Category: drama
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The Mountain Between Us [2017] ★★
I wanted to like this movie. I really did. And on the surface, “The Mountain Between Us” has all the right ingredients to make it a winner: two charismatic stars and an intriguing plot. Kate Winslet and Idris Elba are two strangers who find themselves struggling to survive when their plane crash-lands on a mountain…
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Breathe [2017] ★★★
Andrew Garfield is superb in “Breathe”, completely immersing himself in the role of Robin Cavendish, a British army captain who was taken ill with polio and given just months to live. His wife (played by Claire Foy of “The Crown”), can’t accept it. How could she? Refusing to give up, they decide to escape the hospital…
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Wonder [2017] ★★★
Want to see a movie that will put you in a good mood, even long after the credits start rolling? “Wonder” is the movie for you. This is the kind of film that gives feel-good stories a good name. I honestly can’t see how anyone could pick a fight with it. Based on the New York…
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Thank You For Your Service [2017] ★★½
In 1947, a movie called “The Best Years of our Lives” won 7 Oscars, including best picture, for its harrowing portrayal of World War II veterans, who return home only to realize that their lives will never be the same again. The movie was shockingly powerful, digging deep into the psychology of soldiers, long after…
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Newness [2017] ★★½
In the age of swiping left and right, is true love dead? Director Drake Doremus (“Like Crazy”) raises a very important question before shifting his focus on open relationships. Nicholas Hoult hooks up with Laia Costa through a dating app. They supposedly fall in love, but before long they agree to start seeing other people,…
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The Meyerowitz Stories (New And Selected) [2017] ★★★
If you’re familiar with writer-director Noah Baumbach, you know that he’s a filmmaker who observes family with an incredible eye for detail. Having tackled similar themes in the past (see “The Squid and the Whale”), Baumbach returns with one of his most ambitious projects yet: “The Meyerowitz Stories”. Can’t spell that title out? Don’t cringe.…
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Suburbicon [2017] ★½
When a movie is written by the Coen brothers and directed by George Clooney, you’d expect something at least decent. Alas, “Suburbicon” fails on every possible level, stranding a good cast that includes Matt Damon, Julianne Moore and Oscar Isaac. The setting of a 1950’s suburban community offers great possibilities, but the result left me…
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Only The Brave [2017] ★★½
It’s difficult to know how to respond to a movie like “Only The Brave”. As a disaster film, it follows all the basic guidelines that we’ve come to expect from similar movies: heroism, excitement and a sense of real danger. As drama based on real life events, I thought the movie fell short. Josh Brolin…
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Mother! [2017] ★★★
Artistic ambition can be a bitch in this day and age. Just try to make a movie that doesn’t sound or look like your typical Hollywood film and the angry dogs will be out to get you. That’s Darren Aronofsky, from “Requiem for a Dream” to “Black Swan”, he delights in stirring controversy. I’ve had…
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Brad’s Status [2017] ★★★
Ben Stiller was always my go-to-guy when I wanted to laugh myself silly (try “Zoolander”, “Dodgeball” or even “Tropic Thunder”). But in recent years, he has established himself as a drama actor, which has served him well in such films as Noah Baumbach’s “Greenberg” and the underrated “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”. In “Brad’s…
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Gerald’s Game [2017] ★★½
I’ve been spending a lot of time watching Netflix shows. Every now and then they drop a new movie (avoid “Death Note” at all costs), so naturally I was intrigued when Stephen King’s “Gerald’s Game” was up next. This isn’t an easy movie to endure, mainly because the story’s main character Jessie (Carla Gugino) spend…
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Stronger [2017] ★★★½
“Stronger” may be a Hollywood product, but it is absolutely real, and certainly one of the year’s finest films. It’s also a perfect showcase for Jake Gyllenhaal, who delivers one of the best performances of his career, playing Jeff Bauman, a 28 year-old Boston man who lost both his legs in the 2013 Boston marathon…
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My Cousin Rachel [2017] ★★★
As we needed further proof of her exceptional talent, Rachel Weisz delivers a mesmerizing performance as the title character, a woman who could be innocent or an evil seductress with murderous thoughts. Working from a novel by Daphne Du Maurier (who also wrote Hitchcock’s Oscar winner “Rebecca”), director Roger Michell explores the possibilities of both…
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![The Insult [2017] ★★★½](https://tlkabtmovies.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/20638103_1186331088138702_5460941636943281305_n.jpg?w=960)
The Insult [2017] ★★★½
Lebanese filmmaker Ziad Doueiri needs no introduction, having directed a series of successful films over the years. While “West Beirut” will forever remain my favorite movie, his latest effort, “The Insult”, further confirms his skill as a talented storyteller. In short: it’s one of the most intense Lebanese movies I’ve ever seen. What makes “The…
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Blind [2017] ★★
“Blind” defines cheese. It does offer Alec Baldwin with a juicy role and it’s always good to see Demi Moore back onscreen, but the story itself ranges from absurd to absolutely preposterous. I don’t know what first time director Michael Mailer was hoping to extract from this surprise-free script, but there isn’t much to recommend…
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The Beguiled [2017] ★★½
I admire filmmaker Sofia Coppola’s work, but I can’t say I’m her biggest fan. One thing she’s managed to maintain through the years is her ability to dazzle her audience with beautiful images and meticulous attention to detail, and all this can be seen in her latest film, “The Beguiled”, a remake of Don Siegel’s…
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American Made [2017] ★★★
Tom Cruise is on top of his game in this fact-based movie about Barry Seal, a TWA pilot who ended up working for both the CIA and the drug cartel (run by The Pablo Escobar), in the late 70’s and early 80’s. You just can’t make this up, and you just can’t ask for a better…
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The Party [2017] ★★★
“The Party” is potent and entertaining. I walked in with no particular expectations, having read almost nothing about it, and what I got was a showcase for a host of gifted actors, including Patricia Clarkson, Kristin Scott Thomas, Timothy Spall, Bruno Ganz, and Cillian Murphy. The title of the movie is self-explanatory: a cabinet politician (Kristin…
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The Big Sick [2017] ★★★½
From the trailer and poster you might think this is yet another film about culture clashes with absolutely nothing new to offer. But it doesn’t take long for this constantly appealing crowd-pleaser to draw you in, win you over, and make you leave with a big smile on your face. How you can create a…
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Germany Year Zero [1948] ★★★½
Roberto Rossellini’s “Germany Year Zero” is a frightening portrait of post-WWII Berlin, from the point of view of 12-year-old Edmund, who lives with his family in terrible conditions. The war may have ended, Hitler’s third Reich has fallen, but Berlin has never been more miserable. Edmund’s only concern is to provide food for his bedridden…
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