High-Def Digest: The Bonus ViewCillian Murphy Archives - High-Def Digest: The Bonus View

‘The Party’ Review: Cringe in Black and White

Philip Brown — Thu, 01 Mar 2018 17:00:59 +0000

Long underrated (even if her pithy, experimental, and openly political movies are hardly conceived as crowd-pleasers), writer/director Sally Potter deserves a resurgence. ‘The Party’ may not be her best work, but it shows what she’s capable of even with meager resources. Potter’s work in films like ‘Orlando‘, ‘Yes’, and ‘The Tango Lesson’ established her as...

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‘Dunkirk’ Review: Anxiety-Inducing Action

Philip Brown — Fri, 21 Jul 2017 17:00:45 +0000

Christopher Nolan’s ‘Dunkirk’ has a summer blockbuster release date because that’s the tentpole template within which the filmmaker works. However, as viscerally thrilling and technically stunning as the film might be (and oh lord is it ever), this is also a thoughtful and in some ways even experimental presentation of war. The film is designed...

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‘Free Fire’ Review: Claustrophobic Action Bliss

Philip Brown — Thu, 20 Apr 2017 17:00:28 +0000

Ben Wheatley has slowly built a reputation as the most intriguing British filmmaker of his generation. Through a variety of art house genre flicks like ‘Kill List’, ‘Sightseers’ and ‘High-Rise’, he’s finally gotten enough attention to secure some movie stars. His plan to capitalize on that success? A vicious action comedy in a tight setting,...

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TIFF Journal: ‘Free Fire’

Philip Brown — Mon, 12 Sep 2016 17:00:56 +0000

For years, Ben Wheatley (‘Kill List’, ‘High-Rise’) has established himself as one of the best genre filmmakers on the planet. He’s dabbled in crime, horror, comedy, and even more esoteric art house fare. He has a morbid wit and intellectual ambition along with a rabid film junkie’s sense of genre games. On a certain level,...

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‘Anthropoid’ Review: Weird Title, Gripping Thriller

Philip Brown — Fri, 12 Aug 2016 14:00:02 +0000

First things first, ‘Anthropoid’ is a terrible title that is difficult to pronounce and will be meaningless to anyone other than a select sect of WWII history buffs. That’s a shame, because the movie that bears the name is actually rather good and could use some help to get eyeballs pointed in its general direction....

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‘In the Heart of the Sea’ Review: Troubled Waters

Philip Brown — Thu, 10 Dec 2015 20:00:18 +0000

Some 3D movies would benefit from an alternative screening option that allows audiences to see a highlight reel of the set-pieces in IMAX for $10 instead of the entire film. The ‘Transformers’ movies certainly qualify, as did Robert Zemeckis’ unfortunate ‘The Walk’, and now Ron Howard’s ‘In the Heart of the Sea’. The whaling action...

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‘Aloft’ Review: Ambitiously Empty

Philip Brown — Wed, 03 Jun 2015 19:00:33 +0000

Ambiguity is a crucial strength of many art films and the death of so many more. It’s a delicate quality to court. Get it right and the film is enigmatically fascinating. Get it wrong and the film is merely frustrating. With ‘Aloft’, writer/director Claudia Llosa is clearly striving for something that falls into the former...

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The Trailer Park: Hunters and Psychics

M. Enois Duarte — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 15:00:38 +0000

A weird combination to say the least, these trailers are related in that they feature very well-respected veteran actors in starring roles, namely Willem Dafoe and Robert De Niro. Both movies are also mysteries with deep, dark secrets at their cores. ‘The Hunter’ I know that IMDb categorizes this as a drama, but based on...

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Sundance Journal: ‘Red Lights’

Aaron Peck — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 17:00:45 +0000

The first two-thirds of ‘Red Lights’ make a fine psychological thriller. In the last third, however, the train of thought totally derails, and the film has one of the messiest endings I’ve ever witnessed. Here’s a movie that needs a complete reshoot. Well, first the people who bought it need to test it with audiences,...

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Sundance 2012 Preview: The Premieres

Aaron Peck — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 20:00:20 +0000

The Premieres section is probably the most popular slate of films at Sundance. This is because the movies usually have ensemble casts along and well-known directors. Many are still independently produced, but they’re usually picked up quickly by distributors. As expected, the Sundance Premieres lineup for January features a long list of who’s who in...

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Now Playing: It’s Mediocre Movie ‘Time’

Luke Hickman — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 13:00:44 +0000

Without a doubt, the concept behind ‘In Time’ is creative, original and intriguing. Too bad that the film isn’t executed in the same fashion. In the distant future, mankind will stop aging at 25-years-old. A clock within the skin of each person’s forearm will then start counting down one additional year. If the clock runs...

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Now Playing: ‘Inception’ is Dreamy

Drew Taylor — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 19:00:58 +0000

For those who want to experience ‘Inception’ spoiler-free, you’re probably best advised to move on now. I’m going to try and tread lightly in my review, but I can’t promise that I’ll be completely pure. So come back after you’ve seen the movie. The review will still be here. I hope. You never know with...

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