Memoir of a Snail (2024)

A girl obsessed with snails lives in her own metaphorical shell, where she experiences a life filled with tragedy and pain. Like the rest of Adam Elliot's clay-animated stop-motion filmography, it's full of great humor and wit, but altogether harrowing and emotionally devastating. I respect the rich artistry of his craft (on full display here) so much, but his movies make me want to fucking kill myself. That's not intended as a criticism by any means; just that you need to have a stable mental state to prepare yourself.

3½ pity-pits out of 5

PARKLAND [2013]

Journalist Peter Landesman made his directorial debut with the dramatically effective, yet ultimately pointless, historical drama Parkland.
Set in the three days that immediately followed JFK's assassination, we follow an ensemble of ordinary folks who aren't well remembered names that played a big part in the events, such as the doctors, reporters, policeman, secret service men and relatives of the larger than life names.
It offers a unique perspective on the controversial subject matter but it runs off into too many directions to really allow the viewer to become emotionally attached to any of the characters being explored.  There's some excellent performances from the long list of who's who of indie-films, particularly the always wonderful Paul Giamatti, James Badge Dale and Jacki Weaver.  With an extra 45 minutes (yes, that much) I think it could have been a great film but instead it's nothing but a valiant but uncompelling effort.

3 of the world's most famous rolls of 8mm films out of 5

Haunt (2013)

Similar to such recent ghost stories as Insidious, Sinister and The Conjuring, the film "begins with a house and a tragedy". It centers around the quiet teen Evan Asher (Harrison Gilbertson), his family and a neighborhood girl named Sam (Liana Liberato). Scenes are filled with moody lighting, jump scares and plenty of great sound design. The effective cinematography and absorbing narrative are a surprise since this is only Mac Carter's second film. There is really nothing new here but I found myself attached to the endearing characters, especially Evan and Sam. Gilbertson and Liberato are true stand-outs. Some may find the ending abrupt and out of character with what audiences expect but it helps set itself apart.

3½ unusually understanding parents out of 5

THE FIVE-YEAR ENGAGEMENT [2012]

Director Nicholas Stoller adds another predictable yet charming funny film to his resume with the romantic comedy The Five-Year Engagement.

The chemistry between Jason Segel and Emily Blunt is great and never gets too mushy, with the help of some great supporting roles from Chris Pratt and Alison Brie.  With enough laughs and down-to-earth situations the film is a pretty safe bet for anyone that vomits at the the mere mention of rom-coms and needs something with just enough flair and attitude to ease the pain. 

3 Bunny Days out of 5

STOKER [2013]

Park Chan-wook's first venture into the world of Hollywood is a disturbing one indeed.  Stoker makes your skin crawl with utterly sick delight for the beautifully shot and acted thriller that it is.

It's packed with literary allusions galore, delicate sound design and haunted music, all of which seem to be wrapped in a twisted Hitchcockian Gothic fairytale storytelling, courtesy of Prison Break star Wentworth Miller.  There's so many tiny details reflecting on older stories, you'll want to see it again just trying to pick out what is what.  It might not hold up to Chan-wook's previous films but it's a beautiful alternative to some of the other films in the cinema at the moment.  

3½ shoes out of 5

SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK [2012]

Director David O. Russell goes against his usual and makes a quiet & sensitive little drama about mental illness in Silver Linings Playbook. 

Normally I haven't enjoyed Bradley Cooper in...well...anything but here he excels with a wonderfully layered performance opposite Jennifer Lawrence who is equally as good.  Backed by Robert De Niro and Jacki Weaver, the actors all play off each other with exceptional believability.  It's a story that could have easily fallen into shitty rom-com territory but with the direction, characters and actors, the film rises far above that genre with the perfect amount of warmth and thoughtfulness.

4 midnight meat trains out of 5