Now that I’ve established pretty much every new movie flopped this weekend except Quarantine, how about we take a look at how objectively good or bad we thought they were, regardless of the money they made?
My review of Body of Lies was less than encouraging:
What a hero: [DiCaprio] spends much of the middle half of the movie concocting an elaborate plot to catch a high-level terrorist, only to watch his idea blow up in his face. He then spends the remainder of the movie as the know-nothing pawn of another, smarter man. Total accomplishments: zero.
No, wait, it gets worse: while he’s gallivanting around the Middle East doing all this stuff, he also of course finds the time to fall in love with a beautiful local girl (Golshifteh Farahani). Here’s an idea: when you’re a CIA agent stationed in the Middle East with full awareness that (a) you’re being watched at all times and (b) things could go very badly for you starting at any second, don’t start spending time with a cute local girl. Full Body of Lies Review
I liked The Express, though:
The Quaid/Brown relationship veers into a familiar dynamic (the black kid teaching the white guy about his hidden prejudices), but the performances sell it. Quaid is perfectly cast as the curmudgeon-come-father figure. Rob Brown as Davis has the more straightforward role, but it’s no less impressive; ever since his debut in Finding Forrester, Brown has always been remarkably at ease with the camera, and here he’s able to play charismatic and confident without turning it into cockiness. Full Review of The Express
And finally, our writer Rebecca Ford took on RocknRolla, which opened in limited release over the weekend and goes wide on Halloween:
Ritchie, whose past hits Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch also explored the rougher edges of London, finds a rare balance between hard-hitting action and quirky dark humor. The cast of merry madmen, the interweaving of interesting storylines and a unique visual style all add up to a fun time in the underworld of London crime. Full RocknRolla Review
Next week brings Sex Drive, Max Payne, The Secret Life of Bees, and Oliver Stone’s W.
