So far in 2015...

I have been slacking big time when it comes to blogging, and, honestly, I'm not really feeling it lately. Still, I am going to at least try to post at the end of the month so I can at least keep up to date in case the urge to return to blogging hits me. Here is a brief review of what I've seen this year so far.

Ex Machina
Stars: Domhnall Gleeson,  Oscar Isaac (a.k.a. current mega crushes!)
Plot: A genius invites an employee to his isolated estate to run the Turing test on an AI that he's created.
Thoughts: This is the sexy, creepy, smart Sci-fi movie you didn't know you needed in your life. Brilliantly acted and beautifully bizarre, this is a must see and one of the best things I've seen in a while.
Grade: A-

While We're Young
Stars: Ben Stiller, Naomi Watts, Adam Driver, Amanda Seyfried
Plot: A couple feeling ostracized from their friends because they don't have kids begin hanging out with a pair of 25 year olds.
Thoughts: I love director Noah Baumbach's movies but this disappointed me big time. It felt like a bad Woody Allen and was more pretentious and condescending than funny or enjoyable.
Grade: D+

It Follows
Stars: Miaka Monroe
Plot: A girl is followed by a demon (??) after being passed a sexuality transmitted curse.
Thoughts: *Sigh* Remind me to stop getting caught up in the fuss when Twitter decides something is the best horror movie in decades. It wasn't true of The Babadook (although that is better than this) and it's not true of It Follows. It's got great music, great atmosphere and a killer opening sequence, but a lot of it is cliche and full of plot holes and even sometimes laughably bad.
Grade: C+

Song One
Stars: Anne Hathaway
Plot: After her brother is hit by a car and put into a coma, a woman visits his favorite NYC spots and falls for his favorite musician.
Thoughts: Hathaway,  who usually annoys me, is pretty great, and parts of it are really cute, but it's mostly forgettable. Netflix Begin Again instead.
Grade: C

Black Sea
Stars: Jude Law, Ben Mendelsohn
Plot: A group of out of work submarine workers get hired to go in search of a missing Nazi sub filled with gold.
Thoughts: This movie got dumped in January for some reason, and barely anyone has heard of it, but it's totally worth checking out. It's a pretty solid thriller and a generally good way to spend 2 hours.
Grade: B