Reel Reviews

300 -- The quintessential example of the power of a noble defeat. It would have been nice if a certain two-term president I could name had the resolve of Leonidas and his Spartans in the face of opposition; as this film demonstrates, sometimes getting beaten is what sets up the more lasting and meaningful victory down the road. Worth seeing for its visual inventiveness, its excellent performances, and for all the deep stuff this movie has on its mind. Yes, we are the inheritors of a tradition that has hung in the balance--by a thread--more than once in our history; and yes, if need be, we can beat back the attack once again.

Reel Reviews

American Sniper -- Sometimes it’s good to be behind the times. Like, for instance, when you watch a movie a year after it hits theaters, and all of its accompanying controversy has receded into the background. This film would probably have been hard to judge when it first arrived, given the heated atmosphere surrounding it then. When viewed with some perspective, you can judge this film clearly: a very good movie featuring an excellent performance by Bradley Cooper, and not nearly as much jingo as its harshest critics believed. As usual, director Clint Eastwood brings much more nuance to a potentially propagandistic subject than the casual observer might expect. Certainly, he clearly shows that, for all his gung-ho, Chris Kyle paid an enormous price for his time in Iraq--and as such stands as an appropriate metaphor for the nation as a whole. Definitely worth a look.

Reel Reviews

The Imitation Game -- Much of what you see here is actually very standard, boilerplate "outsider" drama, set in the equally standard venue of a World War II movie. The loser who ultimately wins, the challenge to authority, the competition won--it's all there, as it is in a hundred other films. So why is this movie different? Different enough to be really, really good? Two things. One, the true story goes beyond the win to show the outsider ultimately losing (though with a winning legacy); and two (and this is the thing that really makes the movie worth watching), the expert execution of the presentation, particularly in the job the actors do in inhabiting their roles. Special performances by the leads (and, for that matter, the supporting cast) elevate this pic from the standard to a truly special viewing experience.

Reel Reviews

Against The Sun -- This film reveals a fascinating phenomenon: just about any story becomes more compelling when it takes place during World War II. Any movie featuring that time and place automatically gets a boost--even now, 70 years later. As it turns out, this tale needs little extra help to come across as compelling. The story of three Navy airmen who ditched in the South Pacific and survived a thousand mile trip in a life raft has compelling written all over it. Like the recent and similar--but, importantly, fictional--All is Lost, this movie presents its simple premise and provides a riveting story without a lot of bells and whistles to heighten the drama, because it hardly needs any such ornamentation. This really is a find, and is simply put a tremendous movie to watch. Don't miss it.

Reel Reviews

Fury -- No, I won't go for the cheap shot and say the title came from how Brad Pitt felt towards his agent after reading the script. This isn't actually a particularly bad movie, just unoriginal. There's not much story beyond a series of vignettes about the craziness and intensity of war; that wasn't good enough when it was Saving Private Ryan, it certainly isn't good enough here. At least the combat scenes are remarkably well done (and grisly), but again, we've seen that before. Not bad, just not really necessary.