Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

Posted on June 17, 2015 by Felix Vasquez

By all accounts, “Fury Road” should not have been so good. The George Miller epic return to “Mad Max” is a film that snuck under the radar of many movie fans and comes in through the dusk to grab us by the throats once more. When it comes to post apocalyptic cinema, Mad Max is the crème de la crème of the sub-genre, and George Miller is bold enough to re-visit a universe that paved its way through cinema over thirty years ago. With “Fury Road,” George Miller doesn’t try to change the formula of his trilogy too much, opting for the same visceral post apocalyptic action epic that made Mel Gibson Mad Max. Yet he also strives for a visual stimulation that ushers in a new era that puts Tom Hardy in the seat of Mad Max.

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Jurassic World (2015)

Posted on June 15, 2015 by Felix Vasquez

“Jurassic World” is the “Gremlins 2” of the “Jurassic Park” franchise. It’s filled with call backs to the original film, and garners a tongue in cheek attitude about itself, while commenting on the ills and woes of consumerism, the media, and theme park spectacles. And the very spectacle that became of “Jurassic Park.” There’s one instance where the technicians groan at Verizon sponsoring an animal exhibit, and there’s constant talk about how consumers always want bigger, better, and toothier. And that’s what “Jurassic World” is. It’s bigger, toothier, yet not exactly better.

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Spring (2014)

Posted on May 25, 2015 by Emilie Black

Spring is a hard to describe movie, it’s a love story, a finding yourself story, and a horror story, but most importantly, it’s a fantastic, touching story. It follows Evan in the events after his mother’s death when he starts in a downward spiral, flees the country, and after some travelling, decides to stay in a small Italian town and gets a job. One of the factors pushing his decision to stay, may it be conscious or not, is his meeting with the beautiful and mysterious Louise. Very quickly, Evan starts falling for Louise, but for her everything is not as it may seem. Telling anymore of the story would be making a disservice to anyone seeing it after reading this.

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Infected (2015) (DVD)

Posted on May 21, 2015 by Felix Vasquez

I imagine the logline for “Infected” was it’s the UK meets “Dawn of the Dead.” Sometimes “Infected” can reach for moments of greatness and almost achieve it, but it’s too concerned with ripping off “The Walking Dead” and Romero to hit that peak. “Infected” is really nothing you haven’t seen before, it’s a movie about the end of the world and zombies taking over the great metropolitan area of the UK. Director Andrew Gilbert follows a trio of characters, all dwindling in size as they struggle to find safety amidst the walking dead.

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Trance (2013)

Posted on December 13, 2014 by Felix Vasquez

One thing you have to give “Trance” is that it’s not one of Danny Boyle’s typical films. Prone to delivering grit, even with family fare like “Millions,” his newest opus is something of a surreal and mind bending thriller that constantly shifts between plains of consciousness and vision that often fools the viewer in to trying to figure out what’s reality and what’s pure dream. And that’s the point of “Trance” in theory. It’s supposed to be about characters living in trances, many of whom are avoiding reality. It’s a shame the premise is so interesting as Danny Boyle’s film is a complete misfire.

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Under the Skin (2014)

Posted on December 10, 2014 by Felix Vasquez

Girl drives. Girls picks up guy. Girl lures guy into black muck. Girl drives. Girls picks up guy. Girl lures guy into black muck. Girl drives. And that’s the gist of “Under the Skin.” I’m not sure if I’d recommend “Under the Skin” to even the most open minded arthouse buff. It’s not to say that “Under the Skin” is awful. It’s just an experience that won’t lend well to repeated viewings. Especially when you consider that much of what occurs is either explicitly stated and or subtly hinted at for ambiguity. For the sake of science fiction, much of “Under the Skin” is obvious, while director Glazer also vies for a gritty realism that’s sorely out of place when we see it.

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The Flash/Arrow Crossover

Posted on December 5, 2014 by Felix Vasquez

The benefit of the “Arrow” and “The Flash” two night crossover, is that it emphasizes the contrast between both shows. While “The Flash” is a hit series, and a spin off of “Arrow,” it’s also much lighter, brighter, and action packed than “Arrow” which bases itself on a darker more revenge fueled storyline. Though the Greg Berlanti fueled shows have made it clear they’re one in the same and will crossover from time to time, the contrast between two shows in the crossovers is made perfectly clear in this event. It may allow audiences to ultimately decide which series they prefer, or if they want to stick with both. I’m choosing both, even though “The Flash” has won me over in a season while it took “Arrow” to win me over by the end of season two.

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