Train Dreams (2025)

Chronicles the life of one Robert Grainier, an ordinary man without much sense of direction or purpose, who searches for meaning in the absurdity and tragedy that follows him during the early twentieth century. Life is simple but hard, and similarly, I found this film meditative but dull, which is probably an accurate depiction of what life was like back then. The cinematography is beautiful and brings to mind the works of Terrence Malick, as we're treated to long stretches of quiet contemplation. It seems to be about how the world changes and leaves us behind, which is as profound as it is devastating.

3 boots nailed to a tree out of 5

TRIPLE 9 [2016]

Director John Hillcoat gathers together a pretty stellar cast for his violent heist thriller Triple 9.
The Atlanta Russian mob hires a group of dirty cops to pull off a near impossible job and then hatches a ploy to trick them into killing each other to avoid any loose ends.
Hillcoat's obsession with struggling to find order amidst a world of violence is at it's most apparent here with it's intricate plot that's filled with multiple twists 'n turns.  However, it's missing it's beating heart and the lack of character development is where it hurts the film most.  Thanks to it's clever plotting, powerful cast and intense action sequences Triple 9 is pretty god-damned entertaining but one can't help but feel there's a heavily extended director's cut that could easily fix it's glaring flaws.

3 nines out of 5

THE RULES OF ATTRACTION [2002]

Director Roger Avary's theatrical follow-up to Killing Zoe is an adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis' unhinged dark satirical novel The Rules Of Attraction.
It's the surreal story of three attractive Camden College students who lead jaded lives filled with sex, drugs and a multitude of selfish deeds.  Easton Ellis excels at creating despicable characters who we can't help but be intrigued by, knowing damn well he makes sure they all get their dues by the end.  Here, Avary does a fantastic job at capturing the non-linear storytelling of the novel, while giving it a gnashing bite all his own, which quite often you wish would be just a bit more subtle than it is.  The film completely lacks any sort of charm or anything even remotely pleasant to make it a comfortable viewing.  Front-to-back, it's pretty disgusting and if you realize that's exactly what it sets out to be and you're down with it, then it's pretty damned entertaining.  Who doesn't want to see Kevin Arnold shoot up heroin or Dawson Leery attack a guy with an electric carver?

3 vaginal infections out of 5

TRANSCENDENCE [2014]

Cinematographer Wally Pfister steps out from under Christopher Nolan's shadow to make his directorial debut with the sci-fi/thriller Transendence.
Rebecca Hall plays the wife of a man (Johnny Depp) that turns himself into a frightening form of artificial intelligence.  It's visually beautiful and breathing with a comfortable atmosphere but beyond that the film aims for more ambition than it can actually juggle.  By asking big questions and giving silly answers you get the feeling Pfister wasn't entirely sure what the script was attempting to say and instead focused on flash 'n flair.  Another jarring problem is I felt Hall (and Depp's voice) could have easily carried the entire film on her own with a bit of script re-working and deleting the rest of the useless supporting characters.  

2 digital dreamcatchers out of 5

THE BOONDOCK SAINTS 2: ALL SAINTS DAY [2009]

After a 10 year absence, Troy Duffy's American/Irish badboy vigilante brothers are back in the follow-up to the cult hit in, The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day.

After a rather crowd-pleasing original, it's hard to follow-up and this fails in almost every way.  The dialogue is flat and uninspiring as hell, the action sequences are inanely dull, it's horribly uneven pacing and Billy Connolly is painfully underused.  Aside from a few humorous moments, All Saints Day is an utter disappointment and waste of time.

1½ cats on a bar out of 5