Brett Garten, Movie Extraordinare
Cinematic Sommelier
8.5
Rick and Morty led me here… no one could have prepared me for that finale. The master of time bending Christopher Nolan at the height of his powers in this puzzle box of a film he’s now known for. A stunning reveal at every twist and turn. A fantastic cast. Pure showmanship, akin to the magicians in the story. Sit back and wait to be wowed.
7.9
There’s a bomb… on a bus.
Short, sweet, and to the point. Much like this movie. “Speed” walked so “John Wick” could run. The entire cast rocks it in this fast paced (pun intended) thriller. Another man with a phone and taste for revenge who terrorizes society with a sinister plot endangering an aspect of everyday life. Things go fast, and things go boom. Great directing keeps things paced just right, with just the right dash of humor to let off the gas before the next buildup.
6.8
Figured I’d check this one out, since I love Zoey Deutch. Man, was I in for a weird 2 hour ride. A nosedive into the… strange… world of debt collection agencies. Part mob movie, part “the big short” fourth wall breaking exposition voiceovers. All capped off with hot wings. A lot of wings references. Buffalo seems like an interesting place to live if it’s anything like the city depicted here. Definitely a nice change of pace form the middle of the road films lately.
7.9
A man. A phone. A gun.
Simple, suspenseful, and laser focused.
Excellent acting by Colin Farrell and Kiefer Sutherland. Sutherland lands one of the top spots on the phone based villains list with this masterpiece of suspense. Perfect runtime to ensure there isn’t any unnecessary distraction. Miss these types of endings, too. The completely expected/unnecessary cliffhanger that gets me every time. Weird to think the same guy who directed this (Joel Schumacher) is the same guy who flew the original Batman movie series into the ground.
8.4
Much better than expected! And I expected a lot. Costner and Harrelson shine in this film about vigilante justice, the sometimes thin lines between right and wrong, and the toll that living the life of an old school lawman could take on one’s soul. The storytelling of their early days together as Texas Rangers opened up a window into the two main characters’ souls. Well veiled exposition. In the vein of “titanic” and other works of historical fiction, knowing the ending had very little bearing on my overall enjoyment, as this film was just so damn well done! Netflix movies and series tend to have a cinematic richness to them that is often unrivaled in modern entertainment, even with their recent uptick in content output volume. Well worth the watch, even if I am a little late to the party on this one.
Brett Garten, Movie Extraordinare 