Tag Archives: BOFCA

BOFCA REVIEW ROUNDUP 8/30

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GETAWAYGETAWAY

“GETAWAY is nothing more than a horribly constructed action film with no heart, no purpose, no characters really worth caring about.” – Tim Estiloz, Examiner

“There’s not much to watch, at all.” – Bob Chipman, Escapist

“…the car chases are dull, the stunt work isn’t very interesting, and the characters would have to be fleshed out to become cardboard figures.” – Daniel M. Kimmel, North Shore Movies

“You can never vibe along with the car chases, the way you can with great car chases, because you never know where the hell you are.”- Jake Mulligan, EDGE Boston

 

THE GRANDMASTERGRANDMASTER

 

“Tony Leung plays Ip with a quiet dignity, allowing the unconsummated romance that develops between him and Gong to play out without melodrama.” – Jake Mulligan, EDGE Boston

 

 

shortterm12SHORT TERM 12

“It’s a delicate yet passionate creation, modest in scope but almost overwhelming in its emotional intricacy, ambition, and resonance.” – Inkoo Kang, Village Voice

“Fortunately, viewers are not meant to feel the heavy-handedness and are cleverly spared from any long-term emotional damage with careful dialog. ” – Monica Castillo, Paste Magazine

“There’s a gentle humanism here that reminds me of early Jonathan Demme pictures. Even the most emotional scenes are punctuated by jokes, the way life is so often funny and sad at the same time.” – Sean Burns, Philadelphia Weekly

 

AUSTENLANDla_ca_0416_austenland

“As a comedy, the film offers some amusing turns and touches; as a meditation on the pitfalls of romantic fantasy, it has little of note to offer, especially since this is, in some respects, less a film set in a re-creation of Austen’s books than a modern riff on the books themselves.” – Kilian Melloy, EDGE Boston

 

I DECLARE WARI DECLARE WAR

“I DECLARE WAR is a must-see for parents who want to relate to their kids … even if you should leave them at home.” – Kristofer Jenson, Dig Boston

 

 

BOFCA REVIEW ROUNDUP 8/09

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ELYSIUMELYSIUM

“Few working directors out there are as effective as Blomkamp at telling a serious, yet entertaining story with a moral.” – Evan Crean, Starpulse

“…the sort of science fiction thriller some of us have been craving all summer only to see one film after another fall short. ” – Daniel M. Kimmel, North Shore Movies

“ELYSIUM is paradise– if you snooze through it; and you might.” – Joyce Kulhawik, Joyce’s Choices

 

WERE THE MILLERS'WE’RE THE MILLERS

“But this film’s eagerness to please functions as a slow poison, draining THE MILLERS of its vitality by rendering its characterization uneven, its potential undeveloped, and its plot predictable and stupid.” – Inkoo Kang, Village Voice

“This has not been a great year for film comedy… WE’RE THE MILLERS sets down that same low comedy road but then something odd happens: it’s actually funny.” – Daniel M. Kimmel, North Shore Movies

“Despite its by-the-numbers script and predictable story touches, there are enough funny—even unexpected—flourishes scattered throughout its 109 minutes to bring out the occasional gut laugh.” – David Riedel, C-Ville

“As comical as it is to watch these characters rebel against familial stereotypes, it’s even funnier to see how fast they fall into them.” – Evan Crean, Starpulse

“Occasionally, I am easily amused. This was definitely a guilty pleasure.” – Joyce Kulhawik, Joyce’s Choices

 

PERCY JACKSON: SEA OF MONSTERSPERCY JACKSON

“Forget Harry Potter and Hermione Granger, there’s not a single character here worthy of Ron Weasley.” – Jake Mulligan, Edge

“In the meantime, it’s a special effects laden fantasy where one can actually follow the action and focus on the characters. This summer that’s quite an achievement all by itself.” – Daniel M. Kimmel, SciFi Movie Page

 

2.JPGPRINCE AVALANCHE

“Ladies aren’t cast in the best light, but this is a dude movie in the middle of Texan backwoods.” – Monica Castillo, Dig Boston

“But more than the friendship-rivalry-I-won’t-call-it-a-bromance between the two stars, AVALANCHE is about the madness that simmers below their day-to-day-grind.”- Jake Mulligan, Rushmore Kite Flying Society

 

LOVELACELOVELACE

“The whole thing is just clunky, and worse, dull.” – David Riedel, Santa Fe Reporter

“Not many movies could pull off the same plot twice, and unfortunately, LOVELACE cannot justify visiting the same scenes twice only to add a layer of brutality.”- Monica Castillo, Bitch Magazine

BLUE JASMINE Blue_Jasmine

“The movie is a near-perfect capture of a woman on the edge of a nervous breakdown without going off the deep end into a farce.”-Monica Castillo, Paste Magazine

“It’s become a cliche that writer/director Woody Allen’s work had hit the doldrums critically for a bit, and lately, everything he’s doing has been cited as “one of his best in years.” BLUE JASMINE is better than that.” – Joyce Kulhawik, Joyce’s Choices

BOFCA REVIEW ROUNDUP 7/19

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RED 2RED2

“If you are able to treat the violence as simply cartoonish–knowing they’re just actors playing ‘let’s pretend’–then RED 2 can be a lot of fun.” – Daniel M. Kimmel, North Shore Movies

“Plot? Stakes? Intrigue? Who cares – here’s Old People With Weapons!” – Bob Chipman, Escapist

“The majority of the acting in RED 2 is complete scenery chewing, although thankfully it’s easy to swallow.” – Evan Crean, Starpulse

 

THE CONJURING

The Conjuring - Official Teaser Trailer (HD) (Screengrab)

“You may not believe in haunted houses, but you will while watching the movie.” – Daniel M. Kimmel, North Shore Movies

“There’s probably nothing you haven’t seen before in director James Wan’s THE CONJURING, but rarely have you seen it done so well.” – Sean Burns, Metro

R.I.P.D. 

RIPD

“It won’t win any awards for originality, especially as it races down the well-worn path of movies like MEN IN BLACK and GHOSTBUSTERS, but it’s a fast ride.” – Daniel M. Kimmel, North Shore Movies

“One good thing about this flick is that it’s over quickly.” – Evan Crean, Reel Recon

 

GIRL MOST LIKELYGIRL MOST LIKELY

“A cartoonish parade of gargoyles and grotesques helmed with staggering ineptitude by the once-promising Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini” – Sean Burns, Metro

 

ONLY GOD FORGIVESONLY GOD FORGIVES

“If there’s any justice, the audience will not just not forgive but openly rebel.” – David Reidel, Santa Fe Reporter

“It doesn’t set up audience expectations so that it can then defy them; it makes you feel silly for having them in the first place.” – Kristofer Jenson, DigBoston

 

MUSEUM HOURSMUSEUM HOURS

“It leaves the viewer, it leaves me, feeling like a complicit elitist, wishing along with him that the masses could go to the MoMA instead of to see GROWN UPS 2, and slightly embarrassed that I’d find myself going along with an idea so reeking in naivete and cultural privilege.” – Jake Mulligan, Edge Boston

“The karmic connection between the two worlds is gentle and sometimes subtle, edited with a beauty and commentary that somehow even transcends the meeting of art and life.” – Norm Schrager, Film Racket

 

SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL ARTHOUSE (AND FILM CRITICS)

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BOFCApic

While you can usually find us holed up in the trenches of the press row, we do like to come out and support the local film scene here in Boston. In a joint effort with the Boston Society of Film Critics, we will help introduce a number of the films in The Brattle Theatre’s (Some of) The Best of 2012 series. Check out what you might have missed last year or come again for a favorite. You’re also more than welcome to come and say hello.

These are the confirmed screenings with introductions by BOFCA members:

Fri, Feb 1              BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD at 7:30 pm by Greg Vellante

Fri, Feb 1              MOONRISE KINGDOM at 9:30 pm by Greg Vellante

Sat, Feb 2            THE AVENGERS at 6:30 pm by Bob Chipman

Sat, Feb 2            THE DARK KNIGHT RISES at 9:15 pm by Dan Kimmel

Sun, Feb 3           WAKE IN FRIGHT at 7:00 pm by Brett Michel

Sun, Feb 3           DAISIES at 9:30 pm by Brett Michel

Mon, Feb 4           THIS IS NOT A FILM at 7:30 pm by Norm Schrager

Mon, Feb 4           AI WEIWEI: NEVER SORRY at 9:15 pm by Monica Castillo

Wed, Feb 6          THE DAY HE ARRIVES at 7:15 pm by Brett Michel

Wed, Feb 6          OSLO, AUGUST 31st at  9:00 pm by Brett Michel

Thu, Feb 7            LOOPER  at 7:00 pm by Evan Crean

Fri, Feb 8              THE RAID: REDEMPTION at 9:30 pm by Steve Head & John Black

Sat, Feb 9            HOLY MOTORS at 7:30 pm by Monica Castillo

Sat, Feb 9            COSMOPOLIS at 9:45 pm by Sean Burns

The full schedule of the (Some of) The Best of 2012 series can be found on the Brattle’s site. You can purchase tickets in advance on their website or help support their Kickstarter to help buy digital equipment for the theater. Hope to see you out there supporting independent cinema!

-Monica Castillo