Film, Creative Loafing Charlotte

Star Trek Into Darkness: Beaming with pride

Matt Brunson — Fri, 17 May 2013 15:55:00 -0400

Rating: ***1/2 by Matt Brunson STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS ***1/2 DIRECTED BY J.J. Abrams STARS Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto One of the promotional posters for Star Trek Into Darkness depicts a damaged Enterprise free-falling toward the planet below it, but any worries that J.J. Abrams' series reboot will experience a similar tumble with this second installment can immediately be laid to rest.…

The Great Gatsby: Novel approach mars novel adaptation

Matt Brunson — Fri, 17 May 2013 15:50:00 -0400

Rating: **1/2 by Matt Brunson THE GREAT GATSBY **1/2 DIRECTED BY Baz Luhrmann STARS Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire One of the Ten Commandments of movie reviewing, at least in The Gospel According to Matthew Brunson, is that "Thou shalt not compare the film adaptation with its source material."…

Cloud Atlas, The Great Gatsby, Mama among new home entertainment titles

Matt Brunson — Tue, 14 May 2013 13:30:00 -0400

This week's reviews of what's new on Blu-ray and DVD by Matt Brunson (View From The Couch is a weekly column that reviews what's new on Blu-ray and DVD.) BEAUTIFUL CREATURES (2013).…

Iron Man 3: Stark reminder

Matt Brunson — Fri, 03 May 2013 13:35:00 -0400

Rating: **1/2 by Matt Brunson IRON MAN 3 **1/2…

Silver Linings Playbook, The Vampire Lovers among new home entertainment titles

Matt Brunson — Thu, 02 May 2013 10:00:00 -0400

This week's reviews of what's new on Blu-ray and DVD by Matt Brunson (View From The Couch is a weekly column that reviews what's new on Blu-ray and DVD.) THE GUILT TRIP (2012).…

The Iceman leaves viewers cold

Matt Brunson — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 12:32:00 -0400

** by Matt Brunson THE ICEMAN ** DIRECTED BY Ariel Vromen STARS Michael Shannon, Winona Ryder Nobody would think to call The Iceman a romanticized version of anything, but when compared to the real-life story of Richard Kuklinski, this excessively brutal film comes off almost as gentle and dreamy-eyed as a Nicholas Sparks adaptation.…

Mud a sparkling drama

Matt Brunson — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 14:00:00 -0400

Rating: *** by Matt Brunson MUD *** DIRECTED BY Jeff Nichols STARS Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon Writer-director Jeff Nichols, a graduate of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in Winston-Salem, made his debut with the well-received Shotgun Stories and then followed that with the intriguing Take Shelter, starring Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain.…

To the Wonder: Dream a little dream

Matt Brunson — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 14:00:00 -0400

Rating: **1/2 by Matt Brunson TO THE WONDER **1/2 DIRECTED BY Terrence Malick STARS Ben Affleck, Javier Bardem Look, let's just get straight to the point: Chances are that you find the movies of Terrence Malick to be either transcendent cinematic experiences or the most insufferable and pretentious twaddle to ever hit the silver screen.…

Pain & Gain: Penal dysfunction

Matt Brunson — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 14:00:00 -0400

Rating: ** by Matt Brunson PAIN & GAIN ** DIRECTED BY Michael Bay STARS Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson It appears that whenever Mark Wahlberg brings his world of hurt to movie marquees, audience members are the ones who will be left aching.…

The Company You Keep: Worth a short visit

Matt Brunson — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 14:00:00 -0400

**1/2 by Matt Brunson THE COMPANY YOU KEEP **1/2 DIRECTED BY Robert Redford STARS Robert Redford, Shia LaBeouf There's a musty smell surrounding The Company You Keep, director-star Robert Redford's drama about a small-time lawyer who's forced to go on the lam after he's outed as a murderous 1970s radical.…

Raid of the Rainbow Lounge screens at GayCharlotte Film Festival

Page Leggett — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 07:00:00 -0400

Fifth annual fest brings camp, comedy, documentaries and drama to the Queen City by Page Leggett On June 28, 1969, New York City police stormed into a gay bar called the Stonewall Inn. The raid resulted in arrests, injuries and riots — and the beginning of the modern gay rights movement.…

Oblivion: Future fizzle

Matt Brunson — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 10:00:00 -0400

Rating: ** by Matt Brunson OBLIVION ** DIRECTED BY Joseph Kosinski STARS Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman The latest in a steady stream of apocalyptic, end-of-the-world sagas, Oblivion itself is a vast wasteland, with only fleeting visions of imagination and coherency as far as the eye can see.…

Django Unchained, Repo Man, The Running Man among new home entertainment titles

Matt Brunson — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 14:00:00 -0400

This week's reviews of what's new on Blu-ray and DVD by Matt Brunson (View From The Couch is a weekly column that reviews what's new on Blu-ray and DVD.) DJANGO UNCHAINED (2012).…

Ginger & Rosa: Fanning the flames of talent

Matt Brunson — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 14:00:00 -0400

Rating: **1/2 by Matt Brunson GINGER & ROSA**1/2DIRECTED BY Sally PotterSTARS Elle Fanning, Alice Englert Elle Fanning's astonishing performance in Ginger & Rosa makes me recall the first time she impressed me, as one of the youthful leads in J.J. Abrams' 2011 summer hit Super 8.…

Trance a hypnotic thriller

Matt Brunson — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 14:00:00 -0400

Rating: *** by Matt Brunson TRANCE***DIRECTED BY Danny BoyleSTARS James McAvoy, Vincent Cassel Director Danny Boyle's mindbender of a movie Trance, suggests what would happen if Christopher Nolan ever elected to make a film while suffering from a persistent hangover.…

42: Here's to you, Mr. Robinson

Matt Brunson — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 14:00:00 -0400

Rating: **1/2 by Matt Brunson 42**1/2DIRECTED BY Brian HelgelandSTARS Chadwick Boseman, Harrison Ford Here's to you, Mr. Robinson: a new motion picture you can call your own.…

Hemingway and Gellhorn, Monsieur Verdoux, latest MST3K box set among new home entertainment titles

Matt Brunson — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 14:00:00 -0400

This week's reviews of what's new on Blu-ray and DVD by Matt Brunson (View From The Couch is a weekly column that reviews what's new on Blu-ray and DVD.) BEST OF WARNER BROS.: ROMANCE (1938-2008).…

Evil Dead: Why so serious?

Matt Brunson — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 14:32:00 -0400

**1/2 by Matt Brunson EVIL DEAD**1/2DIRECTED BY Fede AlvarezSTARS Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez It was my high school Spanish teacher who first told me about The Evil Dead back in 1983.…

Jurassic Park : Dino-mite!

Matt Brunson — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 14:30:00 -0400

***1/2 by Matt Brunson JURASSIC PARK***1/2DIRECTED BY Steven SpielbergSTARS Sam Neill, Laura Dern Whereas Steven Spielberg's three Indiana Jones films in the 1980s were all winners (as, to a lesser degree, was the belated fourth installment), his Jurassic Park series suffered the same dip as most movie franchises.…

On the Road misses the Beat

Matt Brunson — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 14:00:00 -0400

Rating: *1/2 by Matt Brunson ON THE ROAD*1/2DIRECTED BY Walter SallesSTARS Sam Riley, Garrett Hedlund There was enough of a hint of all that jazz to director Walter Salles' 2004 effort The Motorcycle Diaries, a look at the early years of Che Guevara, to signal that he might have been the proper person to tackle On the Road, the screen adaptation of Jack Kerouac's landmark novel.…

G.I. Joe: Retaliation: Soldiering on

Matt Brunson — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 14:00:00 -0400

Rating: ** by Matt Brunson G.I. JOE: RETALIATION**DIRECTED BY Jon M. ChuSTARS Dwayne Johnson, Bruce Willis Released in the waning weeks of the summer of 2009, after Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen had done the Hasbro brand (although not cinema itself) proud with its blockbuster grosses, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, likewise based on a Hasbro line of toys, was a sizable enough hit to guarantee that a sequel would eventually hit the screen.…

Bachelorette, Willow, Zero Dark Thirty among new home entertainment titles

Matt Brunson — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 14:00:00 -0400

This week's reviews of what's new on Blu-ray and DVD by Matt Brunson (View From The Couch is a weekly column that reviews what's new on Blu-ray and DVD.) BACHELORETTE (2012).…

Admission gets a failing grade

Matt Brunson — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 14:00:00 -0400

Rating: *1/2 by Matt Brunson ADMISSION*1/2DIRECTED BY Paul WeitzSTARS Tina Fey, Paul Rudd Tina Fey is a smart, funny and vivacious actress, but she's admittedly at her best when paired with a more manic co-star who brings her relative passivity into sharper focus (think Amy Poehler in Baby Mama or Steve Carell in Date Night).…

Olympus Has Fallen: Action flick lands with a thud

Matt Brunson — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 14:00:00 -0400

Rating: ** by Matt Brunson OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN**DIRECTED BY Antoine FuquaSTARS Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart A better Die Hard movie than the godawful A Good Day to Die Hard, Olympus Has Fallen still registers as a stale action flick whose primary worth is probably as a heartland alternative for red-meat moviegoers wary of the sexy sinfulness of Spring Breakers or the highfalutin' idiosyncrasies of Stoker.…

The Croods: Ragged but mildly rewarding

Matt Brunson — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 14:00:00 -0400

Rating: **1/2 by Matt Brunson THE CROODS**1/2DIRECTED BY Kirk De Micco & Chris SandersSTARS Nicolas Cage, Emma Stone Any movie that calls itself The Croods — even an animated one — would seem to be threatening to wear its snot on its sleeve.…