chandor Starring Freaking Lots of People (Kevin Spacey, Paul Betteny, Jeremy Irons, Zachary Quinto, Penn Badgley, Simon Baker, Demi Moore, Stanley Tucci, and even Aasif Mandvi is in this movie) Rated R for Language  After having watched “Margin Call,” I cannot say that I actually know anything more about why the economy currently sucks. In fact, this movie really just reiterates that a bunch of arrogant, money-worshipping type-A personalities are the reason why “Staycation” has become something you actually hear people say. But remarkably, this movie has made many of them sympathetically human, effectively drawing a line between two groups: the ones who feel an appropriately shocked that they are going to...