Network (1976)

In pursuit of higher ratings an unscrupulous TV network mercilessly exploits the increasingly unstable mindset of ageing news anchor Howard Beale (Peter Finch), while his closest friend Max Schumacher (William Holden) can do little but watch, partly because Max has personal issues of his own to deal with.
The savagely satirical media-whoring parts of the film are well-scripted, but it's when it explores human relationships that it really hit the mark for me - the scene between Max and his wife is a perfect example of what I mean. In many ways, the politics of fragile people eclipses the politics of financial profits.

3½ corporate manoeuvres out of 5

All the President's Men (1976)

A political thriller about the 1972 United States Watergate scandal. It's not something I have any real interest in, but actors Hoffman and Redford are eminently watchable in their portrayal of the two real-life Washington Post reporters who were instrumental in uncovering and publicly exposing the conspiracy, namely Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, respectively.
Dir. Pakula's camera positioning and split focus techniques give the busy office environments a real sense of presence, to such a degree that the meticulously constructed set feels like an actual, functioning office - it wasn't until afterwards that I found out those scenes weren't shot on location.
I don't know how faithful to the truth the events depicted in the story are, but as a film it's a clear-cut success that's worthy of its accolades.

4 pages polished out of 5

Captain America (1990)

It doesn't take long for lame Steve Rogers to be transformed into the all-American hero. By about fifteen minutes into the film he's kicking Nazi butt in some of the worst edited action scenes outside of a Michael Bay movie.
The Red Skull is the Captain's enemy through the ages. But he's rubbish in comparison to the one thing that the story manages to do reasonably okay: Steve's feeling that the world has moved on without him. It's achieved best in a scene that has the fly-boy running down the middle of a road.
Overall, he doesn't do very much actual heroics. It feels like a TV movie that had to compromise all too often. His plastic shield was embarrassing, but at least it and the suit design are faithful to the source.

1½ superhero sickies out of 5

He Got Game (1998)

A talented Coney Island basketball player by the name of Jesus (Ray Allen) struggles with fame, raising his sister alone, choosing a college and the unexpected return of his estranged father. It's not a typical sports movie, thankfully, but nor is it free of their usual dross.
Interestingly, Dir. Spike Lee doesn't lay the film's message on as thick as he could have; he lets the subtleties do the work instead, but they aren't quite up to the task and it runs out of steam in the last third.
Denzel is decent as a shouty father but less interesting elsewhere. The subplot with his character and Milla's is ineffectual.
The musical score also occasionally lets the drama down, contrasted by a number of Public Enemy songs that actually work well.

3 slow-mo hoop shots out of 5

Physical Evidence (1989)

The opening few minutes of PE pulled something exciting from its bag of tricks that I’d never seen before. Unfortunately, that left the bag empty. The remainder of the story, about a suspended cop and his stiff-assed attorney together on a mission to clear his name, is forgettable stuff.
I like Theresa Russell but fully acknowledge that she needs the correct kind of role in order to be believable, the same way Keanu or Jennifer Tilly do, but PE certainly isn't it and if it’s your first time seeing her you’ll maybe be put off for life. Furthermore, the only appealing element in Burt’s tired role is what he brought to it simply by being Burt.
It throws a few moments of courtroom drama into the mixture to break up the investigative side of things; they’re just as bland.

1½ nuisance phone calls out of 5

RAMPART [2011]

Director Oren Moverman fictionalizes his film around the Rampart scandals of LAPD in the late '90's making for some pre-setup tension.
Woody Harrelson leads the ensemble cast and unfortunately is the only character we really get to know which makes it a challenging watch seeing as he's so despicable.  Had the film added in another leading character to contrast Harrelson's corrupt cop it might have been a more inviting and interesting watch, instead we're just sort of waiting for this douche to get what's coming to him.  To add to it all, the camerawork is distractingly shaky and sometimes feel like it's trying a bit too hard to be naturally raw.
Rampart had pretty big potential to be a great crime drama but instead is just pretty off-putting and pointless.

2 ex-wives out of 5

Repossessed (1990)

A spoof of The Exorcist (1973) staring Leslie Nielson as the priest and Linda Blair as a possessed housewife.
It's filled with weak gags and an overpowering sense of desperation. I watched as much as I could to see how bad it could get, but then came to my senses and moved onto something better.

0½ shit given out of 5

THE KILLER INSIDE ME [2010]

Based off the classic crime novel by Jim Thompson, The Killer Inside Me is a disturbing and haunting noir that's a challenging watch due to some of it's brutally graphic violence against women.

Texas in the 1950's makes for a fascinating backdrop for this host of icky characters, with Casey Affleck's sociopath being the center of it all.  Affleck's skin-crawling performance is so damned creepy and played down I'd recommend the film based on that alone.  It's beautifully shot with a style I can't quite pinpoint, however it's the distance of each character that makes it difficult to get emotionally attached to.  

3½ Goldberg Variations out of 5

TOY STORY 3 (2010)

Pixar hits the jackpot again with near perfection.
3rd chapters usually walk in a little worn out and ready to be put down. Not Toy Story. It retains freshness like you kept it in the box.
Ned Beatty steals the show.
Humor, action and warmth are so perfectly timed.

4 Hidden Totoro's out of 5