Out of the Furnace aims for a character driven drama, but despite having an excellent cast of actors giving all they can to the project, there’s not much that can be done to give the movie any kind of pulse or momentum. It’s dull and plodding when the material suggests something with much higher emotional stakes. It’s the perfect example of a film that’s too subdued for its own good.
This week at the video store we look at the winning animated adventure ParaNorman , the action blockbuster The Expendables 2 , the dance-stravaganza Step Up Revolution , the crap-stravaganza The Apparition , and a pair of films that missed theatrical releases despite being directed by Joe Dante and Amy Heckerling.
This week, our archival DVD column looks at various stages of growing up with looks at Good Will Hunting, High Fidelity, and Adventures in Babysitting , and a look at the volatile nature of change in The Proposition .
From top to bottom, ParaNorman is a little genre gem for longtime fans and pint-sized newcomers. This is an animated film that refuses to talk down to children, packs in more entertainment value than should be legally allowed, and actually has something to say to the impressionable viewers.
In the age of the omnipresent CG animated film and vapid big budget spectacle, it’s incredibly refreshing to see a lovingly handcrafted stop-motion animated movie like ParaNorman come along. We had a chance to speak with directors Chris Butler and Sam Fell earlier this year, and talked about the talented young cast of the film, the directors' own experiences with bullying, ParaNorman 's relationship to the horror genre, the importance of zombies, and much more.
In the age of the omnipresent CG animated film and vapid big budget spectacle, it's incredibly refreshing to see a lovingly handcrafted stop-motion animated movie like ParaNorman come along. We had a chance to speak with directors Chris Butler and Sam Fell earlier this year, and talked about the "John Carpenter meets John Hughes" origins of the film, how technology has helped make stop-frame animation more practical, and much more.
America’s culture of greed has inspired several films in recent years, but Tower Heist decides to take a comic approach. It follows the employees of an upscale condo building who discover that their richest resident ”” also their accountant ”” has lost their retirement fund in a Ponzi scheme. The turn comes when the building manager takes personal responsibility for trusting the banker and plots to steal the money back from the banker’s well secured penthouse. It’s like a funny Ocean’s 11 . Wait, Ocean’s 11 was already funny. Funnier? No... Hrm.
When Joaquin Phoenix announced he was retiring from acting to pursue a music career in 2008, people were right to be suspicious. Even if substance abuse or mental health issues had been involved, the actor's transformation from clean-cut talent to aloof hobo-chic seemed too drastic and too sudden to stomach. It was sad to see a person self-destruct so publicly, but we watched him do it anyways, and that's where the brilliance of Casey Affleck's mockumentary I'm Still Here comes in.
