Colin Farrell
This week’s releases include: a modern-day gladiator; an old school horror movie; a family torn apart; a cheery musical; a revenge fantasy come true; a set of tragic stories; a period drama; a comedic hunt for evil; an existential look at life; a sinister abuse of the Internet; and a talking animals picture....
There are good horror movies and bad horror movies — and both can be equally enjoyable. But it’s difficult to find high quality, enjoyable horror movies these days, especially since the source material is so frequently movies from two decades ago. Fright Night, however, is actually one of the good ones. It is a remake that chose only the essentials from the original, cleanly updating the rest into a creepy summer horror offering that (appropriately) doesn’t take itself too seriously. Charley Brewster (Anton Yelchin) is an average teenager who lives in a Vegas suburb with his mom (Toni Collette), has...
Director Peter Weir is somewhat of an expert when it comes to telling stories of great courage, epic struggles and human nature. Therefore, he is the perfect choice to tell this harrowing tale of survival through some of the harshest climates the Earth has to offer. Though the movie’s key figures are clearly defined by their share of the narrative and the star power behind them, it’s the way the story is told that endears us to each of them....
The idea of a film attempting to explore “the man behind the music” is, by itself, tired enough that it can be hard to imagine what sort of talent it would take for this kind of project succeed. Luckily, Jeff Bridges possesses this talent, which he uses to make Crazy Heart travel beyond the confines of its premise into an earnest and sympathetic portrayal of a damaged antihero. Written and directed by Scott Cooper, and based on the book by Thomas Cobb, this film stands out among other music dramas, based on its star’s ability to make the central figure...
