NYC Film Critic

Act of Valor boasts the participation of real Navy SEALs, but that doesn’t mean that the finished product is particularly realistic.  I explain why in my review over at TWoP.  Follow the links below for this week’s content.

Act of Valor Review
Studio Ghibli Retrospective
I Want My DVD
What We Want to Happen at the Oscars
SNL Recap
TV on DVD
Downton Abbey Recap
Pan Am Recap
Eastbound & Down Recap

The DOA action rom-com takes a creepy premise and makes it even creepier through illogical plotting, sub-par action sequences and forced comedy.  Tom Hardy deserves better than this and, fortunately, will get it later this year in The Dark Knight Rises.  In the meantime, avoid this one at all costs.

This Means War Review
I Want My VOD
I Want My DVD
BAFTA Highlights
TV on DVD
Comic Book Men Review
Downton Abbey Review

Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds headline the new thriller Safe House or, as I deemed it in my TWoP review, The Bourne Rip-Off.  Read that piece as well as my take on this years Oscar nominated short films over at the site.

Safe House Review
Oscar Nominated Shorts
I Want My DVD
The Amazing Spider-Man Preview
TV on DVD
Super Bowl Movie Trailers
Looking Back at Slings & Arrows

2012’s first big surprise is Chronicle, a mostly ingenious mash-up of a superhero origin story and a found footage stunt.  It’s not a perfect film, but the inventiveness on display is pretty galvanizing, especially for a genre that’s always runs the risk of blockbuster bloat.  Also this week over on TWoP, I made my official Oscar predictions.  Only three weeks to go until the big night!

Chronicle Review
The Woman in Black: Straight Outta Hogwarts
How Daniel Radcliffe Can Beat the Post Franchise Blues
I Want My DVD
Q&A With Ti West
Oscar Picks and Predictions
TV on DVD
Downton Abbey Recap

Sorry that things have been quiet around here for the past two weeks.  Last Friday, when I’d normally be posting my links for the week, I was on a plane bound for Park City, Utah to attend my first-ever Sundance Film Festival.  It was a whirlwind trip, roughly 72 hours in all, but I managed to pack in a bunch of movies and even a little minor sightseeing.  I chronicled my experiences in a three-part series for TWoP.  Check out those recaps, along with a bunch of other reviews from the past two weeks, below.

Sundance Recap, Part 1
Sundance Recap, Part 2
Sundance Recap, Part 3
Sundance Gallery
The Grey: Man Vs. Wild
Q&A with Joe Carnahan
Indie Snapshot
Haywire: She Can’t Be Tamed
Red Tails: Up, Up and Away
Oscar Nominations

Mark Wahlberg continues to prove himself tone deaf when it comes to choosing solo action vehicles with Contraband, a snoozy smuggling thriller with far too little thrills.  Also this week, I explain why Disney’s Beauty and the Beast is overrated.  Follow the links below to the past few  days of TWoP content.

Contraband: Hit the Snooze Button
Beauty and the Beast: Tale as Bland as Time
I Want My VOD
I Want My DVD
Pan Am Recap
House of Lies Recap
Downton Abbey Recap
TV on DVD
How to Make a Generic Action Movie

Since this was the first week back post-New Year’s, it was an understandably light week on TWoP.  But I did post a few pieces of content, including reviews of The Iron Lady with Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher and my Golden Globes predictions (and snubs).  Follow the links below.

Indie Snapshot: The Iron Lady, Pariah and A Separation
I Want My DVD
TV on DVD
Golden Globes Picks and Predictions
Golden Globes Snubs

As the above picture indicates, Take Shelter is my pick for the Best Film of 2011.  But what other nine movies made my list?  Check out the full story over at TWoP by following the link below.

The Top Ten Movies of 2011