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- Wednesday, June 19, 2013 Gainesville, Georgia
Archive By Author - Jeff Marker
Latest fairy tale film is a giant mess
Another week, another folk tale hits movie theaters. Hot on the heels of the modestly performing "Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters" comes "Jack the Giant Slayer," an attempt to expand the old English tale into a big budget epic. "Jack" comes with some giant-sized names attached, particularly Bryan Singer and Christopher McQuarrie (the directing and writing duo behind "The Usual Suspects"), but you'd never guess that from the shoddy production values and uneven tone. The ...
‘Snitch’ pairs unlikely stars
"Snitch" offers one of the oddest casting pairings we've seen for a while. I never thought I'd see Dwayne Johnson and Susan Sarandon sharing the screen together in an action movie, but surprisingly, it ends up making sense.
Director’s big-screen swan song out of tune
Steven Soderbergh has built one of my favorite careers of all time. Few directors have ever or will ever match the quantity, quality and diversity of his work.
Quirky comedy is a zombie 'Romeo and Juliet'
First of all, let's get one thing straight. "Warm Bodies" is not a zombie movie.
Hoffman’s charming 'Quartet' a little movie with big heart
If Dustin Hoffman ever decides to quit acting, he could have a fine second career as a director. "Quartet" is Hoffman's official directorial debut, and it is a joyous film.
For your consideration, Part 4: Top contenders in a banner year
This being the last column in which I will mention the 2012 year in movies, it's time to make some observations.
For Your Consideration, Part 3: Handicapping the top Oscar performers
Now that the nominees have been announced, the Oscar discussion shifts to predicting winners. This week, I'll look at the actor races, then next week I'll handicap the Best Picture and Best Director categories. And just to be clear on something: The Oscars don't really determine the bests of the year. They're just a commercial for Hollywood. But hey, the college football season is over and this is more fun for me than the NBA, ...
For Your Consideration, Part II: ‘Beasts,’ ‘Master’ on Oscar bubble
And the hits just keep on coming. For part two of this year's awards series, we look at two films on the fence. Both have earned high praise from some critics circles but have been ignored by others. Both are as flawed as they are brilliant, so it's hard to predict how Academy members will vote. Nomination or not, though, both are essential viewing. By the way, you can start checking my accuracy in this ...
‘Zero Dark Thirty’ is controversial but brilliant
One of the year's most controversial films is, in my opinion, also its best. I suppose any movie about the hunt for and killing of Osama bin Laden is going to be provocative, but "Zero Dark Thirty" has proven especially so. Writer/director Kathryn Bigelow and co-writer Mark Boal researched this film by interviewing CIA operatives, members of Seal Team Six - the unit that ultimately killed bin Laden - and others with knowledge of classified ...
For Your Consideration: The Oscar buzz begins
This week we begin our annual look at the movies likely to compete for best picture at the Oscars, as well as the actors who might take home a statue. Studios use the award season as low-cost publicity, so this series also serves as a winter preview since some of these films will hopefully make it to area theaters over the next month or two.
Cruise is a reach in role, but story still works
Fans of crime writer Lee Child (pen name of Jim Grant) were livid when they heard Tom Cruise would be cast as Jack Reacher in the movie adaptation, and rightly so.
‘Django’ is pure Tarantino schlock, love it or not
Quentin Tarantino. The name inspires a wild mixture of reactions. Tarantino has unquestionably given us a couple of the most memorable works of the last 20 years of American cinema: "Reservoir Dogs" and "Pulp Fiction." He is an auteur with a style as distinct as any living filmmaker, combining the broad characterization, indelible imagery and intentionally outrageous violence of exploitation cinema with the graceful cinematography, quality acting and complex structures of art cinema. However, his ...
‘Les Misérables’ too big for its own good
Confession is good for the soul, so here goes. I do not like the musical "Les Misérables."
‘This is’ a shrill, empty, tone-deaf disaster
"This Is 40" is among the worst movies bearing the name of writer/director Judd Apatow. And that is really saying something.
‘The Impossible’ a tidal wave of emotion
"The Impossible" doesn't exactly pull off the impossible (a pun which many reviewers will surely use), but it is an astonishing piece of work.
Articles By Author - Jeff Marker
‘Man of Steel’ buckles under pressure
One thing I can virtually guarantee is "Man of Steel" will not receive a fair chance to succeed, either critically or commercially. And so much is riding on this movie.
‘Purge’ fails to deliver on promises
"The Purge" suffers from an identity crisis.
Duo attempts to grow up, falls short
Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson are back in theaters trying to grow up again, and the result is about as good as the previous 10 times they've attempted it.
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