Author: Jason Zingale

After the disaster of “Speed Racer,” it’s not surprising that the Wachowskis decided to take a few years off to let their egos heal, but what is surprising is that they’ve marked their long-awaited return with a movie even more ambitious. Co-directed by German filmmaker Tom Tykwer, “Cloud Atlas” is unlike anything you’ve ever seen and probably ever will see again. Unfortunately, it’s also bloated (at 172 minutes, it feels almost twice as long) and incredibly self-indulgent, resulting in one of the most frustrating wastes of potential in a while. Based on David Mitchell’s 2004 novel of the same name,…

It seems like every year, there’s at least one film that emerges from Sundance with the potential to become a mainstream hit, and this year, that movie is “The Sessions.” Though at its core the film is essentially about a disabled man trying to get laid for the first time, it’s a lot more than just some strange blending of “The 40-Year-Old Virgin” and “My Left Foot.” It’s an incredibly low-key and feel-good adult movie about sex that’s much funnier than most people are probably expecting, highlighted by a pair of Oscar-caliber performances by its two leads, a great supporting…

Few directors have enjoyed as much success as Ben Affleck this early in their careers. But could he be the next great American filmmaker? Many people would have laughed at the mere suggestion just a few years ago, but the actor-turned-director has been making a strong case for himself ever since stepping behind the camera for 2007’s “Gone Baby Gone,” and proved that he wasn’t a one-hit wonder with “The Town.” For his latest project, Affleck has moved away from the comforts of Boston to a much larger stage, and delivers his best film yet in the process. A politically…

Like most Happy Madison productions, “Here Comes the Boom” isn’t very good, but when compared to Kevin James’ past starring vehicles – “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” and “The Zookeeper” – there’s no question that it’s a major improvement. That doesn’t exactly make his latest film any less of a disappointment, but it does provide a sliver of hope that James has finally graduated from making stupid, juvenile comedies to ones that merely fail to fulfill their potential. “Here Comes the Boom” certainly had the makings of a decent comedy, but when the laughs come so few and far between that…

Rian Johnson’s “Looper” has reportedly been in the works for several years, and after watching the film, it’s easy to see why. If you’re going to make a time travel movie, you’re effectively welcoming the audience to pick apart the plot and any logical discrepancies in the script, so it’s not exactly something to be treated lightly. But while “Looper” does a better job dealing with the paradoxical nature of time travel than most, it’s still not perfect. However, the movie presents a really fresh and innovative spin on the genre that, although it doesn’t quite result in the next…

It’s only inevitable that “Pitch Perfect” is going to draw comparisons to “Glee,” but while the success of the Fox series certainly helped pave the way for making organized singing groups cool again, that would be like comparing Adele to Katy Perry. For starters, the story actually has an authenticity to it (no doubt one of the few things carried over from Mickey Rapkin’s 2008 exposé) that makes the preposterous fantasy scenarios of “Glee” seem even more ridiculous, and the actors sound like they’re actually singing the songs without that over-produced quality. In fact, the film feels a lot more…

You’d be hard pressed to find anything more quintessentially American than baseball and Clint Eastwood, so it’s a little surprising that it took this long for someone to think of combining the two. Though “Trouble with the Curve” isn’t exactly the kind of project that you’d expect would lure Eastwood out of semi-retirement from acting, the fact that the movie is directed by longtime producer Robert Lorenz clearly played a big part in his decision. Eastwood’s involvement was a real coup for the first-time helmer, because if it weren’t for the film’s excellent ensemble cast, “Trouble with the Curve” would…

CBS Films has tried their hand at just about every genre except science fiction since the studio’s conception a few years ago, but they haven’t had a whole lot of success, both critically and commercially, and “The Words” doesn’t seem very likely to buck that trend. Though it’s a slight improvement over their past projects, the romantic drama still feels like a made-for-TV movie trying to disguise its many shortcomings with big Hollywood stars. That may suggest a strong sign of intent on the part of the studio to make better movies, but until the quality of the material is…

They’ve only made two feature films to date, but stop-motion animation studio LAIKA is fast becoming the place for creepy kid’s movies that may not actually be for kids at all. After scaring up some nightmares with the horror-fantasy “Coraline,” the studio is back at it again with “ParaNorman,” a slightly lighter journey into the weird and macabre that will likely play well with pre-teens and older, but may be too frightening for younger audiences. Though parents should use discretion when deciding whether their children can handle the scarier moments, “ParaNorman” is packed with enough comedy that it helps dampen…

The political comedy “The Campaign” is the kind of movie that my 16-year-old self would have loved, because it’s chockfull of juvenile silliness. Unfortunately, it’s been a while since Will Ferrell did something that really made me laugh, and Zach Galifianakis isn’t even remotely as funny as his popularity would suggest. Though the film is actually much better than expected, it never fully takes advantage of its satirical premise, especially with the 2012 elections only months away. There are a number of good laughs sprinkled throughout, but it’s not nearly enough to warrant sitting through all the dry spells. And…