Category Archives: Crime

Reviews: Ain’t Them Bodies Saints, Kill Your Darlings, Short Term 12, Top Of The Lake, The Look of Love, I Give It A Year, The Iceman

April 5, 2014 flawintheiris

I'm still writing semi-regular reviews of features and series for Halifax Alternative Weekly The Coast. Check out my thoughts on some recent gems (and semi-precious stones): Ain't Them Bodies Saints Kill Your Darlings Short Term 12 Top Of The Lake The Look of Love I Give It A Year The IcemanRead More

American Hustle review

December 22, 2013 flawintheiris

Directed by David O. Russell, written by Russell and Eric Singer Russell likes to tell his stories on an edge. That's what I like about him and his movies. It feels like his tales could fly apart at any minute, become total, unwatchable messes, but he always manages to keep it together just this side…Read More

The Counselor review

October 27, 2013 flawintheiris

Directed by Ridley ScottWritten by Cormac McCarthyThis is the first screenplay written directly for the big screen by Pulitzer Prize-winning McCarthy, whose dusty, western novels often concern themselves with the darkness in men's hearts—adapted in movies like No Country For Old Men and All The Pretty Horses, as well as the post-apocalyptic The Road. This,…Read More

Atlantic Film Festival 2013: Day 6: Prisoners and Watermark

September 18, 2013 flawintheiris

Well, last night I made a showtime call to see Prisoners, rather than Blue Is the Warmest Colour (La Vie D'Adele) or A Field In England. Even though I know it's opening later this week, I went with my filmgoing heart in the moment. And it wasn't long before I had filmgoing remorse.Quebec director Denis…Read More

2 Guns review

August 13, 2013 flawintheiris

Directed by Baltasar Kormákur Written by Blake Masters, adapting the Steven Grant graphic novels When I saw the generic poster and trailer, looking like another boilerplate action thriller from Denzel Washington, this time with Mark Wahlberg along for the ride, there wasn't much about it that grabbed me. The director has 101 Reykjavik and Contraband on…Read More

Upside Down, The Sweeney and Headhunters reviewed

August 11, 2013 flawintheiris

Hey, folks. Wrote a few DVD reviews for The Coast, the Halifax alternative weekly where once I served as Film Editor. These are all films worth seeking out, but which did not screen in cinemas locally for no good reason I can think of.Please find the links below:Upside DownThe SweeneyHeadhuntersRead More

The East review

July 16, 2013 flawintheiris

Directed by Zal BatmanglijWritten by Batmanglij and Brit MarlingThough it has a rising star in the lead (Marling) and an Oscar-nominee in support (Ellen Page), this eco-thriller is an underdog in the landscape of summer releases, and well worth seeking out.Marling has made waves in recent years, as an actor, writer and producer, on films…Read More

The Bling Ring review

June 24, 2013 flawintheiris

Written and directed by Sofia Coppola, from the Vanity Fair article byNancy Jo SalesAs an anthropological study, The Bling Ring works. As a study of characters who engage, it doesn't really. Judge accordingly.Based on the true story of affluent Los Angeles teens who—obsessed with celebrity in their midst—stole $3 million worth of clothes, shoes and jewellery…Read More

The Place Beyond The Pines review

April 24, 2013 flawintheiris

Directed by Derek CianfranceWritten by Cianfrance, Ben Coccio and Darius MarderThree stories, interlocked. The first: A stunt-driving motorcyclist (Ryan Gosling) returns to Schenectady, New York—a city whose name in Mohawk means, roughly, the title of this picture— and finds a woman (Eva Mendes) and an infant. Cycle guy decides to stay, to try and be a…Read More

Spring Breakers review

March 28, 2013 flawintheiris

Written and directed by Harmony KorineFrom celebrated American indie iconoclast Korine, responsible for bizarro gems like Gummo and Trash Humpers, Spring Breakers arrives as probably his most broadly accessible work. And people are still going to have big problems with it, because it refuses to be one thing.The picture works as both a celebration of the…Read More