At Any Price (2012)

Director-Ramin Bahrani

Length-105 min.

Rated-R



Nominated for the prestigious Gold Lion Award at the Venice Film Festival, I expected this to be a ballpark home-run. However, with its lackluster dialogue and an extremely drawn out plot, this film failed to reach my expectations. As this film was shown not only an official selection in Venice, but at the Toronto Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival and SXSW Film Festival, alike; not to mention it's magnificent trailer, I thought this film had real potential. But with pretty boy Zac Efron (Dean Whipple) starring opposite of usually stellar Dennis Quaid (Henry Whipple), who played the underachieving role of a cheap cars salesmen; this film was anything but extraordinary. The story takes place in a small farming community in Iowa, where land is just as valuable as water. The fight over property is a vicious cutthroat trade with lots of unreliable allies and backhand deals. But sometimes that's what it takes to stay ahead of your competitors. Unfortunately for Henry, who has done everything in his power to keep the family farm afloat, his son Dean has plans of becoming a NASCAR driver. But when Dean injures himself in an accident and his father is investigated for his mischievous dealings, his son finally comes to his side. This is a story of father-son relationships and how quickly they can disappear. And although this did throw a bit of a curveball in its conclusion, it was still overshadowed by mediocre acting and little to no believability in its outcome. I don't care if you have the code for a free movie at your next Redbox visit, this film is NOT worth your while, At Any Price. 

The Place Beyond The Pines (2012)

Director-Derek Cianfrance

Length-140 min.

Rated-R

In this film, Ryan Gosling (Luke) plays a motocross outlaw who is trying to provide for a family he barely knows. Bradley Cooper (Avery) finds himself in a father-son dilemma that seems to never end. And Eva Mendes (Romina) seems to be caught up in the same love affair that she can never seem to kick. Now I must admit that I had been looking forward to this film ever since I first saw it's trailer, considering it's star studded cast. But after viewing it for the first time this evening, I was moderately unimpressed. Although it did provide a good overall plot, the film was far too long and could have done without some of it's less meaningful plot sequences. Director Derek Cianfrance seemed to be in the pursuit of recreating the Gosling we saw in Drive, which is impossible to replicate. There were great moments of cinematography in his use of long shots and experimental camera angles to accompany a fairly decent soundtrack. But at film's end, I expected this extremely intricate plot to come together as one, which it unfortunately did not. And even though it showed signs of brilliance, I would say this was somewhat shortcoming of this Academy-Award nominated cast. The Place Beyond The Pines takes far too long to get there, and once you do, the view was better from the other side.

We're The Millers (2013)

Director-Bob Fisher

Rated-R

Length-110 min.

In this comedic adventure, we are taken on a wild ride across the Mexican border with who else, but the Millers. The story that takes place onscreen develops when three unsuspecting people come together to help a poor drug dealer make a big score. The only catch is they have to pose as a happy-go-lucky family on a road trip. As to be expected with any great comedian, Jason Sudeikis (David Clark) steals the show with his outrageous humor and hysterical one-liners. Jennifer Aniston (Rose O'Reilly) continues to surprise with how incredibly fit she is for a woman her age, and puts her sensuous body on full display for all audience members to enjoy on numerous different occasions throughout the film. The two newcomers in Will Poulter (Kenny Rossmore) and Emma Roberts (Casey Mathis), also play their roles well. And when all is said and done, this family comes together as an ideal team. Although the plot's conclusion was pretty much a given after the first ten minutes, this film still left me in hysterics throughout and it provided a little bit of something for everyone to enjoy. We're The Millers is worth your while. Go check it out. 

The Internship (2013)

Director-Shawn Levy

Length-119 min.

Rated-PG-13

From the duo who brought you Wedding Crashers, Vince Vaughn (Billy McMahon) and Owen Wilson (Nick Campbell) team up once again for another hysterical adventure. I must admit that with a PG-13 rating, I expected this film to be childish and somewhat unrealistic. However, Vince Vaughn stole the show with his consistently entertaining commentary throughout. There was also a duo of beautiful women put on full display in this film with the likes of Rose Byrne (Dana), who played Aldous Snow's (Russell Brand) lover in Get Him to the Greek; along with an enticing newcomer by the name of Jessica Szohr (Marielena), who plays the fitness instructor at Google and crush of one of the employees. This film is much more than your stereotypical new age comedy, and conveys the difficulties in finding a job for college graduates in today's job market, as well as those who have become recently unemployed. This film hits home in a way that most audience members can relate to. With a very heartfelt conclusion, this film appeals to a huge target audience, ranging from teenage tech-junkies to the white collar working class. For a fun-filled evening that the whole family can enjoy, take a chance on The Internship.

Superman: Man of Steel (2013)

Director-Zack Snyder

Length-143 min.

Rated-PG-13

In this year’s second summer superhero blockbuster (Ironman 3 being the first), Superman: Man of Steel plays on all the major stereotypes, blows action sequences out of proportion and fails to explain just about all key plot points. I know all the female audience members will enjoy this film solely because they get to stare at the “Superchad,” known as Clark Kent/Kal-El (Henry Cavill), who never seems to get a single scratch on his perfectly toned body or a crinkle in his flawlessly crafted haircut. This film was truly a meeting of Avatar and Star Wars coming to a collision on Planet Earth. However exciting and extraordinary, the believability of this film was extremely lackluster and even for being the all powerful Superman, Henry Cavill seemed entirely too confident and cocky for my taste. Amy Adams did play a wonderful role as the lovely Lois Lane, but even her acting expertise couldn’t save this comic hero cliché. I also was not a fan of Michael Shannon as General Zod, for he did not fit the role of the villain particularly well in my opinion. And by the way, what ever happened to Lex Luthor?  I mean is he not Superman’s primary villain in all prior circumstances? Well that is neither here nor there. All in all, this film could have been cut by 20 minutes while still reaching the same conclusions. It also could have done without so much death and destruction. By the end of the film, the entire city of New York was completely destroyed. Ironman was far superior to Superman in my opinion, and I’m sure there will be a sequel to this mediocre film which will try to outdo its prequel and fail miserably.

This Is The End (2013)

Directors-Evan Goldberg & Seth Rogen

Length-107 min.

Rated-R

This uproarious comedic adventure follows the cast of Pineapple Express and Superbad as an outrageous turn of events lead to the end of the world. It all starts with a party at James Franco's house where main characters Seth Rogen, and Jay Baruchel from She's Out of My League and Knocked Up (all characters playing themselves), decide to venture to a drugstore for some cigarettes, when all hell breaks loose, literally. Michael Cera, from Juno and Youth in Revolt, plays a role you have never seen him in before, as the coked-out playboy who makes an offensive gesture in just about every one of his very few cameos within the film. As Hollywood turns to flames and a vast majority of our familiar faces decease, those left to fend for themselves are forced to survive in this post-apocalyptic world. The events that follow turn into pure absurdity as Danny McBride (Eastbound & Down) turns to cannibalism with a surprise face as his sex slave, and Jonah Hill (Moneyball) turns into a killer zombie; the craziness never ceases to exist in this film. Truly, this is a story of friendship and how it prevails over anything, even in light of end of life as we know it. I won't ruin the concluding scene for you, but for all you boy band lovers out there, it is quite a hysterical performance by one of the classics. For all its vulgarity, obscenity and just plain absurdity; this is a must see comedy.

The Great Gatsby (2013)

Director: Bar Luhrmann

Rated: PG-13

Length: 142 min.

From the director who brought you Moulin Rouge, Bar Luhrmann once again outdoes himself with the mise-en-scene of this film. With lavish costume design and extraordinary sets, The Great Gatsby is just a flash of vibrant colors and modern soundtrack with no narrative structure to stand on. Now don't get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoyed the soundtrack; however, the modern music did not play well with the 1920s scenery. This is simply the tale of high society’s obsession with materialism and its effect on two specific love affairs.  Although Leonardo DiCaprio (Jay Gatsby) and Carey Mulligan (Daisy Buchanan) are both magnificent actors, the performance by Tobey Maguire (Nick Carraway) as the type cast pathetic loser, once again confirmed his place in mediocrity. This film was far too long and could have been cut by at least 30 minutes while still telling the same illustrious tale. It’s unfortunate that this story was not told in a more believable fashion because this is a story we all remember reading in our adolescence, and the nostaglia brought forth by that memory is unforgettable. This was everything I thought it'd be, and the time spent on the visual appeal of the film was simply overshadowed by its poor dialogue and unnecessary awkwardness. No need to rush to the theater for this summer dud.