Django Unchained (2012)

I love Quentin Tarantino movies. Always have. Of course, that ‘love’ isn’t level across the board, some of his films have been better than others. Inglourious Basterds (2009) was an interesting and daring exercise in ‘period’ film-making, especially for Tarantino, but it just didn’t quite come together as I had originally hoped (looking at YOU, […]

Dredd (2012)

All that I really knew about the Judge Dredd character was that he was originally the focus of a satirical and nihilistic British comic book series and then, in 1995, was turned into an abysmal, piece of shit Stallone ‘vehicle’ that apparently completely raped the tone and character of Judge Dredd. After that, the possibility […]

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)

Well, that dwarf-looking Kiwi Peter Jackson has returned to his beloved Middle Earth, this time to grace us with an ambitious telling of Tolkiens most accessible work. When I heard that they were planning to split The Hobbit into two parts, I thought that that seemed fair and was probably the smart way to go. […]

Total Recall (2012)

Not perfect…but perfectly acceptable. I understand that there’s a die-hard group of Arnie/Verhoeven enthusiasts out there who have no qualms with out-rightly decrying this remake, and admittedly I thought that I may be one of them, as I still have a fond place in my heart for the gory, satirical 1990 ‘original’. But in the […]

Brave (2012)

And Pixar does it…once again. Somewhere in the deep, dark vaults at Pixar Studios there has got to be a formula, spell or elixir that does nothing but fuel the clever awesomeness that seeps out of seemingly every animated feature that they’re thrown out there (haven’t seen Cars 2 yet, can’t judge). Brave is no […]

Lawless (2012)

As a self-admitted fan of the ‘gangster’ (not gangsta!) genre, I was intrigued when the first whispers of this ‘based on a true story’ flick came to light. John Hillcoat is a relatively new Aussie director who’s blossoming career I’ve been following with interest. The first film of his that I saw was his bleak […]

Savages (2012)

Holy shit! Oliver Stone…buddy…what the hell has happened to you?!!! Not since Alexander (2004) have you fucked up a promising story SO badly! Alexander has the notable distinction of being the only film, to date, that I actually walked out of…as in ‘out of the damn theatre!’. That bloated, piss poor wannabe epic was a […]

Skyfall (2012)

So, 5 years after they scattered our brains with break-neck, seizure-inducing action in lieu of deep story with Quantum of Solace, the Bond crew have blessed us with another gritty ‘realistic’ addition to the longest-running action franchise in cinematic history. Daniel Craig returns as the iconic British (not so) secret agent and again, knocks ‘it’ […]

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2012)

“This movie is more fun than it has ANY right to be.” That was the concise diagnosis that a good friend of mine rendered after his viewing. He was absolutely right. This premise, hell…the TITLE, just BEGS for ridicule. But, given the preposterousness of the concept, crazy Russian director Timur Bekmambetov SOMEHOW manages to inject […]

Dark Shadows (2012)

Well, t’is the season for ghosts n goblins and, at a recent ‘theme night’ (Oktoberfest…go figure)…it was decided that SOMETHING Halloweenish was in order for visual entertainment. After MUCH searching and debating, we FINALLY settled on the latest cinematic endeavor of the (mostly) great Tim Burton. Now, as a rather discerning movie nerd, I was […]