DVD Outlook: December 2015

December is finally here to close out the 2015 calendar year. And while that usually means a massive wave of heavy-hitting end of the year releases will find their way into movie theaters nationwide, it typically spells disaster for the DVD and Video-On-Demand outlook (November's List). In all honesty, you should really backtrack my suggestions for a few months in order to find more top-quality options. However, if you're in desperate need for something new, I'll do my best to point you in the right direction.




Ant-Man - 2 and a half stars out of 4 - (Read my full review here)

Marvel has managed to carve out a worldwide following as their ever-expanding universe co-exists between big screen adaptations and all of their beloved television series. This past summer, Marvel added a new superhero to their ranks with Peyton Reed's Ant-Man. Paul Rudd stars as con-man, Scott Lang, who's recruited by Dr. Hank Pym to stop a former protege from selling the secrets to his body-shrinking suit. Pym's creation allows a human to transform into the size of an insect all while gaining a reverse proportional amount of strength in the process. Pym recognizes the dangers of his creation if placed in the wrong hands and he needs Lang's help to make sure that never happens. In typical Marvel fashion, the formulaic approach of frequent humor and impressive action sequences flow wildly throughout the script. Yet, a signature issue prevalent throughout all of Marvel's recent offerings is a weak villain, and Ant-Man can't seem to escape that obstacle. Paul Rudd is solid in the title role and Ant-Man is worthy enough to warrant a watch, but sappy dramatics and a weak antagonist lower the film's ceiling. (December 8th)




Mistress America - 2 and a half stars out of 4 - (Read my rapid review here)

Noah Baumbach is a stellar indie writer/director who continues to church out films at a wildly rapid rate. I envision him as a modern day Woody Allen whose mind must be racing with ideas at all times. And like Allen, Baumbach's films succeed thanks to witty and genuine dialogue draped over simple, yet very human, stories. His most recent 2015 release (yeah, he's delivered more than one title this year), Mistress America, re-teams Baumbach with his regular leading lady, Greta Gerwig. Aspiring short-story author and lonely college freshman, Tracy (Lola Kirke), is having trouble adjusting to her new life in the Empire State. Following the suggestion of her recently engaged mother, Tracy seeks out her soon-to-be sister in law, Brooke (Gerwig), for some friendship. The two meet and hit it off as Tracy becomes fascinated by Brooke's upbeat and often delusional views of the world. And unbeknownst to Brooke, Tracy begins to use her as a main character in her latest story. Mistress America delivers a plethora of quotable one-liners that flow past the lips of Gerwig with such blistering ease. Although Baumbach's simplistic stories hamper his films from breaking through elevated barries, it never stops them from being an entertaining and enjoyable experience. (December 1st)




Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation - No rating or review available

With December's undeniably weak crop of titles, I had to dig deep for a well-reviewed film that I haven't yet seen myself. I will admit that I wasn't a big fan of the massively praised 4th installment to the Mission: Impossible franchise, yet critics were just as impressed with this past summer's Rogue Nation. Tom Cruise returns once again as Ethan Hunt, an undercover agent of the legendary IMF unit. But when CIA chief Alan Hundley (Alec Baldwin) persuades a Senate commitee to abandon the secret team of agents, Hunt and his team must go after a deviant organization known as The Syndicate without the backing of the U.S. government. Daring stunts headline this action-packed return to the franchise. Comedian Simon Pegg consistently delivers valuable complementary humor that helps the Mission: Impossible series to revel in its continued success. (December 15th)


Honorable Mention: The foul-mouthed sequel, Ted 2 (12/15), and geriatric comedy, A Walk in the Woods (12/29), starring Robert Redford and Nick Nolte were two films that left plenty to be desired. Other notable releases this month that I haven't seen include the well-received documentary, Amy (12/1), which chronicles the life and addiction of late singer Amy Winehouse, as well as the kid's flick spin-off, Minions (12/8). Horror fans have a pair of intriguing selections with Eli Roth's Knock Knock (12/8) starring Keanu Reeves and the foreign hit, Goodnight Mommy (12/1), which has become a rampantly discussed scary movie for hardcore fans of the genre.

2016 Golden Globe Nominees: Snubs and Surprises

With the recent Screen Actors Guild (complete list of SAG nominees) and Golden Globe nominations (complete list of Golden Globe nominees), the awards season is finally starting to heat up. Within both prestigious ceremonies, there were plenty of snubs and surprises to discuss. Let's take a look at what these nominations mean for the stretch run to the Oscars.

The Best Actor race was looking for a 5th performance to round out the group and it appears they may have found it. In a bit of a surprise Breaking Bad star. Bryan Cranston, found himself receiving both a SAG and Golden Globe nomination for him performance in Trumbo. Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant), Eddie Redmayne (The Danish Girl) and Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs) appear to be locks in the Best Actor category, with Johnny Depp (Black Mass) and Will Smith (Concussion) representing other possible finalist as well. 

One of the biggest shockers to come out of these nominations was a complete omission for Carey Mulligan's work in the feminist drama, Suffragette. Mulligan delivered a fine performance in a role that just begs for awards season attention, however this could spell the beginning of the end for her hopes at an Oscar nomination. In her absence from the SAG finalists Sarah Silverman (I Smile Back) welcomed a surprising inclusion. Mulligan, Silverman will also be competing with the phenomenal and regrettably snubbed work of aging veteran, Charlotte Rampling (45 Years), for a chance at the big dance. Safer bets in the Best Actress race are Brie Larson (Room), Cate Blachett (Carol), Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn) and perhaps Jennifer Lawrence (Joy) too.

Odds are many prognosticators pegged Mark Ruffalo as a guaranteed Best Supporting Actor nominee for his work in Todd McCarthy's Best Picture bound drama, Spotlight. Yet, Ruffalo received a Golden Globe nod for his vastly overlooked work in one of my favorite films of 2015, the hilarious indie dramedy, Infinitely Polar Bear. Kudos to the Hollywood Foreign Press for recognizing an exceptional turn by Ruffalo. Unforeseen to many, Spotlight's big pair, Ruffalo and co-star Michael Keaton, were both blanked for their roles in the film. The biggest beneficiaries were 99 Homes supporting star, Michael Shannon, Idris Elba (Beasts of No Nation) and Creed's Sylvester Stallone. The Big Short's Christian Bale and Room's deserving youngster, Jacob Tremblay, also secured SAG nominations as well. Any of the aforementioned, along with Tom Hardy (The Revenant) and Benicio Del Toro (Sicario), have a fighting chance as this competition is completely wide open outside of the current frontrunner, Bridge of Spies' Mark Rylance. 

Bryan Cranston wasn't the only star from Trumbo to shock the industry with a pair of recent nominations, add Helen Mirren to the list of rising performers forcing their way into the Oscar discussion. Mirren was never believed to be a viable Best Supporting Actress contender but her stock is surely on the rise as she'll have to battle with The Hateful Eight's Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jane Fonda (Youth), Rachel McAdams (Spotlight), Elizabeth Banks (Love & Mercy) and Joan Allen (Room), while Alicia Vikander (The Danish Girl), Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs) and Rooney Mara (Carol) feel like sure-things.

Although its Best Picture hopes are still minimal at best, the collective cast from F. Gary Gray's Straight Outta Compton surprised everyone with a Best Ensemble nomination from the Screen Actors Guild. I was a little perplexed to see that Room failed to make the cut in the same category, although it did earn a Best Drama nod with the Globes. Mad Max: Fury Road still has a staunch set of supporters, evident by its Best Drama recognition by the Globes and only Spotlight and The Big Short found themselves earning a pair of nominations from both voting bodies. It seems pretty obvious that Spotlight is a narrow Best Picture frontrunner at this point in time.

*** Stay tuned for plenty of more awards season talk throughout the long long journey to the Oscars in February

Rapid Reviews: In the Heart of the Sea and Krampus

Ron Howard is a living legend of Hollywood, plain and simple. And for reasons unknown to me, the accomplished actor, director and producer never seems to end up in the same discussion as cinema's greatest filmmakers.You can't argue against his impressive credentials which include A Beautiful Mind, Apollo 13 and his most recent and, perhaps, most overlooked film, 2013's thrilling Formula One racing biopic, Rush. However, with Howard's latest endeavor, In the Heart of the Sea, we certainly aren't handed his most prolific feature.

Author Herman Melville (Ben Whishaw) sets out to interview an older Tom Nickerson (Brendan Gleeson), a crew member on the whaling ship Essex that was rumored to have encountered an enormous beast. And after a reluctant start to his recollection of the harrowing true story surrounding the sinking of the Essex, Nickerson finally buckles down and relives the events of his childhood. He tells of the power struggle on-board between the ship's captain, George Pollard (Benjamin Walker), and his first mate, Owen Chase (Chris Hemsworth). prior to their encounter with the most massive whale any of the crew had ever seen.

Unfortunately, In the Heart of the Sea fails to break ground as either a survival film or a dramatic biopic. Instead, the film serves as a visual spectacle and very little else. Filled with hokey dramatics that never capture the core emotions of the audience, Ron Howard's newest film falls flat of its revived Oscar hopes. In the Heart of the Sea surprisingly pushed it release date back from March of 2015 until this December, and many were expecting an awards season contender. However, outside of its marvelous CGI and a memorable small supporting turn from Cillian Murphy, this origin tale for Herman Melville's classic American novel, Moby Dick, is nowhere near tbe whale-sized masterpiece that many desired.

Stars: 2 stars out of 4

Grade: C+





As a lifelong fan of the comedy-horror genre, generally positive reviews immediately perked my interest in Michael Dougherty's Krampus. Boasting a surprisingly respectable cast including Oscar Nominee Toni Collette and comedy regulars Adam Scott and Anchorman's David Koechner, I was really hoping that Krampus could deliver a rare, but enjoyable, holiday scare.

Youngster Max, (Chef's Emjay Anthony), wants nothing more than to spread the Christmas cheer to his mother (Collette), father (Scott) and sister. However, when his extended family stops over for some festivities and their destructive behavior spoils the holiday, Max loses his Christmas spirit and makes a nasty wish that summons a dark and ancient abomination known as Krampus. This demonic force and his evil helpers unleash on the family and force them to work together to survive the ordeal.

I know what you're thinking, "who heard this movie pitch and though it was a good idea"? Well, truth be told, Krampus attempts to model itself in the vein of Gremlins, a holiday comedy-horror that plays well to the audience. And while the humor is infectious and clearly eases the viewer through the film, the lack of authentic scares and an awfully weak finale spoil Dougherty's naughty Christmas tale. Krampus does contain a few exceptional moments, yet the film's closing climactic sequence leaves too big of a blemish to overcome.


Stars: 2 stars out  of 4

Grade: C

Dawn of Justice (NEW) and The Nice Guys (Red Band) Trailers

With the unquantifiable success of the Marvel universe sweeping across the world on an annual basis, DC was destined to scurry for a competitor in this billion dollar superhero movie market. And while their first main attraction, Zack Snyder's Man of Steel, left plenty to be desired, the story-melding follow-up, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, hopes to rival that of Marvel's Avengers. However, the recently released first major glance into Dawn of Justice has turned me into a skeptic. Clark Kent (Henry Cavill) and Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) cross paths in Metropolis not only as reporter and business tycoon, but as their superhero alter egos as well. And while they battle over their differences and the world debates which superhero it prefers, Lex Luther (Jesse Eisenberg) begins to stir up trouble of his own. Here's the latest look into Dawn of Justice arriving in March 2016.





Speaking of superheros, director Shane Black has dipped into the genre as the visionary behind Iron Man 3. Yet, in the summer of 2016 he'll ditch Tony Stark and his iron suit for the comedy crime-thriller, The Nice Guys. Russell Crowe stars as a private investigator hired to find a porn star who some believed committed suicide. He enlists the services of a detective (Ryan Gosling) and the two individuals become quite the duo on their way to unlocking the mysteries of the case. Check out the first Red Band look into Shane Black's The Nice Guys below.

Rapid Reviews: The Danish Girl and A Royal Night Out

Instead of honoring a respected lifelong performer like Michael Keaton with a well-deserved statue at last year's Academy Awards ceremony, the Best Actor crown was handed to an up-and-comer that mainstream audiences knew very little about. Eddie Redmayne was undoubtedly impressive in his Oscar-winning portrayal of famed-physicist and ALS sufferer, Stephen Hawking, in the nominated biopic, The Theory of Everything. But swept into the Hollywood allure, he chose to follow up the recognized role with another awards season target in Tom Hooper's, The Danish Girl.

Danish landscape painter, Einar Wegener (Redmayne), lives a happily married life with his portrait-artist wife, Gerda (Alicia Vikander), in 1920s Copenhagen. But when Einar stands in as a female subject in Gerda's painting, it elicits a deep and powerful curiosity within him. As his infatuation and natural instinct to appear in public as a female grows to extreme heights, Einar bravely attempts the first-ever gender reassignment surgery.

By now it's blatantly obvious that Eddie Redmayne is attracted to roles with the potential to land him on Hollywood's biggest stage, and his latest collaboration with Tom Hooper is merely Oscar fodder. The Danish Girl meanders along and inadequately unveils the heroic story of Einar Wegener. But rather than effectively addressing the daily hardships and struggles of a man trapped in a woman's body, we're given a tragic love story that Army-crawls to its brutal two-hour finish line. In many ways the film actually parallels The Theory of Everything. It includes an unusual love triangle, it tells the story of a man trapped and living without a real voice in the world and, most notably, it delivers a standout female performance. Alicia Vikander is the main attraction here, and while I anticipate Oscar nominations for both her and co-star Eddie Redmayne, her recognition is certainly deserved.


Stars: 2 stars out of 4

Grade: C





One of the more upbeat features to play at this year's Philadelphia Film Festival was the British comedy, A Royal Night Out. Sundance star Bel Powley, who made a name for herself with the indie hit The Diary of a Teenage Girl, joins Canadian actress Sarah Gadon in Julian Jarrold's historical crowd-pleaser.

Following Germany's surrender after World War II, both Princess Elizabeth (Gadon) and Princess Margaret (Powley) go incognito and venture out onto the streets of England on V.E. Day. The royal daughters experience a night unlike any other filled with laughter, danger and even first-time romances.

A Royal Night Out sets itself up as a playful and feel-good movie experience, however the jokes are typical, the love story is bland and the entertainment is minimal. These actresses put forth their greatest efforts to draw the audience into what's supposed to be the best night of their young lives. Yet, elementary writing and generic direction ultimately transform A Royal Night Out into a run of the mill and forgettable comedy.


Stars: 2 out of 4

Grade: C

The Revenant

Film: The Revenant

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio (The Wolf of Wall Street), Tom Hardy (Mad Max: Fury Road) and Domhnall Gleeson (Ex-Machina)

Director: Alejandro G. Inarritu (Birdman)

U.S. Release: December 25th, 2015 (Limited - Rated R)

Genre: Drama

Runtime: 156 minutes


Last year's Best Picture winner, Alejandro G. Inarritu's Birdman, amazed audiences with its single-shot appearance and paved the way for the director's next project. Even though the Mexican filmmaker has successfully lured impressive acting talent to his highly regarded past works, The Revenant has always been different, it's supposed to be "the one". With the Oscar-less Leonardo DiCaprio set to star in the role of a lifetime as he rides the wave of Inarritu's recent success, all eyes have shifted to their upcoming collaborative effort.

Set throughout a massive uncharted American wilderness during the 1820s, Leonardo DiCaprio stars as famed explorer, Hugh Glass. Following a viscous grisly bear attack that leaves him fighting for his life, Glass is abandoned and left for dead by fellow frontiersman, John Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy). Against all odds, Glass is forced to withstand blistering winter conditions as he embarks on a vengeful quest to find and kill Fitzgerald.

The Revenant is a relentless survivor tale that motions fluidly between an intense drama and a visceral revenge thriller. Despite all the attention placed on Leonardo DiCaprio's leading performance, it's Inarritu's direction that shines brightest. Unlike his fine technical achievements in Birdman, Inarritu slightly tones down his flashy filmmaking skills and utilizes them solely as a complement to Hugh Glass' remarkable true story. This naturally brings us to DiCaprio. Although I'd argue against this being the finest work of his career, the performance still warrants global attention and I do believe that he'll win his first statue on Oscar night in February. Sometimes the stars just need to align and DiCaprio's exceptional turn is further elevated by surprisingly weak competition within the Best Actor race. Don't be fooled, however, The Revenant is more than a one man show. The entire ensemble is worthy of immense praise and that includes each of Tom Hardy, Domhnall Gleeson, Will Poulter and the rest of the film's brilliant cast.

While The Revenant is an epic story of one man's staunch pursuit of revenge that exceeds Inarritu's previous Best Picture winner, it still fails to mask a few noticeable shortcomings. First, the film packs an immediate punch and culminates with a phenomenal climactic finish. Yet, the second act of Inarritu's Oscar contender trudges along aimlessly with a Terrence Malick-like sense of artistry that keeps the plot at a standstill. Despite being existential and filled with marvelous imagery, this two and a half hour feature suffers from a sluggish midsection. Furthermore, The Revenant's continual reliance on violence and brutality stays loyal to the main theme of the film, but it will undoubtedly repel a large faction of moviegoers and Academy members. Therefore, I see The Revenant as a major Oscar player but an unlikely choice for back-to-back Best Picture winners from Inarritu.

As someone who enjoyed Birdman for its exquisite direction and not as much for its middling story, I had a few reservations regarding Alejandro G. Inarritu's latest offering. However, The Revenant surpasses last year's top-honored film in both style and substance. The feature doesn't boast a high re-watch factor, but it still manages to set itself apart as an instant classic from one of Hollywood's most talented visionaries. And maybe, just maybe, he'll be able to get Leo that well-deserved Oscar win.


Stars: 3 and a half stars out of 4

Grade: B+