F1 (2025)

Car goes vroom-vroom. The audience cheers. Humans are simple creatures.

A grizzled, disgraced former Formula One driver (Brad Pitt) returns to the sport after a 30-year absence and clashes with a young hotshot in an effort to save their losing team. Each attempts to prove themselves for their own reasons, while breaking the rules along the way. It's basically Days of Thunder for a new generation. There aren't too many surprises to be found here. It circles the well-traveled path and arrives pretty much where you would expect.

2 pit stops out of 5

Bullet Train (2022)

Brad Pitt finds himself on a high-speed rail train from Tokyo to Kyoto with a bunch of trained assassins who are trying to kill him. It's a nonstop thrill ride that propels itself through highly stylized action-comedy sequences which can feel a bit excessive at times. Like Boy Kills World, it's a fun, turn-off-your-brain film, even though it runs a bit long and gets repetitive at a certain point. My favorite parts were all the surprise cameos, which I won't spoil here. Could have used more Karen Fukuhara, though. Her entire part was in the trailer.

3 Momomons out of 5

Babylon (2022)

Damien Chazelle (La La Land) directs this epic historical black comedy about Hollywood's rocky transition from silent film to "talkies" in the late 1920s. And particularly, just how difficult an adjustment that was for certain performers.

I thought it was beautiful, in a frenetic, drug-addled way. I love how it tells the evolution of film history in a much darker fashion than Singin' in the Rain ever could back in 1952. It celebrates the wild excesses of a time long gone by as a very entertaining fever dream with great original music (by La La Land's Justin Hurwitz) throughout. It's not as personal a story as The Fabelmans, but it's just as relevant to understanding the ways the world has changed over the past century. It's about those who came before us and those who will be there after us. I found it existential amidst all the crazy orgies and bodily fluids.

4 "it girls" out of 5

Wolfs (2024)

Two lone wolf professional "fixers" have to temporarily put aside their differences and work together in order to rid a crime scene of evidence. Things unexpectedly get more complicated, as they do, with humorous bickering throughout. The whole thing plays out over one night and kind of reminded me of After Hours in its execution, especially in regards to its eerie soundtrack. It's a charming, capably handled crime thriller with two actors at the top of their game, but a number of nagging plot holes unfortunately prevent this from getting a stronger recommendation.

3 smooth operators out of 5

Note: What's depressing about this movie is that it was meant to get a wide theatrical release, but they pulled the plug a few weeks early and sent it direct to streaming instead, because apparently these guys aren't considered bankable enough stars anymore. How fucking old do you feel right now?

Sleepers (1996)

Four boys from Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, see violence everyday, in the streets and behind closed doors, but the sense of belonging they feel to the place where they grew up, where their lifelong friendship was forged, offers a kind of safety. When they're moved to a young offenders facility, the youths experience violence of a different kind, one that's inescapable, even after it ends. Years later, a chance for revenge may offer a semblance of closure.
Split between showing adolescence and adulthood, the film presents a story of loss and abuse of power that at times is reminiscent of Scorsese and Leone's period gangster films. In addition to upsetting imagery, a v/o provides a more personal insight into topics that are controversial and challenging.

4 snapping bolts out of 5

WAR MACHINE [2017]

Director David Michôd takes some broad satirical jabs at the American military in the darkly comical War Machine.
Loosely based on the real life events of the firing of General Stanley A. McChrystal, Brad Pitt turns in a strong performance as a celebrated general who, while serving in Afghanistan, is put under the microscope by a Rolling Stone journalist.
It's not too subtle and takes the piss out of proud America and it's military with a heavy hammer.  It takes turns being funny, scary and sad but never seems to find a solid footing to make the impact it intends to.  Fortunately it's aided by an excellent cast, some making strong impressions with only a few minutes of screen-time.   It's a case of "tell me something I don't already know" but at least it's got some great honest moments to make some of it memorable.

3 excellent reasons not to switch seats out of 5

THE BIG SHORT [2015]

Regular Will Ferrel film director Adam McKay takes a slight step out of his comfort zone with the funny biographical drama The Big Short.
It tells the story of th 2007-2008 U.S. mortgage housing crisis and follows four unrelated high-finance figures who foresee the financial collapse and try to milk it for everything they can.
It's not a particularly interesting tale nor is it easy to follow and fortunately McKay & a slew of high profile names make it easier for the average viewer to digest.  Thankfully the dryness of the subject matter is sprinkled with a wicked sense of humor and despicable, yet entertaining, oddball characters giving it an enticing push into an easy-to-follow pace.
McKay's usual brand of silly humor is replaced with a brainy cynicism that might still be funny but never forgets the seriousness of the topics at hand here.  In short, it's like a dull accounting class being effectively taught by an angry clown that's determined to make even the thickest of fools understand.

3½ Margo Robbie's in a bubble-bath out of 5

SE7EN [1995]

Director David Fincher's moody psycho-thriller, Se7en, is still one of the only worthy rivals to The Silence of the Lambs as one of the most disturbingly traumatizing of it's kind.
In a rainy unnamed city, two detectives, one on the brink of retirement and one brand new to the decaying city, investigate a series of grisly murders, all inspired by the seven deadly sins.
With it's simple premise, it easily could have been yet another gritty crime film but it rises above that with Fincher's ability to build the tension & atmosphere with dreary neo-noir photography and two fantastic performances from it's two leads.  It hypnotizes the viewer with a thick air of unsettling horror that starts with the Nine Inch Nails-scored main titles sequences and doesn't let up until the jaw-dropping finale that will haunt you for long after it's done.

4 soothing, relaxing, vibrating homes out of 5

FIGHT CLUB [1999]

Director David Fincher's abrasive adaptation of Chuck Palahniuk's novel Fight Club is like giving a monkey a loaded gun to viewer's how have no idea what the film is actually trying to say.
On the surface it's about a white-collar office worker, tired of what he's becoming, who creates an underground fight club with the help of a brutally honest social misfit.  Below that, you have a cynical social commentary on everything that's wrong with the adults of today, which appeals to most anger-fueled twenty-somethings.  Peel that away and it's picking apart those who live by those cynical ideals and proving that no matter how much knowledge you bestow, you're still an idiot if you don't know how to use it.  Like the fighting blinds the character's from what's going on around them, the sneering facade of the narrator's commentary blinds the viewer with what is actually going on.  With a bit of keen observance and careful deconstruction you'll find it works on numerous entertaining levels.

4 chemical burns out of 5

FURY [2014]

Writer/director David Ayer steps away from his usual crooked cop tales with Fury, the fictional World War II story of a five-man tank crew travelling behind enemy lines during final days of the war.
All in all, the film is beautifully shot as grim as it may look, superbly acted, well written war film that is grisly and thoroughly unpleasant.  The film aims to pack a punch but for some reason it never quite hits you where it should, while it also has problems bringing anything new to the table in it's genre.  With that being said, it might not point out anything new to the viewer but certainly does a fantastic job at putting you right in the seat of that tank.  There's no real heroism or glory here, it's just plain violent, senseless and quite frightening.

3½ horse butts out of 5

Burn After Reading (2008)

Clooney does his best work with the Coen brothers; Burn was their third collaboration. He and most everyone else experience some kind of crisis as they attempt to make the best of what middle age has dealt them. Brad does his geek thing, but the highlight, for me at least, is Malkovich’s pissed-off casualty of bureaucracy who spends a large part of the film repeating the same phrase over and over. The CIA are also involved, somehow.

3½ kinds of secret shit out of 5

Legends of the Fall (1994)

LotF focuses mostly on three brothers who are close but ultimately on different paths. In a broader sense, it's also the story of an immigrant family through the ages who settle in Montana in the early 1900s.
Many of the heartbreaking moments are clearly signposted in the first half, but there’s enough weight in the second half to make up for it.
Less successful in my eyes (or ears) was the clichéd sweeping orchestral score that intrudes all too often when it would've been better to let the naked emotion do the work on its own.

3½ inner voices out of 5

The Devil's Own (1997)

Provisional IRA member Frankie McGuire shaves his Irish beard and goes to America to buy weapons that’ll help him murder more people than he already has. Thankfully, it doesn't ask us to sympathise too much with a killer, but then it doesn't ask very much of us at all.
Harrison is his usual dreary self, exhibiting his default emotional state that’s good for little other than being Dekard.
Brad half-heartedly plays a flimsy version of Brad with a well-spoken Irish lilt to his voice. It’s not a role that'll feature in a list of Best Brad roles.
Natascha McElhone fares better with her accent, but her character doesn't get very much to do in a politically-arse movie from Follywood.

2 earthly works out of 5

Mr and Mrs Smith (2005)

Jolie is sexy, Brad is handsome and the sets look like they cost millions of dollars but everything exists on a wholly superficial level. But hey, maybe that was point? I don't know. I don't much care.
If you've been in a long term relationship then you’ll likely get a few knowing chuckles in the first half, but the finale stretches the plot to breaking point and almost did the same to my level of interest.
You can hide his face behind a screen but you can’t disguise the gravel in that voice. Keith David cameo. Fuck, yeah!

2½ compromises out of 5

COOL WORLD [1992]

The live action/animated hybrid Cool World is like Fritz The Cat director Ralph Bakshi's raunchier answer to Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
With it's seedy world inhabited by cute Fleischer-esque cartoon characters who look like they took a turn down the wrong road I was reminded of Peter Jackson's Meet The Feebles.  It's got some interesting back-drop designs but the animated characters themselves look like juvenile versions of the cartoons they're attempting to imitate.  It's apparently supposed to be funny but I don't think I cracked a smile even once as I tried to figure out why I was subjecting myself to this crap.  It's hilarious to see Brad Pitt before his balls dropped but that wears off within 10 minutes into the film.

1 doodle out of 5

THE COUNSELOR [2013]

With Ridley Scott directing a star-studded cast in an original screenplay by novelist Cormac McCarthy I was expecting quite a bit from The Counselor but in the end found much to be desired.
The first hour drags quite a bit with more than enough quirky criminal monologues about next to nothing to make you wonder if it's supposed to be funny.  The second half of the film is where things get interesting and more intense as several themes of sexuality, human nature, death and consequences begin to be explored.  McCarthy's novels are near poetic perfection but his film dialogue isn't quite as interesting and this film is built on spoken words rather than actions.  There's plenty of memorable moments but it simply doesn't satisfy the hunger for a smarter thriller than this.

3 car fuckers out of 5

12 YEARS A SLAVE [2013]

Based on Solomon Northup's own auto-biographical 1853 novel, 12 Years A Slave, director Steve McQueen takes up the heavy challenge of adapting it into a powerfully moving film.
Everything about it from the outside screams Hollywood epic tale but once you get past that you find an intimate tale about the power of the human soul in even the worst of times.  Some of the most effective moments are long takes of nothing but silence and allowing the actor's eyes or subtle body movements to do the talking.  Chiwetel Ejiofor deserves every bit of praise he's received for this role but so should Michael Fassbender, as despicable as his character is, one can't deny the impact of his performance.
As difficult as some of the necessary subject material is to watch, it's a film and story that needs to be told, heard and seen.

4 fiddles out of 5

Interview with the Vampire (1994)

Anne Rice’s homoerotic fantasy vampire novel got gelded somewhat for its transition to the screen but it retained much of the atmosphere that was prevalent in the source. It succeeded in both keeping the gothic allure while simultaneously stripping the immortal of his mystery and painting him as a pained and tragic character.
Having read the novel, I’d not have picked Cruise to play Lestat, but he did a fine job at being a prick. Reports say Brad Pitt was miserable during the shoot, and it shows. It suits his character, but there are times a little more passion for the material would've elevated it to even greater heights.

3½ strange comforts out of 5

Twelve Monkeys (1995)

Gilliam’s remake/expansion of Chris Marker's La Jetée (1962) is almost as good as the original. Stylistically it’s an occasionally disorientating experience with a subtly unrealistic depth of field that feels like a more restrained version of his Orwellian Brazil (1985). The result is one of the most accomplished and polished pieces of work he’s ever made. It’s also one of the most satisfying time travel stories that I've ever seen.
Bruce Willis makes every effort not to be Bruce Willis and delivers possibly the best performance of his career. Madeleine Stowe brings beauty and stability to an ugly world beset by tragedy.

4 divergent trips out of 5

WORLD WAR Z [2013]

Director Marc Forster's "adaptation" of Max Brooks' zombie novel World War Z was plagued by multiple production problems & re-shoots, which normally results in an uneven mess of a film.
Surprisingly it doesn't happen here.  In fact if you weren't aware of the behind-the-scenes dilemmas you wouldn't even notice the slight bumps here and there.  It's basically Brooks' novel in name only, with a few brief nods to the book's text and instead it's an effective adrenaline fueled thrill-ride for the kids.  I quite enjoyed it but apart from a few well-crafted action sequences there's not much to think about after all is said and done.

3 protective magazines out of 5