Month: October 2014

5 things that had me excited about The Equalizer

Posted on by Late Night

The Equalizer

Here’s a movie that almost missed me. I mean, I remember the old mid-80s TV drama featuring an old spy who could somehow still take care of business. So when I heard about a film version starring Denzel Washington in the title role, my initial thought was “Meh, I’ll pass.” And the trailer didn’t do much to warm me up either. But then I read a review by A.A. Dowd at the Onion AV Club, actually quite critical (Dowd gave the film a C Minus), but something about it piqued my interest. Maybe it was a boring weekend, but I went out to see it, and man, I am glad I did! This new version of The Equalizer is nothing like the TV show. It’s more like Washington’s other role as a retired CIA killer, Man on Fire, except instead of being a moody, alcoholic, suicidal psychopath he’s a friendly, obsessive-compulsive, do-gooder psychopath. In his review, Dowd claims Washington’s character is “Blessed with the fighting skills of Batman.” He must have forgotten that Batman got his ass kicked by Bane last time out. In The Equalizer, ain’t nobody kicking Denzel’s ass… I would say he was blessed with the omnipotent fighting power of Bruce Lee. The very first action piece, in my mind, is worth the entire price of admission, but Sony is going to do you a favor and let you see it for free in the clip below.

Check out the action, and then my 5 things after the jump:


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5 things I dug about Dear White People

Posted on by Late Night

Dear White People poster
Seems like it has been forever since the last smart, funny comedy about black/white relations dropped.  Maybe it has been forever.  In any case, Dear White People plays like an irreverent breath of fresh air, just in time to save us from yet another Tyler Perry mehfest (hey, even the characters in Dear White People take time to poke fun at Perry, so I’m not alone in this).

Michael Phillips of the Chicago Tribune calls the film “slyly provocative,” and that’s as good a description as any, although I’ll go with “sidesplittingly funny” as well, but you’ve got to be up on your modern race relations to get the most out of the in-jokes. Make sure to take a black friend with you for maximum enjoyment.  Better yet, take two.  If you need some talking points to get them to join you, tell them the film has wracked up a number of festival awards already:  the “Directors to Watch” award at the Palms Springs International Film Festival; the Audience Award at the San Francisco International FF; and a Special Jury Prize at Sundance.  Indy cred out the yang, which explains why the film is only showing on 348 screens.

Enjoy the trailer then my 5 things after the jump:

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5 things I wasn’t tickled about in Tusk

Posted on by Late Night

Tusk movie poster
Well, that does it for me. Here at Visionary or Hack, I was the lone holdout for iconoclastic director Kevin Smith. I actually ranked him as Visionary, while Mr. Ridley and HakSnider33 both list him as Hack. Our highly scientific (hardly) ranking system requires a uninamimous vote, so Smith languished in the undecided area for a long time. That changes today. as Smith’s latest has made me seen the error of my ways. As far as I’m concerned now, based on this dreadful film, he’s a hack.

Don’t get me wrong, though, I still like the guy and think he’s tremendously funny. I remain interested in seeing what he does next. But following up the immensely entertaining Red State with the half-ass horror show that is Tusk is simply unforgivable.

Remember, hacks are often technically proficient, if not talented even, so don’t be surprised if you feel like seeing this dreck after viewing the trailer. Just don’t. Check out my 5 things after the jump:

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5 winning things about Whiplash

Posted on by Late Night

Whiplash
Talk about an outstanding film.  Winner of both the Audience Award and the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance this year, Whiplash is quite the achievement for first-time writer/director Damien Chazelle.   The film tells the riveting story of the conflict between a soft-spoken musical prodigy and his rabidly domineering music instructor.  My poor description doesn’t do it justice, so take a look at the trailer; you’ll be hooked, too.   My 5 things follow after the jump:

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5 unsettling things I found in Fury

Posted on by Late Night

War really is hell

When I first started seeing theatrical trailers for Fury, I would inwardly (and sometimes openly) groan with displeasure, because I feel that the last thing this world needs is another movie that glorifies the violent taking of other people’s shit, commonly known as war.  So I was pretty much planning on not seeing it… until I read some of the reviews and learned that glorification was the absolute last thing on director David Ayer’s mind.  Which makes sense for someone who claims that his favorite movie is Apocalypse Now.

David Denby of The New Yorker (whom I usually ignore) calls it “one of the great war movies…”   I might take issue with that, but I readily admit that it is an involving piece of cinema about the very harrowing prospect of life and death in a tank in an old, bloody war.  Many people will not like this film, just as many didn’t like other war movies bent on telling the truth about the ultimate futility of fighting, but it is hard to argue this film’s visceral impact. Check out the trailer and then my 5 things:

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5 things I liked about John Wick

Posted on by Late Night

Keanu Reeves shoots the lights out in John Wick

Although it’s really not much more than an under-achieving version of Mel Gibon’s entirely entertaining Payback (1999), Keanu Reeves’ hitman-comes-out-of-retirement to get revenge thriller John Wick does deliver some wickedly funny, IMAX-sized moments of mayhem. First, the trailer and then 5 things I liked about it:

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