KNOX
SimilarBeverly Hills Cop II (1987), Beverly Hills Cop III (1994), Buffalo Soldiers (2002), Code of Silence (1985), Hitman (2007), Insomnia (2002), JFK (1991), Léon: The Professional (1994), Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005), Mulholland Drive (2001), Se7en (1995), Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984), Stolen (2024), The Avengers (1998), The Man with the Golden Gun (1974), Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead (1995), Wild at Heart (1990),
Watch afterDune: Part Two (2024),
StudioFilmNation Entertainment,
Michael Keaton gives a subtle & empathetic performance as a hitman in his waning days.
The minute the mournful saxophone music swells in Knox Goes Away (which is minute one), you think to yourself oh boy, here we go. A car driving in the Los Angeles night, two hitmen, one cool, cultured, and precise, the other seemingly more casual and good-humored about the whole thing, meet in a diner to banter and discuss their next job; none of this fills the viewer with confidence that they’re about to see something they haven’t seen a million times before.
And then the first hitman asks the diner waitress for a cup of coffee, seemingly having forgotten he already has one in front of him, and maybe something different is happening here. Continue Reading →
The Flash
SimilarAladdin (1992), Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999), Diamonds Are Forever (1971), Happy Death Day 2U (2019), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), Hellboy (2004),
Live and Let Die (1973) Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005), My Super Ex-Girlfriend (2006), On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), Sin City (2005), Superman Returns (2006), The Dark Knight (2008), The Man with the Golden Gun (1974), You Only Live Twice (1967),
StarringTemuera Morrison,
I do not like hating movies. I make a point to try and find something good even in otherwise crummy pictures—Adam Driver's fine leading turn in the otherwise dull 65, for example. Continue Reading →
De Superman à Spider-Man: L'aventure des super-héros
StarringPatrick Stewart, Rebecca Romijn,
StudioToei Animation,
In Asghar Farhadi’s A Hero, moral ambiguity runs rampant through the life of imprisoned Rahim Soltani (Amir Jadidi). Locked away for a debt he could not repay, Soltani has two days of leave to get his creditor, a family friend, to drop the charges. He owes the man a large sum, given as a pseudo-loan for a failing small business. A father to a young boy with a speech impediment, Rahim is understandably anxious to negotiate his freedom. When his girlfriend finds a lost bag filled with 17 gold coins, the moral conundrums begin, multiplying throughout the film with “nice” deeds and public interference. Continue Reading →
Dopesick
StarringRosario Dawson,
Studio20th Television,
Early in watching Dopesick, I had a moment of marveling at an achingly humanistic scene between Dr. Samuel Finnix (Michael Keaton) and his physically and emotionally wounded patient Betsy Mallum (Kaitlyn Dever). This was followed immediately by a moment of being stunned by how early I was in the episode. Continue Reading →
The Protégé
SimilarLucky Number Slevin (2006), Minority Report (2002), North by Northwest (1959), The Interpreter (2005),
The Name of the Rose (1986) StarringSamuel L. Jackson,
StudioIngenious Media,
Hollywood is in something of a conundrum these days. Audiences have by no means lost their taste for a good action flick, but such movies are meant for a theater experience, which has become somewhat limited by necessity. Then there’s the fact that so much of our lust for violence tends to be sated by established properties such as the Marvel Cinematic Universe and its competitors, not to mention other franchises such as the Fast & the Furious and The Purge movies. Continue Reading →