Theatrical Releases: Looper & Won’t Back Down

LOOPER || September 28th, 2012

	HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA || Adam Sandler’s dumb humor transfers over to an animated feature, with his whole crew doing the voices. However, that same dumb humor probably works much better for children, as “Jack and Jill” seemed to. We grew up loving “Happy Gilmore” and “Billy Madison”, so I can see that maybe Sandler wants to corner the market of parents willing to take their kids to a film about monsters while enjoying someone they used to admire.	STREAM
	LOOPER || A time-travel film that focuses more on its characters and story than explaining how the physics work, “Looper” is a tight-knit action thriller with a hint of science fiction. Led masterfully by writer-director Rian Johnson (“Brick”), his connection with actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt cannot be denied and JGL’s unbelievable and unrelenting talent is fully showcased in this leading role, selling every minute of his screen-time while pulling off a convincing prosthetic Bruce Willis face. Pierce Gagnon plays the young boy, Cid, whom JGL’s character is protecting, and effectively displays some of the most mature emotions I’ve ever witnessed from a child star. Add to that a superior supporting cast in Paul Dano, Garrett Dillahunt, and Jeff Daniels, and a stellar soundtrack, and you’ve got one of the best films of the year and one of the best science fiction thrillers out of this decade.
	WON’T BACK DOWN || Powerfully emotional dramas like “Won’t Back Down” are normally the films that get nominated for Oscars and with Maggie Gyllenhaal and Viola Davis both having prior nominations, it wouldn’t be much of a surprise. Personally, the film comes off a little too melodramatic and Maggie comes off a little to over-the-top, but I will still probably be seeing this film at some point.	RENT

	BRINGING UP BOBBY || I am growing to love Milla Jovovich with each one of her films that I see and in this particular film, she’s the only part that really sells it for me. As the list of actors-turned-directors grows bigger and bigger by the day, Famke Janssen throws her name in the hat. The title cards of the trailer are extremely cheesy and the film comes off very low budget, but with a strong story and a strong female lead, it could just work.	STREAM
	HARVEST OF EMPIRE || When it comes to immigration laws, I should probably hold a stronger opinion, but I don’t. I should be more educated on the matter, but I’m not. I normally look at situations like this and think of overpopulation and unemployment, which are strong indicators of why immigration can be bad. “Harvest of Empire” aims to change people’s minds and be pro-immigration and I can already tell that just from the trailer. The film seems far too heavy-handed and if there’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s heavy-handed documentaries.	PASS
	THE HOLE || There are several situations when checking out a new film that should produce red flags. “The Hole” in particular is a horror film that is rated PG-13. That is comparable to a haunted house maze where no one can touch you and there’s a limit to the amount of horror that can be presented. You’re watching a horror film that technically 13 year olds can watch, which basically makes it a “Goosebumps” story instead of a gory Stephen King novel. Even though “Gremlins” and “Small Soldiers” are both great movies, this director takes an odd turn in presenting a kid’s horror film.	PASS
	THE IRAN JOB || Talk about a film slipping in its message or the “spoon full of sugar makes the medicine go down” mentality with “The Iran Job”. As an American basketball player makes his way to Iran to play basketball, we’re shown a culture that is feared by most other countries, but even from the trailer, I really enjoy seeing the women taking a stand against oppression and how sports, like basketball, are loved in other cultures just as ours.	STREAM
	THE OTHER DREAM TEAM || When it rains, it pours, with tons of documentaries coming out of the woodwork this time of year. And this week, with fellow basketball documentary “The Iran Job” comes another basketball story from another country, “The Other Dream Team”, about a USSR team winning Olympic gold in 1988, only to become the symbol of democracy in the fall of the Soviet. As important as the documentary probably is, count me not interested.	PASS
	SOLOMON KANE || Renouncing his past as a killing machine, Solomon Kane journeys across England. Of course, when his first temptation comes along, he takes it, killing in the name of a girl that is taken by an unwholesome gang of creatures. If the graphics of this film didn’t look so damn good, there’s probably no way I’d see it, but it does have a nice mix between “Season of the Witch” and “Black Death”.	STREAM
	STARS IN SHORTS || What shitty advertising for an actually pretty interesting concept, bringing big stars together in a compilation of short films. Stars like Academy Award winning Colin Firth, “Avenger’s” Tom Hiddleston, and actress Judi Dench. The marketing for this is all wrong and attracts only people who are accustomed to poorly attuned trailers.	STREAM
	THE WAITING ROOM || If I come across this film, “The Waiting Room”, I will definitely be checking it out. I am fascinated by real-life documentaries, simply documenting a certain establishment and allowing you to take what you want from it. It may be trying to get you to save this particular hospital, but to see the inside workings of a hospital in Oakland with very few beds and everyday working people coming in and out, this will definitely be worth a watch.	STREAM

THEATER

• Looper

RENT

• Won’t Back Down

STREAM

• Bringing Up Bobby
• Hotel Translyvania
• The Iran Job
• Solomon Kane
• Stars In Shorts
• The Waiting Room

PASS

• Harvest Of Empire
• The Hole
• The Other Dream Team