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Showing posts from June, 2016

Matthew McConaughey's Best Roles

As June comes to a hasty close, I'm concluding the month by discussing Matthew McConaughey's finest performances ( May's list ). McConaughey was once a rom-com regular who eventually went for gold and capped off a 2013 awards season run with his first Oscar. Therefore, let's take a look at the actor's best roles in June's movie list of the month (note: I never saw " Killer Joe " where his work was highly regarded). Honorable Mention: A Time to Kill , Free State of Jones and Magic Mike #5. The Lincoln Lawyer (2011) I've always been a sucker for courtroom movies and McConaughey's The Lincoln Lawyer is an overlooked genre gem. As the smooth talking Mick Haller, McConaughey becomes entwined in a game of cat and mouse with his wealthy client (Ryan Phillippe) who's accused of assaulting a prostitute. The Lincoln Lawyer is paced to perfection and serves as an entertaining and taut thrill ride. McConaughey's carries the film with a slick a

Star Trek Beyond and Morgan Trailers

J.J. Abrams helped revive the Star Trek franchise back in 2009, and once again with 2013's Star Trek Into Darkness . Yet, a shifting to the Star Wars universe has pulled him from the director's chair with his first revitalized project. Therefore, many concerns remain for this summer's newest entry, Star Trek Beyond . The entire crew of the USS Enterprise venture to uncharted territory deep in space and they discover a new foe who attempt to put an end to them and The Federation. With the tragic loss of Anton Yelchin this month, there will be plenty of reasons worth checking out director Justin Lin's ( Fast Five ) first go-around with the Star Trek saga. Another intriguing new sci-fi title arriving this year is Luke Scott's debut feature,  Morgan . Kate Mara ( The Martian ) stars as a corporate risk-management consultant who's hired to evaluate the safety of a breakthrough scientific project involving an artificial-being named Morgan (Anya Taylor-Joy). With a

Rapid Reviews: Free State of Jones and The Shallows

After a surprisingly aggressive marketing campaign that forked over massive bucks to debut its trailer during the Super Bowl, Free State of Jones finally arrives in theaters this weekend. The historical drama brings together recent Oscar winner, Matthew McConaughey, with Seabiscuit and The Hunger Games director, Gary Ross. But despite all of the film's talented cast and crew, Free State of Jones reveals itself as a forgettable attempt at an epic untold tale. The Civil War divides a nation during the 1860s and Newton Knight (McConaughey) serves as a battlefield nurse for the Confederate Army. While Knight is forced to witness the personal sacrifices of war first-hand, he decides to desert his fellow soldiers and goes into hiding deep in the swamps of Mississippi. During this time Jones recruits countless other deserters who help stand up to the Confederate Army and put an end to the war. Free State of Jones is a massively outstretched biopic that clouds the legacy of its central

THE CONJURING 2 (2016) REVIEW : Sekuel Franchise Horor Yang Berbeda

Ed dan Lorraine Warren pernah dan sangat berhasil menghantui malam-malam penontonnya paska bercerita tentang kasusnya menangani gangguan makhluk halus. Kesuksesan itu benar-benar tak terduga, paska cerita yang diarahkan oleh James Wan ini telah pernah menangani kasus cerita serupa. The Conjuring adalah judul dari kasus milik Ed dan Lorraine Warren dalam menangani kasus-kasus makhluk astral yang menghantui kliennya.   Kasus milik Ed dan Lorraine Warren ini berdasarkan kasus yang ditangani oleh orang bernama sama di dunia nyata. Mereka berdua bukanlah karakter rekaan yang dibuat oleh James Wan dan cerita filmnya pun diadaptasi dari kasus-kasus mereka. Maka, setelah berhasil menakut-nakuti penontonnya di kasus pertamanya, James Wan memutuskan untuk melanjutkan kisah-kisah penangkapan hantu lainnya dari kasus milik mereka. The Conjuring tak sengaja menjadi sebuah franchise film horor besar yang ditunggu oleh penontonnya. Dan The Conjuring 2 , menjadi sebuah film yang dinantikan. James W

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children and Pete's Dragon (NEW) Trailers

Another film from the dark and creative mind of Tim Burton will arrive in 2016. And if I'm being honest, I was very intrigued by it's debut trailer. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children  stars Asa Butterfield as Jacob, a teen who discovers clues that lead him to a magical place that defies time and space. The residence of Miss Peregrine (Eva Green) serves as a shelter for boys and girls with strange and peculiar powers. Jacob must discover his unique ability and help fend off evil forces trying to destroy his new friends. Tim Burton's latest arrives on September 30th and you can catch its debut trailer below. We're caught in a summer full of sequels and reboots, but one intriguing childhood favorite of mine makes a return with Disney's Pete's Dragon . Although some similarities are evident between David Lowery's new version and the 1977 original, it's clear that this film's story hopes to set itself apart from its source material. When a y

NOW YOU SEE ME 2 (2016) REVIEW : Film Sulap Yang Mengelabui Penontonnya

Bukan tak mungkin, jika film yang pada awalnya disutradarai oleh Louis Leterrier ini pada akhirnya akan mendapatkan sebuah perhatian dari para penontonnya. Now You See Me menjadi sebuah sleeper hit yang disukai oleh penontonnya. Now You See Me memberikan sebuah sajian plot cerita yang segar pada saat itu. Dengan atensi yang sudah terbangun cukup besar, maka tak salah pula jika Summit Entertainment pada akhirnya memutuskan untuk membuat Now You See Me menjadi sebuah franchise andalan dari rumah produksi mereka. Sayangnya, Louis Leterrier tak kembali mengarahkan Now You See Me 2 . Summit Entertainment pun menunjuk Jon M. Chu sebagai pengganti Louis Leterrier yang akan memprakarsai jalannya film Now You See Me 2 . Tetapi, jajaran pemain utama di film ini pun kembali hadir kecuali Isla Fisher yang pada film ini digantikan oleh Lizzy Caplan. Pun, ditambahi dengan nama-nama besar lainnya yang ikut andil di film ini seperti Daniel Radcliffe dan Jay Chou. Di film pertamanya, Now You See Me

Finding Dory

Film: Finding Dory Starring: Ellen DeGeneres, Albert Brooks and Ed O'Neill Directors: Andrew Stanton ( Finding Nemo ) & Angus MacLane U.S. Release: June 17th, 2016 (Rated PG) Genre: Animated Runtime: 103 minutes Allow me to speak candidly about my adoration for Andrew Stanton's Oscar-winning animated masterpiece, Finding Nemo . Without a moment of hesitation, I loudly and proudly proclaim  it as the best animated film of this millennium. Not even Shrek , Up , Toy Story 3 or any of the countless other overwhelmingly successful Disney & Pixar releases manage to stand quite as tall as Marlin's cross-ocean journey to find his son. Therefore, upon hearing news of Stanton's long-awaited sequel, Finding Dory , I was forced to balance comparable levels of both joy and skepticism. Thankfully, this newest inclusion in the underwater saga is anything but a disappointment. After the forgetful blue tang fish, Dory (voice of Ellen DeGeneres), helps her new clown fish friend,

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES : OUT OF THE SHADOWS (2016) REVIEW : The New Sequel, The Old Mistakes

Akan sangat mudah mendapat lampu hijau untuk mendapatkan jatah memiliki sekuel bagi film-film yang secara kuantitas sukses mengumpulkan jumlah angka yang fantastis. Dan hal itu akan menjadi suatu kebiasaan yang terjadi di rumah produksi manapun dan lumrah terjadi. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles sebagai contohnya, film adaptasi dari komik ini berhasil mendapatkan perolehan Box Office yang memuaskan dengan budget yang sedikit. Di bawah naungan Michael Bay, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles jelas memiliki jalan yang mudah untuk memperoleh lampu hijau itu.   Maka, di tahun 2016 ini, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles mendapatkan kesempatan untuk memiliki bagian kedua dari cerita mereka. Tetapi kali ini, Jonathan Liebesman tak kembali menjadi pemegang kendali bagi filmnya. Dan kedudukan Jonathan Liebesman kali ini digantikan oleh Dave Green. Para kura-kura ini kembali menjalankan misi teranyar mereka dengan formasi jajaran pemain yang sama. Dan bagian paling baru mereka memiliki judul Teenage Mutant Ni

Rapid Reviews: The Conjuring 2 and Weiner-Dog

Horror guru James Wan, pioneer of the Saw , Insidious and The Conjuring franchises, has nothing left to prove in the genre that he's helped mold. Perhaps that's why the director has shifted his focus of late to films like Furious 7 and the upcoming DC superhero tale, Aquaman , which is slated for a 2018 release. But despite Wan's clear eagerness to branch out from his horror roots, the filmmaker welcomes his latest endeavor, The Conjuring 2 , to theaters all across the country. Years after helping the Perron family survive an evil terror lurking in their farmhouse, Ed and Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga) gain worldwide acclaim for their paranormal investigations into the famed Amityville murders. And with their deeper journeys into the realm of demonic spirits, Lorraine expresses her desires to put an end to the family business before something terrible happens to them. However, a new dark and powerful force haunts a single mother and her four children i

X-MEN : APOCALYPSE (2016) REVIEW : The Myth Of Third Installment for X-Men Trilogy

Musim panas telah datang dan waktunya film-film bermodal besar menunjukkan performanya. Film-film manusia super tetap memeriahkan parade film-film musim panas kali ini. Maret hingga Mei adalah bulan yang penuh sesak dengan deretan-deretan film manusia super yang sedang memasuki fase berbeda. Setelah Batman V Superman dan Captain America : Civil War , Marvel dengan naungan Fox melanjutkan fase berikutnya dari para mutan-mutan yang diasuh oleh Professor Xavier. Para mutan ini memiliki misi lanjutan dari X-Men : Days of Future Past , di mana mereka harus berhadapan dengan musuh baru. Chapter berikutnya dari seri ini adalah X-Men : Apocalypse yang menemukan kekacauan dan digadang akan lebih besar dari film-film X-Men sebelumnya. Tetapi, dengan kuantitas yang lebih besar, X-Men : Apicalypse tetap didalangi oleh Bryan Singer. Di dalam seri ketiga ini, Bryan Singer memiliki tugas dan janji untuk membuat X-Men : Apocalypse untuk lebih besar dan menyenangkan bagi penontonnya. Hasil dari Days

MY STUPID BOSS (2016) REVIEW : Sketsa Komedi Adaptasi

Film komedi menjadi salah satu genre film yang riskan untuk dibuat. Hal itu dikarenakan sebuah film tak bisa memberikan generalisasi selera humor penonton yang disampaikan di dalam filmnya. Sehingga, perlu taktik untuk –setidaknya –menarik minat penonton untuk menyaksikan film tersebut. Dan My Stupid Boss yang dinaungi oleh Falcon Pictures memiliki cara untuk memberikan teaser menarik dan berhasil memberikan daya tarik bagi penontonnya.   Di tengah film-film besar, film-film Indonesia di tahun ini berhasil memperoleh pendapatan jumlah penonton yang fantastis. Sehingga, My Stupid Boss memiliki motivasi untuk mendapatkan penonton sebanyak-banyaknya. Upi sebagai sutradara memasang nama-nama besar untuk bermain di dalam My Stupid Boss. Meski lagi-lagi, Reza Rahadian tampil lagi di sebuah film, tetapi penampilannya kali ini –lagi-lagi –membuahkan inovasi. My Stupid Boss berhasil menciptakan gegap gempita tawa yang   luar biasa lewat trailer filmnya. Hanya saja, jelas akan menjadi ketakut

Rapid Reviews: Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping and Love & Friendship

While  Saturday Night Live Alumnus, Andy Samberg, has enjoyed an overwhelming amount of success with his hit television sitcom, Brooklyn Nine-Nine , he returns to the big screen with the new mockumentary comedy, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping . With recent behind-the-scene movies capturing the lives of musical celebrities such as Katy Perry, Justin Bieber and the group One Direction, Samberg decides to flip the growing genre on its side with a largely comedic twist. Yet, the final result is a middling endeavor that can only muster up the occasional laugh. Years ago, three childhood best friends form the dynamic music group known as The Style Boyz. Their hip hop influence helps paves the way for a generation of musical talents until their frontman, Conner4Real (Samberg), branches off to pursue a solo career. But once Conner's second solo album struggles to generate sales and empty seats overtake his live performances, Conner must cycle back to his roots in order to recapture hi