Mini DVD Reviews

I've been catching up on some of the movies I missed in theaters now that they are available to rent. Here are some mini reviews on the (mostly good!) movies I've watched recently:

The East
Stars: Brit Marling, Alexander Skarsgaard, Ellen Page, Shiloh Fernandez
Plot: A woman goes undercover to infiltrate an anarchist group who attacks corrupt businesses in interesting ways. She finds herself questioning where she stands on their practices after a while.
Thoughts: I think Marling is an incredible talent. If she wanted to be, she could be a huge Hollywood rom-com star much like Julia Roberts. She is so strikingly beautiful. But, she wants to write her own work, and much like her previous self-penned films Another Earth and Sound of My Voice, The East is flawed but intense, smart, thought-provoking and enjoyable.
Grade: B

The Purge
Stars: Ethan Hawke
Plot: It's the future in America and there is no crime and no unemployment and everyone is happy. Why? Once a year, the government picks one night where you can do whatever the hell you want - murder, included.
Thoughts: I was interested in seeing this movie because I think the premise is pretty spectacular. It's such a great idea, but the execution is not particularly good. The script has so many plot holes that it is laughable and the characters act in ways that only characters in horror movies act, bad decision after bad decision.
Grade: D+

Before Midnight
Stars: Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke
Plot: It's nearly a decade after Jesse and Celeste reunited in Paris and now they are a couple with twins and on vacation where they do a whole lot of talking and fighting.
Thoughts: I love this trilogy of movies. I think it's such a beautifully written ode to love and lust, and while the first one was the best, Before Midnight is excellent as well. Of course, if you don't like movies that are super talky, then this probably isn't for you. But the epic fight Jesse and Celeste have in the hotel room just about rivals any fight in any Marvel movie released this year.
Grade: B

Lovelace
Stars: Amanda Seyfried, Peter Sarsgaard
Plot: The true story of Linda Lovelace, a young girl who falls for the wrong man and becomes the biggest porn star in the world.
Thoughts: Well, Peter Sarsgaard absolutely kills it. He is so damn good that it almost makes this mess of a movie worth it. The problem? Well, for one, as a movie about porn, it's not sexy in the least. And secondly, I have recently decided that Amanda Seyfried is just not that great of an actress. I'm not sure whey she keeps getting so many high-profiled gigs (okay, I do, she's gorgeous), but the talent just isn't there. Unless she is terribly miscast in every movie. I guess that's possible.
Grade: C

Disconnect
Stars: Jason Bateman, Paula Patton, Alexander Skarsgaard
Plot: Interwoven stories tell the tales of how we no longer make any personal connections in this world, everything filtered through social media, and how we are all so desperately lonely, just trying to find someone to connect to.
Thoughts: I'm not sure why no one has been talking about this movie. I saw one preview months ago and thought it looked good, but have heard virtually no word of mouth on it. I'm not sure why, because it's sort of, almost brilliant. It's the best movie from this year that you've never heard of and I highly suggest everyone rent it immediately.
Grade: B+

Only God Forgives
Stars: Ryan Gosling, Kristen Scott Thomas
Plot: A man seeks revenge on the people who murdered his brother.
Thoughts: This movie was infuriating and frustrating on every level. It was directed by the same person who made Drive a few years back, a movie that was super stylish and so, so good. Only God Forgives, however, is all style over substance. It looks amazing, and is possibly the most beautifully shot film of the year, but it's pretty much just an hour and a half of people being moody and looking cool and barely saying anything at all.
Grade: D

Stuck In Love
Stars: Greg Kinnear, Jennifer Connelly, Logan Lerman
Plot: A family of writers deal with love and loss and heartache.
Thoughts: This movie isn't spectacular in any way, but it's a very nice, good movie. It's not something I can pick apart at all - maybe it's a little too cliche. It's just such a nice, feel good, harmless, funny, cute movie that I couldn't help but fall under it's spell. Also, Lerman is adorable.
Grade: B

Frances Ha
Stars: Greta Gerwig
Plot: A twenty-something woman in New York City tries to make her life a little bit less of a mess.
Thoughts: I've been wanting to see this movie for months and I'll say - it was worth the wait! Frances Ha is officially my favorite movie of the year. It's a love story about two best friends and I think it's so refreshing that men are basically an after thought. It's a great little black and white movie about friends growing apart but struggling to stay together and growing up and getting your shit together. I can't say enough about it, other than - go watch it now! So great!
Grade: A