NYC Film Critic

The Harry Potter franchise enters the home stretch with the first installment of its two-part finale.  Read my review over at Film Journal.

Worried that global warming is going to ruin the Earth in the next decade?  Well, Bjorn Lomborg, Sweden’s famous Skeptical Environmentalist, tells you to Cool It in this new documentary by Ondi Timoner.  Not that Lomborg denies global warming exists–he just doesn’t think its the impending cataclysm that Al Gore would have you believe.  It’s a discussion worth having, but the movie doesn’t argue its case particularly effectively.  Read my review over at Film Journal.

127 Hours
Directed by Danny Boyle
Screenplay by Danny Boyle and Simon Beaufoy
Starring James Franco, Amber Tamblyn and Kate Mara
****

Regardless of how the rest of the film turns out, Danny Boyle can always be counted on to deliver a killer opening sequence.

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Four Lions
Directed by Chris Morris
Screenplay by Chris Morris, Jesse Armstrong, Sam Bain
Starring Riz Ahmed, Arsher Ali, Nigel Lindsay, Kayvan Novak, Adeel Akhtar
***1/2

Now this is what I call a challenging comedy.  For his feature film debut, British comedian Chris Morris (who has had an extensive career writing and performing for television and the radio) tackles the subject of Islamic extremism, following a cell of aspiring suicide bombers with plans to stage a deadly attack during the London Marathon.

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Due Date
Directed by Todd Phillips
Screenplay by Alan R. Cohen, Alan Freedland, Adam Sztykiel, Todd Phillips
Starring Robert Downey Jr., Zach Galifianakis, Michelle Monaghan and Jamie Foxx
**1/2

I’ve never been a huge fan of Todd Phillips’ particular brand of comedy, so when I say that Due Date is probably his funniest film to date that may come across as inordinately high praise.

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The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest
Directed by Daniel Alfredson
Screenplay by Ulf Rydberg
Starring Noomi Rapace, Michael Nyqvist, Erika Berger
**

This is the end, my friends.  Barring the recovery and publication of that much-rumored fourth manuscript by deceased author Stieg Larsson, Lisbeth Salander a.k.a. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and her partner-in-crime-solving Mikael Blomkvist a.k.a. The Journalist with the Prominent Beer Gut have righted their last wrong, exposed their last conspiracy and caught their last bad guy.

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Gareth Edwards’ feature-film debut takes place in a world overrun by giant alien monsters.  Great premise, but the actual film lacks a few key elements–namely compelling characters and a rich story.  Read my review over at Film Journal.

As a fan of the original Paranormal Activity (it was #15 on my Top 20 list last year) I’ve always been slightly skeptical about sequelizing a movie that probably should have remained a one-off.  Turns out I had good reason–Paranormal Activity 2 is basically the same movie as the first installment, just on a slightly bigger scale and with considerably fewer scares.  Read my review over at Film Journal.  And check out my review of the original film from last September.

Hereafter
Directed by Clint Eastwood
Written by Peter Morgan
Starring Matt Damon, Cecile De France, Bryce Dallas Howard, Frankie McLaren, George McLaren
**

At some point in their career, almost every filmmaker feels the urge to explore issues of mortality and what exactly happens after we die.

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Shocking absolutely no one, Jackass 3D became the number one movie in America this past weekend.  However, the fact that it earned $50 million?  Well…that was kind of shocking.  Credit those higher 3D ticket prices!  Read my review of the film over at Film Journal.  And while you’re at it, you can revisit my review of the first Jackass movie from way, way back in 2002.  Either I’ve grown more mellow with time or my standards are just lower…