Category: 2014

Rosewater review

Director:
Jon Stewart
Cast:
Gael Garcia Bernal
Haluk Bilginer
Dimitri Leonidas
Rated: R

Based on true story, “Rosewater” follows the story of Newsweek magazine journalist Maziar Bahari (Garcia Bernal) as he goes on location in Iran to report on the 2009 election.

While covering the election, Bahari captures footage of riots after the reelection of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and is spotted doing so by security cameras. Because of this, Bahari is arrested and held in prison for over 100 days, having to endure constant interrogation and psychological torture.

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REVIEW: ‘Big Hero 6’

Director:
Don Hall, Chris Williams
Cast:
Scott Adsit
Ryan Potter
Daniel Henney
Maya Rudolph
Rated: PG

Hiro isn’t an average teenager. At 13, the main character of “Big Hero 6” has already graduated from High School and has mastered robotics. Unfortunately, he doesn’t exactly use his gifts for the best purposes as he ends up in back alleys at night partaking in robot fights. While he is good at the fights, his brother Tadashi, sees a better route.

A robotics expert himself, Tadashi encourages his younger brother to attend the same university that he goes to. One night Tadashi takes Hiro to his lab at the college where Hiro meets Tadashi four friends. Hiro seems to be inspired after the visit and plans to attend the university, however, an accident that takes Tadashi’s life changes that decision.

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Interstellar review

Director:
Christopher Nolan
Cast:
Matthew McConaughey
John Lithgow
Michael Caine
Anne Hathaway
David Gyasi
Mackenzie Foy
Jessica Chastain
Rated PG-13

“Interstellar” takes place many years in the future. The Earth has more or less dried up and much of the land looks like a dust bowl. There are constant dust storms and very few crops remain that can grow in the increasingly harsh conditions.

To ensure that humanity has a chance to survive and live on, an expedition is put together by the remaining resources at NASA to travel through a worm hole near Saturn and find a new home. The only problem is they still need a pilot.

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Nightcrawler review

Director:
Dan Gilroy
Cast:
Jake Gyllenhaal
Bill Paxton
Riz Ahmed
Rene Russo
Rated: R

Jake Gyllenhaal plays Louis in “Nightcrawler,” a man who lives in a small apartment in Los Angeles and appears to just drift through life, staying up all night and working in whatever jobs he can get. One night while looking for a way to make some money, he comes across a horrific accident and sees a van full of photographers go to the scene and shoot video.

The event gives him the idea to try this himself and sell his videos to a news station. There are moments very early on, though, that show that Louis isn’t just an ambitious young man, he is a mentally unstable person and will stop at nothing for a good video to make the morning news.

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REVIEW: ‘Fury’

Director:
David Ayer
Cast:
Brad Pitt
Shia LaBeouf
Logan Lerman
Michael Pena
Jon Bernthal
Rated: R

In “Fury,” Logan Lerman plays Norman Ellison, a rookie soldier who gets brought into an American tank unit in the waning days of World War II. As Norman arrives at the front, he gets teamed up with an experienced crew that operate a tank called Fury.

The leader of this tank crew is nicknamed Wardaddy, played by Brad Pitt.

Norman’s new crew also includes Boyd (LaBeouf), Gordo (Pena) and Grady (Bernthal). As the tank pushes into German controlled territory, Norman is faced with challenges he has never seen before as he sees the horrors of war.

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The Book of Life review

Director:
Jorge R. Gutierrez
Cast:
Diego Luna
Zoe Saldana
Channing Tatum
Ice Cube
Ron Perlman
Christina Applegate
Rated: PG

“The Book of Life” follows three central characters, Manolo (Luna), Maria (Saldana) and Joaquin (Tatum). The three are childhood friends, however, circumstances separate them over time. That doesn’t stop young love to develop, though, as Manolo and Joaquin both have a crush on Maria.

Meanwhile, the rulers of the afterlife, Xibalba (Perlman) who looks after the land of the forgotten and Mary Beth (Applegate) who looks after the land of the remembered, decide to make a bet on the young love, to decide which character will win Maria’s heart.

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Dracula Untold review

Director:
Gary Shore
Cast:
Luke Evans
Sarah Gadon
Dominic Cooper
Charles Dance
Rated: PG-13

“Dracula Untold” of course tells the tale of the world’s most famous vampire, but this time, instead of going down the Bram Stoker route, this film goes for what feels almost like a super hero origin story.

The movie picks up with the main character, Vlad, the ruler of Transylvania, a few years after fighting in multiple wars where he became known as one of the most fearsome warriors in the region. Retired from his life as a soldier, Vlad rules his kingdom and spends time with his family, and things seem good.

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Gone Girl review

Director:
David Fincher
Cast:
Ben Affleck
Rosemund Pike
Neil Patrick Harris
Tyler Perry
Carrie Coon
Kim Dickens
Rated: R

Ben Affleck plays Nick Dunne, a man who lives in the suburbs of St. Louis and is for the most part seems happy in his marriage to his wife Amy (Pike). After coming home from a visit to the bar he owns, though, he finds broken furniture and his wife missing.

Nick immediately calls law enforcement and officers and detectives, including lead investigator Rhonda Boney (Dickens), stop by the house to see what evidence they can find. The only problem, though, is that as a short time passes, both law enforcement and the media start seeing Nick as a potential suspect. And that is just the first of many twists.

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The Equalizer review

Director:
Antoine Fuqua
Cast:
Denzel Washington
Marton Csokas
Chloë Grace Moretz
Rated: R

Denzel Washington returns to the action movie genre with “The Equalizer,” a film that wants to be serious at times and not so serious at others.

The story follows a man named Robert, played by Washington, who lives a fairly normal life. He has a simple job at what is a Home Depot rip-off, a nice apartment and a quiet life. Quiet isn’t enough to keep Robert asleep at night and because of his restlessness he often goes to a local diner to read.

It is apparent early on that Robert has a violent and somewhat troubled past he is trying move on from. This life starts to come back when he meets a prostitute named Teri, played by Chloe Grace Moretz, who is in trouble with the Russian mafia.

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This is Where I Leave You review

Director:
Shawn Levy
Cast:
Jason Bateman
Tina Fey
Jane Fonda
Adam Driver
Corey Stoll
Rose Byrne
Rated: R

Jason Bateman plays Judd in “This is Where I Leave You,” a down on his luck man who lost his job, finds out his wife is cheating on him, and learns that his father has died all within the same short time period. This brings him back to his home town where he has to once again interact with his two brothers, sister and mother.

He soon finds out that his father’s last wish was for everyone to live together under one roof for a week and interact. Through that, the family begins to learn that they each are living with their own problems.

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