Category: 2.5/4
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Exodus: Gods And Kings [2014] ★★½
Christian Bale starring as Moses in an epic movie directed by the great Ridley Scott (“Gladiator”) sounds like Oscar bait. Truth is: it isn’t. And the sooner you realize that, the more fun you’ll have at this enjoyable (if overlong) slice of history. It may not be a perfect film, or even a great one, but…
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Night At The Museum: Secret Of The Tomb [2014] ★★½
As mainstream Hollywood studio movies go, “Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb” isn’t bad. I’ve seen my share of bad sequels and this isn’t one of them, although the setting couldn’t be more familiar. Ben Stiller is back at it again and this time he’s on a very serious mission: he has to go…
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I Origins [2014] ★★½
Don’t let this low-budget Sci-Fi Drama put you down. “I Origins”, written and directed by Mike Cahill (who did such a good job with “Another Earth” a few years ago), offers imagination and provocation to spare. It may not be as good as his first feature, but it has staying power and it’s damn hard…
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Men, Women & Children [2014] ★★½
I think critics are being too harsh on Jason Reitman’s “Men, Women & Children”. It may not be as good as last year’s “Disconnect”, but at a time when so many movies offer nothing but escapism, it’s refreshing to encounter one that has something to say about modern society, and a good enough cast to bring it…
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The Babadook [2014] ★★½
You know something is up when an Australian horror movie comes out of nowhere to win several awards at the Gerardmer Fantastic Film Festival earlier this year. Truth be told, “The Babadook” doesn’t completely live up to its potential, but it does know how to creep you out. Amelia (Essie Davis) and her son Samuel (Noah Wiseman)…
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![Laggies [2014] ★★½](https://tlkabtmovies.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/laggies-poster-e1417381163779.jpg?w=842)
Laggies [2014] ★★½
“Laggies” is far from innovative, but it’s pleasant enough, and I think that’s the fitting adjective for this coming of age film starring Keira Knightley, Chloe Grace Moretz and Sam Rockwell. Knightley plays Megan, a 20 something woman who is still trying to figure out what to do with her life. When she discovers her father is…
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The Drop [2014] ★★½
If you love James Gandolfini (and who doesn’t), this is your last chance to see the late actor on the big screen. And it’s a damn good performance, playing a small-time crook who runs a Brooklyn bar that serves as a money drop for Russian dealers. The bartender, Marv’s cousin Bob (the great Tom Hardy), goes along…
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Dumb And Dumber To [2014] ★★½
The first Dumb and Dumber hit theaters in 1994, which in Bieber years is about a century ago. Did we need a sequel? As a long time fan of Harry and Lloyd, I’d say hell yes. I can’t recall the number of times I’ve seen the first film. But I do recall the number of…
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John Wick [2014] ★★½
Ok, who’s kidding who? This tense, entertaining action thriller starring Keanu Reeves as a killer seeking revenge against the people who stole his 1969 Mustang and killed his puppy, isn’t new at all. You’ve seen it so many times before. Accept that and you’ll have a fine time at the movies. Reeves could play this routine stuff in his…
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Love, Rosie [2014] ★★½
“Love, Rosie” feels a lot like deja-vu, but it’s sweet, charming and entertaining. I’m sure you’ve seen a lot of romantic comedies that cover a long time period in a constantly-changing relationship. From the peak of “When Harry Met Sally” to the low of “A Lot Like Love”, we’ve seen it all. So basically the outcome…
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Annabelle [2014] ★★½
Confession: I’m a sucker for James Wan’s horror movies. So naturally I was looking forward to “Annabelle”. Last year’s “The Conjuring” took everyone (even non horror fans) by surprise and became a huge hit. Naturally, it had to spawn a prequel. Gordon Gekko (That’s Michael Douglas, just in case) may reform in the Wall Street sequel,…
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Two Night Stand [2014] ★★½
“Two Night Stand” is far from original, but it isn’t often one can describe a contemporary romantic comedy as “sweet”, and that’s the fitting adjective for this lightly likable film starring Miles Teller and Analeigh Tipton. It’s so short, and so slight, that it may be better enjoyed at home on DVD or on a date…
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The Rover [2014] ★★½
Aussie writer-director David Michôd follows up his critically acclaimed “Animal Kingdom” with a post-apocalyptic road movie that feels a lot like a western film.That means mainstream movie-goers will smell art and run like hell. And who can blame them? From the looks of things, “The Rover” is fighting a losing battle. Not to director David Michôd, whose Aussie-based “Animal…
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The Equalizer [2014] ★★½
Confession: I thought this movie would suck. Denzel Washington back playing a killing machine a decade after “Man On Fire”? Please. Well, my bad. “The Equalizer”, this time directed by Antoine Fuqua, is a roller-coaster ride that takes off like a crazy-ass rocket. Your head will spin. Your palms will sweat. Your nerves will fry. What more do…
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A Walk Among The Tombstones [2014] ★★½
Formulaic as though it may be, “A Walk Among The Tombstones” is wildly entertaining: a whodunit thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat…at least for a while. It’s also a great vehicle for Liam Neeson, who plays private detective Matt Scudder, a character originally created by mystery writer Lawrence Block in a series of…
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The Giver [2014] ★★½
Enthralling and frustrating…grandiose and gimmicky. “The Giver” is all of these and more. It’s always interesting to watch filmmakers you admire take on the impossible. Lois Lowry’s Newberry Award-winning 1993 novel is a tough book to translate onscreen. And nobody makes it to the top. A story about a future without pain, war, suffering and love is…
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Before I Go To Sleep [2014] ★★½
This thriller starring Nicole Kidman is a psychological stunt, but a damn intriguing one. Kidman gives a solid performance as Christine Lucas, a woman who suffers from a severe case of amnesia. She wakes up every day thinking she is still in college only to be confronted in the mirror with the face of a 40-year-old. Her…
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Sin City: A Dame To Kill For [2014] ★★½
The worst thing I can say about this brutal, sexy and surprisingly enjoyable screen translation of two stories from Frank Miller’s Sin City series of graphic novels is that it’s a sequel. The first film was released in 2005 and it was damn good. Naturally, fanboys expected a follow-up. But they had to wait nine long…
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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles [2014] ★★½
If you grew up in the 90’s, you probably know that the Ninja Turtles were kind of a big deal back then. TV, video games, figurines…those guys were everywhere. The turtles live in the subways beneath Manhattan, where, exposed to radiation, they have grown into teenager-sized, intelligent creatures, and have been trained by their master…
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Lucy [2014] ★★½
“Lucy” is exactly what you would expect from a Luc Besson movie: it moves like a bullet, and almost never stops to take a deep breath (hence the short running time). This is beneficial, because the story doesn’t always make sense…but when a film is this energetic and entertaining, it would be a shame to…
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