Tuesday Releases: Dredd, Hit And Run, & House at the End of the Street

January 8, 2013 / Leave a Comment

JANUARY 8TH, 2013

COMPLIANCE // Despite it’s extremely uneasy demeanor, “Compliance” evokes a powerful emotional response from its viewers and succeeds in creating a forum for commentary on the state of obedience and our society. Ann Dowd’s performance renders me speechless, nailing down such a thought-provoking character, alongside Dreama Walker, who takes her next big step towards the spotlight. If the film had not been based on true events, it would have been hard to buy into this unbelievable series of occurrences, but with that knowledge of real life national headlines, the film benefits by becoming a window into the psyche of not only a deranged prank caller, but also those asked to do things beyond their boundaries, and complying.

DREDD // “Dredd 3D” is what it is; a violent, vicious action film that packs a punch. With slightly too much gore and slow motion for its own good, Karl Urban is brilliantly cast as the lead, taking the over-amped character of Judge Dredd to a level that isn’t hokey, delivering lines that, if spoken by any other actor, would be taken as a joke. Olivia Thirlby also fits in with her surroundings, never faltering despite her lack of action background. “Dredd 3D” rises above its B-movie demeanor and highly criticized predecessor and delivers a futuristic smash ’em up flick that works, even if it does follow the same plot line as “The Raid: Redemption”.

FRANKENWEENIE // Originally made as a black-and-white live action film, Tim Burton returns to his passion project “Frankenweenie”, producing one of the first ever black-and-white stop-animation films. With a predictable plot and the trademark horror spoofs, Burton proves he’s in touch with the past conventions of classic horror like Frankenstein and the Wolfman, but fails to produce anything innovative beyond the realm of his animation. Still a solid children’s film, “Frankenweenie” entertains on the most basic of levels and nothing more.

HIT AND RUN // Dax Shepherd’s passion shows through in his pet project “Hit & Run”, in which he writes, directs, and acts, alongside his lovely wife, Kristen Bell. An almost perfect blend of comedy mixed with action, the humor is well-paced and laugh-out-loud while the car chase scenes are a sight to behold. Heading into the film with somewhat low expectations, I enjoyed almost every second of this film. Released by a major distributor (Open Road Films), Shepherd’s film has more of a look and feel of a heartfelt Indie.

HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET // On paper, this sounds like your run-of-the-mill thriller, but “House at the End of the Street” works quite wonderfully, made possible, mostly by Jennifer Lawrence adding a touch of sophistication to the entire film. Packing its punchy thrills with the style you expect from a good horror film while keeping its secrets well preserved, lands this film on the plus side. However, it loses points with its blatant explanations, taking most the guesswork out of the twisted situations. Rarely taking the easy horror gimmicks, “House at the End of the Street” leaves the audience with some fresh ideas to keep them thinking about the story, even after the thoughtful credits.

New Releases
Compliance
Dredd
Frankenweenie
Guns, Girls and Gambling
Hit and Run
House at the End of the Street
The Inbetweeners Movie
Jack & Diane
Last Ride
Samsara