BOFCA REVIEW ROUNDUP 1/31/14

LABOR DAYLabor Day film still

“Something is lost in the translation, because what’s on screen is not believable for a second. It’s made harder to believe by the acting.” – David Reidel, C-Ville Weekly

“Reitman loves to give us characters we think we know and then show us we don’t know them at all.” – Daniel Kimmel, North Shore Movies

“This risible bit of Harlequin romance is one of the silliest films I have ever watched. It’s pompous, self-serious and inadvertently hilarious.” – Sean Burns, Philadelphia City Paper

 

THAT AWKWARD MOMENTAWKWARDMOMENT

“The whole thing has the feel of CHASING AMY-era Kevin Smith, but without the nerdy references and continuity nods that suckered a generation into thinking something interesting was there in the margins.” – Bob Chipman, Escapist

“A movie that has no spark and doesn’t have the kind of crass wit necessary to make its viewers blush.” – Andrew Crump, Movie Mezzanine

“A lesson for the twenty-somethings who are presumably the target audience. Older viewers may wonder what the fuss is about and much older viewers may start thinking of Maurice Chevalier singing, “I’m Glad I’m Not Young Anymore.” – Daniel Kimmel, North Shore Movies

 

GLORIAGLORIA

“Bars. Dancing. Hot sex. Cigarettes. Sounds like a movie that takes place in Miami in the 1980s, but in reality it’s Gloria, a present-day movie about a divorced Chilean woman in her early 50s.” – David Reidel, Santa Fe Reporter

“It’s not so much a day-in-the-life movie – it’s a rhythm-of-life movie.” – Jake Mulligan, EDGE

BOFCA REVIEW ROUNDUP 12/6

OUT OF THE FURNACE

“The movie has atmosphere to spare, although the characters remain archetypes: the stoic hero, the troubled brother, the morally ambiguous friend, the psychopathic villain, the well-meaning sheriff who can’t go far enough.” – Daniel Kimmel, North Shore MoviesFURNACE

“Cooper seems to like letting scenes play out for a lot longer than they probably should, and presents moldy clichés as if he was just discovering them for the first time.” – Sean Burns, Technology Tell

“You can take the Oscar bait out of the gritty revenge thriller, but you can’t take the gritty revenge thriller out of the Oscar bait.” – Andrew Crump, Go-See-Talk

 

THE PUNK SINGERPUNK SINGER

“Exists as a work that’s simultaneously joyful and tragic, though that contradiction only makes Anderson’s film feel even more transparent and honest.” – Andrew Crump, Go-See-Talk

“Fascinatingly traces the evolution of a woman who once sang, ‘I’m your worst nightmare come to life’ in her youth, was hated at a formative age for all the wrong reasons and now has forged a quiet but committed existence as an ailing revolutionary.” – Inkoo Kang, LA Times

“Just don’t try to tell her that her story or her ideas carry less weight than those of men. She won’t have it.” – Kilian Melloy, EDGE

 

beautyTHE GREAT BEAUTY

“If [actor Toni Servillo]’s presence feels similar to Marcello Mastroianni’s in LA DOLCE VITA that’s no mistake. It’s just that LA DOLCE VITA didn’t seem to be grasping at straws.” – David Riedel, Santa Fe Reporter

“A monumental act of hubris made more impressive by being pulled off so splendidly.” – Sean Burns, Philadelphia City Paper

“More than anything, this is a work of self-refinement.” – Andrew Crump, Go-See-Talk

“The film’s slightly heavy length and loose narrative won’t be to everyone’s tastes; but the endless charm, the boundless creativity and Luca Bigazzi’s cinematography are inarguably wondrous.” – Norm Schrager, Meet In The Lobby

BOFCA REVIEW ROUNDUP 8/30

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