Casting a ballot – SAG Awards 2013
by Felipe Rosa
Much like I did last year, I’ll cast a fictional ballot for many awards
Categories: Non-Reviews • Tags: awards 2013
Thoughts on the Oscar 2013 nominations
by Felipe Rosa
The Nomination Morning for the Oscars (for those that follow it with any interest, of course) are always a mix of excitement and disappointment. There will always be surprises; if good or bad, it depends on how you feel about each particular case. Here’s the full list of nominees, from the AMPAS website. In a year this good, it would be simply impossible to recognize everything and everybody without expanding the field (which was what the ASC did but, case in […]
Categories: Non-Reviews • Tags: awards 2013
Top 10 Movies – 2013
by Felipe Rosa
The task of making a list of favorite movies is always a thankless one; it is a common enough question and fixture, but such list is generally dynamic as one re-watches and re-evaluates films. Some years in particular, it becomes very hard as there are just too many films that must be mentioned. 2013 is one of those years. Thankfully, no matter how traditional it is, the number 10 is just an arbitrary, round quantity, so I feel perfectly comfortable picking […]
Categories: Lists
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire – Revisit
by Felipe Rosa
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire: a new visit confirms that, while the action sequences
Categories: Film reviews, Revisit • Tags: action, sci fi
The Seventh Seal
by Felipe Rosa
The Seventh Seal: a film with this setting, group of characters and story is expected to be
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: drama, fantasy, top
August: Osage County
by Felipe Rosa
August: Osage County: taking the idea that “each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way” to the point of caricature, this film ends up with a gallery of characters that are uni-dimensional and uninteresting. Perhaps a lighter hand than John Wells’ would have worked better, but the screenplay seems more interested in giving actors the chance to act broadly within a given type then let them build rich characters. It is a great looking cast, led by Meryl Streep, but […]
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: drama
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013)
by Felipe Rosa
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty: this upbeat story has been told many times before; however, the mix of genres and the specifics make this a pleasant journey. It is a bit too on-the-nose on its themes, however. The film is visually slick and interesting; the locations, in particular, are great to look at and very distinctive. The cast is in fine (if not spectacular) shape and sells the concept well; Ben Stiller registers well by avoiding, both as an […]
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: adventure, comedy, drama, fantasy
The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)
by Felipe Rosa
The Wolf of Wall Street: bold by choosing to be so forthcoming with its excesses; they are, however, either serving the story and the characters or defining the world. This film is an absolutely fun, if flawed, ride (assuming one is able to not be horrified by the excesses); the pace is somewhat uneven, but that’s because most scenes and sequences have such a high degree of energy that whenever one doesn’t reach those levels, it sticks out. Martin Scorsese is in […]
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: biopic / historic, comedy, drama
Dallas Buyers Club
by Felipe Rosa
Dallas Buyers Club: while it’s an interesting and inspiring story, this film is so schematic and simplistic in its approach that it almost defeats the purpose. Characters are underdeveloped, so it’s almost surprising how good the acting is; of course, a good part of the effectiveness from both Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto come from the extreme physical transformation they went through, but both of them (Leto in particular) are able to infuse humanity into the roles.
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: biopic / historic, drama
