Category Archives: Science Fiction/Fantasy

Noah review

Directed by Darren Aronofsky Written by Aronofsky and Ari Handel This isn't your daddy's Biblical epic. That was my first thought as I waded into Noah, the $125 million blockbuster from the indie director of Black Swan, The Wrestler, The Fountain and Requiem for a Dream. For awhile Aronofsky was attached to The Wolverine—imagine what that…Read More

Divergent review

Directed by Neil Burger Written by Evan Daugherty and Vanessa Taylor, from the novel by Veronica Roth It's been a while since I've had such aggressively ambivalent feelings about a movie. While I felt the premise and many of the plot details were ridiculous and poorly thought-out, I really enjoyed the feature's execution: The direction,…Read More

Winter’s Tale review

Directed by Akiva Goldsman Written by Goldsman, adapting the novel by Mark Helprin When I saw the trailer for Winter's Tale back in January, I was not impressed. It looked like the cover of a Harlequin Romance come to life. The advance buzz wasn't terribly promising, either. It didn't help that Goldsman, mostly known as…Read More

RoboCop (2014) review

Directed by José PadilhaWritten by Joshua Zetumer, based on the 1987 Robocop script by Edward Neumeier and Michael MinerThe second of three remakes planned for the unholy trinity of Paul Verhoeven future dystopia films (last year's underwhelming Total Recall, the forthcoming Starship Troopers), all of which didn't need new versions, but when did that ever…Read More

Frozen and The Lego Movie reviews

Frozen  Directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee Written by Jennifer Lee, Story by Buck, Lee, and Shane Morris, adapting Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen Tom Whalen's super-cool poster The Lego Movie Directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller Written by Lord and Miller, Story by Lord, Miller, Kevin Hageman and Dan Hageman I…Read More

Alien series review

Alien (1979) Directed by Ridley Scott | Written by Dan O'Bannon and Ronald Shusett | 117 min | Crave Plus Alien has been around so long it's kind of hard to imagine the world without those cute lil' exomorphs that kinda look like stainless steel dildos with teeth. When I was a kid I remember…Read More

Her movie review

Written and directed by Spike JonzeSpike Jonze's astonishing Her does three things exceptionally well. 1) It's a smart science fiction film, providing a credible look at a near future where computers go beyond where they are now—our close and constant companions—to something else, something new. 2) Through an intimate look at two leading characters, it's no…Read More

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug review

Directed by Peter JacksonWritten by Jackson, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens and Guillermo Del Toro, from the novel by JRR TolkienIt's the Hobbit 2: Electric Smaugaloo! (With apologies to Stephen Cooke—I had to use it!)Yes, it's the second in the wholly unnecessary three-part Hobbit saga. Full disclosure: I missed The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey in the…Read More

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire review

Directed by Francis LawrenceWritten by Simon Beaufoy and Michael Ardnt, from the novel by Suzanne CollinsOne of those rare sequels that genuinely extends the territory claimed in the original, Catching Fire has just a touch of The Empire Strikes Back about it, which is a compliment in almost every way but one: as the middle…Read More

About Time review

Written and directed by Richard Curtis Dear Richard, I've very much enjoyed your work. Especially your writing, going back to Blackadder, The Tall Guy, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill and The Girl In The Cafe. Your style is so identifiable—foul-mouthed and hilarious middle-class-to-posh Brits, bumbling, awkward leading men, bland American women, and a…Read More