Category Archives: Crime

Dead Man Down review

Directed by Niels Arden OplevWritten by JH WymanThere were a few things that drew me to this relatively unheralded release in the wasteland of Hollywood's March schedule. Oplev is the director of the first adaptation of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, the Swedish edition. The trailer had a promising sheen to it. And I don't think…Read More

Side Effects review

Directed by Steven SoderberghWritten by Scott Z. BurnsIs this Steven Soderbergh's last feature film? If it is, it's a strangely fitting one, an exemplar of two of Soderbergh's distinct strengths: clean, uncluttered humanist storytelling and a zippy way with genre.That these styles—in this film anyway—make it something of a mash-up is OK with me. Going into it,…Read More

Killing Them Softly review

Directed by Andrew DominikWritten by Dominik, adapting the George V. Higgins novel Cogan's TradeKilling Them Softly is a sour pill of a movie. Adapting Higgins' 1974 crime novel and setting it during the financial crisis and presidential election of 2008, New Zealander Dominik—who wowed many, including myself, with his epic, languorous 2007 western The Assassination…Read More

Lawless review

Directed by John HillcoatWritten by Nick Cave from the Matt Bondurant book The Wettest County in the WorldIf you enjoyed the gritty Australian western The Proposition, also conjured by antipodean twosome Hillcoat and Cave, you'll find a similar blood-splattered tonality here, their adaptation of Bondurant's tale of his grandfather and two great-uncles' exploits as moonshiners…Read More

Savages review

Directed by Oliver StoneWritten by Stone, Shane Salerno and Don Winslow, from Winslow's novelChon (Taylor Kitsch) and Ben (Aaron Johnson) are two very successful California pot growers and dealers. They run a clean and efficient operation that makes them very comfortable, providing chances for humanitarian missions, too (so we know these are dealers with a…Read More

The Dark Knight Rises review

Directed by Christopher NolanWritten by Jonathan and Christopher Nolan, from a story by Christopher Nolan andDavid S. Goyer. Batman was created by Bob Kane in DC Comics.And so it ends, eh? When Christopher Nolan was handed the reins to the pointy-eared vigilante franchise and Batman Begins came out in 2005, the character could only go…Read More

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2011) review

Directed by David Fincher Written by Steven Zaillian from the Stieg Larsson novel It's been a bit hard to judge the cultural excitement around this movie. The novels remain huge international bestsellers, and in Canada and elsewhere in the world besides the US, we've made the Swedish film adaptations of the Millennium trilogy a hit franchise.…Read More

The Rum Diary review

Directed by Bruce RobinsonWritten by Robinson, adapting the Hunter S. Thompson novelThis is telling: two posters from The Rum Diary, the brand new movie starring Johnny Depp as Paul Kemp, the hero of Hunter S. Thompson's Puerto Rico-set novel. There's this onewhich hides Depp but plays up hotel-room carnage. Playing to fans of The Hangover,…Read More

Drive review

Directed by Nicolas Winding RefnWritten by Hossien Amini from a book by James SallisI was so ready for this movie for a bunch of reasons. 1) Ryan Gosling is the King of Hollywood right now. He can do whatever he wants, get any movie made by showing an interest, and he's shown that he either…Read More