MIDNIGHT SPECIAL [2016]

Director Jeff Nichols attempts to channel some old school Spielberg with his wide-eyed sci-fi parable Midnight Special.
A boy with supernatural powers, with the help of his father, drives across the country to evade the government officials and a religious cult.
As it always is with Nichols' films, we have a fascinating watch that thrives on what we and the characters don't know.  Each reveal is slow and sometimes not always obvious, giving the viewer more to think about than what the simplicity of the core story has to offer.
Midnight Special is at it's best when it's quietly unique without even trying but at it's most ridiculous when it tries too hard to be more otherworldly than it really needs to be.
It's not Nichols' best film but as a fan of his previous works it's a real pleasure nevertheless.

3½ night-goggle joy-rides out of 5

ALL THE PRETTY HORSES [2000]

Billy Bob Thornton directs All The Pretty Horses, a film adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's dark romance-western novel.
It tells the tale of a Texas cowboy, working in Mexico, that falls in love with a rancher's daughter which leads him into all sorts of trouble.
Billy Bob demonstrates some good ol' fashioned Western film-making with this lushly photographed piece where quite often the imagery tells the story more than the dialogue.  Sadly, his vision was gutted when the studio demanded a good 40% of the film be cut due to length.  A lot is lost, particularly the emotional punch the novel carried, but somehow it manages to tread water with some strong performances and interesting situations.

3 cowboys out of 5

AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY [2013]

John Wells adapts Tracy Letts' dysfunctional family stageplay August: Osage County for the screen with a most impressive cast ensemble.
It's Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts who do most of the heavy lifting but it's hard to find a weak link in the bunch as each actor brings tragic dedication to their own role.  While there are some wickedly funny bits of dialogue throughout the film, I found this to be one of the saddest films of the year with it's story about a family falling to pieces after a funeral.  Each character gets their own introduction and since there are so many you start to wonder where it's all going after awhile until the middle of the film when it kicks into high gear.  With the addition of some painfully awkward and uncomfortably funny scenes, I'd watch it all over again just to pick each individual performance because there's so damned much going on at once.

4 catfish out of 5

OUT OF THE FURNACE [2013]

Writer/director Scott Cooper's follows up the acclaimed Crazy Heart with another tale about troubled Americana, the moody drama Out Of The Furnace.
Like a Bruce Springsteen song, the film is filled with poverty, hopelessness, violence, love in the darkest of places and folks who are destined to forever live in their own personal prisons no matter what choices they make.   The story speaks of emotional punches and it makes it halfway there due to the astonishingly fantastic cast but loses half of it's impact due to a weak script.  It's well worth a look at for the beautiful photography, haunting music and great acting but leaves much to be desired when all the names attached seem to promise something so much more.

3 Midnight Meat Trains out of 5

MUD [2013]

Director Jeff Nichols is fast becoming one of my favorite film-makers of odd slow-burning dramas.
The haunted coming-of-age Mark Twain-esque drama Mud is no exception.
I once disliked Matthew McConaughey but he continues to impress me with his more recent choices in roles.  It's almost as if he's been taking acting lessons from his pot-smoking buddy Woody Harrelson.  Mud explores a beauty in a part of the world and it's people we're not used to seeing in such a light and Nichols succeeds without so much as a flaw.  Already half-way through the year, I can't imagine any other film in 2013 that will be as impressive as this one.

5 tree boats out of 5

SAFE HOUSE [2012]

Ryan Reynolds and Denzel Washington deliver some great performances in director Daniel Espinosa's crime thriller Safe House.

The two leads turn in some solid acting, however it's the rest of the fantastic cast that is put to waste as stock characters that have nothing to offer to the character conflicts.  The rest of the film is ruined by a predictable plot that has nothing new to offer to the genre and an irksome overuse of the shaky cam effect.   It's not offensively bad but leaves little to offer after all is said and done.

2½ guests out of 5

KILLING THEM SOFTLY [2012]

Director Andrew Dominik reteams with Brad Pitt for Killing Them Softly, a screen adaptation of George V. Higgins' crime novel Cogan's Trade.

Dominik uses dry, dark humour and bleak, brutal violence to do a intricate character study wrapped around American political allegories that is stylish, absorbing and well-acted.  All that aside, it never completely comes full circle and leaves a bit to be desired once the credits start rolling.  

3½ businesses (not countries) out of 5