Author: Jason Zingale

Bearing in mind that most TV-to-film adaptations are generally commercial failures, Brian De Palma’s 1996 take on the popular “Mission: Impossible” television series truly is a diamond in the rough. It also probably gets a little more attention than it deserves, but until Hollywood shapes up and delivers more quality adaptations, the film is sure to receive credit as the one exception to the case against producing remakes. The main contradiction to all of this praise, of course, is that the events that occurred in the first film (like killing off the entire team in the opening mission) lead to…

On the surface, “Hugo” sounds more like the kind of family-friendly fare that you’d expect someone like Steven Spielberg to make rather than Martin Scorsese, but just as the movie gets better the further along it goes, it also becomes increasingly apparent why a self-professed film fanatic such as Scorsese would be interested in the story. Though it’s bogged down by a dreadfully slow and mostly uneventful first act, the movie eventually finds its groove as a rather enchanting valentine to cinema that any film lover will appreciate. Whether or not that includes children is up for debate, because while…

Celebrating a film like “The Artist” for its originality may seem a tad contradictory – after all, silent movies have been around longer than any other form of cinema – but when compared to today’s crop of films, it certainly feels fitting. The big winner at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and a potential frontrunner at the Academy Awards, “The Artist” plays like a loving homage to an era of filmmaking that many people have forgotten or never knew. But while director Michael Hazanavicius’ black-and-white (mostly) silent movie is a fun blast from the past that will remind audiences what…

Following the disappointment of “Harold & Kumar Go to Guantanamo Bay,” not to mention co-star Kal Penn’s surprising decision to accept a job at the White House, the likelihood that fans would ever see another Harold & Kumar adventure again seemed pretty slim back in 2008. And yet here we are, three years later, discussing the newest film in the ongoing stoner buddy franchise. But while my expectations were relatively low going into “A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas,” it’s actually a big improvement over the last sequel, hewing much closer to the spirit of the original film by…

Of all the great actors and directors in Hollywood that have yet to work with one another, it’s hard to imagine a more enticing pairing than Leonardo DiCaprio and Clint Eastwood. The former has proven time and again why he’s one of the best actors of his generation, while the latter is currently enjoying perhaps the greatest period of his career with a string of successful projects working behind the camera. But no matter how promising the dream team combo might have looked on paper, the duo’s cinematic take on longtime FBI director J. Edgar Hoover doesn’t feel nearly as…

If a movie like Drake Doremus’ mumblecore drama “Like Crazy” can win Sundance’s Grand Jury Prize, then either the Park City-based film festival is losing its touch, or the movie didn’t face very stiff competition. Neither of those theories would explain why the film has been so well received, but you can count me among its few detractors, because while it certainly has an interesting premise with its raw and honest look at a relationship put through the wringer, the movie doesn’t work if you don’t care about the lead characters. “Like Crazy” isn’t quite as depressing or excruciating to…

Belgian cartoonist Hergé supposedly once claimed that the only filmmaker who could ever do “The Adventures of Tintin” justice was Steven Spielberg, and it’s easy to see why he might have thought that. His world-renowned series of comic books (which is famous pretty much everywhere except the U.S.) about a young, globetrotting reporter and his faithful dog Snowy plays like a lighter, more childlike Indiana Jones film. Written by the British trio of Steven Moffat (“Sherlock”), Edgar Wright (“Scott Pilgrim vs. the World”) and Joe Cornish (“Attack the Block”) using bits and pieces from three existing stories, “The Adventures of…

Movies about cults were all the rage at this year’s Sundance Film Festival (including the well-received “Sound of My Voice” and Kevin Smith’s “Red State”), and perhaps the biggest standout of them all was Sean Durkin’s directorial debut, “Martha Marcy May Marlene,” for more reasons than one. Apart from the fact that it has a pretty catchy title, the film garnered serious attention for Durkin (who went on to win the festival’s directing award) and its star, Elizabeth Olsen, the younger sister of media moguls Mary-Kate and Ashley. But while Olsen’s family tree makes for some interesting discussion, the up-and-coming…

As the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations continue to dominate the news, a movie like “Margin Call” is only going to help stoke the flames, even if it was sheer dumb luck that the protests coincided with its theatrical release. Obviously, a film about the economic recession would have been just as timely a year ago as it is today, but “Margin Call” nevertheless packs an extra punch when viewed in the context of the current political climate. Though it isn’t the first time that the recession has been used as the backdrop of a movie, director J.C. Chandor at least…

On its surface, “The Ides of March” is really no different than any other thriller set in the dog-eat-dog world of politics, but what sets it apart from a lot of those movies is its incredibly talented cast. Though the film is only George Clooney’s fourth trip behind the camera, he’s starting to look like an old pro, especially with the kind of clout that he brings from the acting world. Similar to the way that Clint Eastwood seems to have his pick of the litter, so does Clooney, who’s populated his film with real actor’s actors like Philip Seymour…