Goodfellas
by Felipe Rosa
Goodfellas: this film tells a story that is, at the same time, very entertaining and revealing of
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: biopic / historic, crime
Tag: crime
American Hustle
by Felipe Rosa
American Hustle: this story, particulars aside, has been told many times before (sometimes even better); what sets this film apart and puts it (quite) above the average heist movie is the rich, well-written and, above all, entertaining gallery of characters and their relationships. Indeed, the bonds, rivalries, romances turn out to be more relevant than the plot itself. The whole cast is making the best of the material; Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper stand out because their characters are flashier, […]
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: crime, drama
The Counselor
by Felipe Rosa
The Counselor: gloomy film that, on paper, seems to be great fun. The reality is different, as it’s as drab as it can be. The main culprit is the writing, where all characters are both unappealing and uninteresting, always a bad combination; the great-looking cast can do very little with the material they are given. The dialogue, pretentious and monotonous, doesn’t at all help matters, and it’s treated with too much respect.
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: crime
Ocean’s Eleven (1960)
by Felipe Rosa
Ocean’s Eleven: charming film that oozes camaraderie, but ultimately falls short. The main issue is that the story is long on set-up and short on payoff, so what is left is mostly the Rat Pack interacting with each other; and while that is entertaining, it’s also somewhat vacuous. Other issue is that the characters (and there’s a bunch of them) are not easily identifiable (beyond the famous faces playing them, of course), so it’s harder to relate to them individually. […]
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: crime
Charley Varrick
by Felipe Rosa
Charley Varrick: Walter Matthau is surprisingly good (for those used to his grumpy comedic roles) as the title character in this solid, taut film. The plot is not novel, but it unfurls in such a way that the characters have time to be showcased, even if a bit; it’s also very earnest with the brutality of the world they live in. Don Siegel was economical, also, in the way he had the movie shot; the long takes aren’t there to call […]
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: crime, drama
The Italian Job (1969)
by Felipe Rosa
The Italian Job: a charming, but ultimately a bit vacuous and dated, mix of naïveté and light farce. The cast tries their best but with characters that are that plain and uninteresting, they have their work cut out for them. The plot, save for one or two aspects, has been done with more tension and strength elsewhere. Nevertheless, the chase scenes are nice to watch, for what they are.
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: comedy, crime
How to Steal a Million
by Felipe Rosa
How to Steal a Million: it is sometimes said that “they don’t make films like this one anymore”; such nostalgia implies that the subject at hand has wit, class, naïveté unmatched in the present. This film is one that may inspire such comments. It’s light, charming entertainment; has a lovely cast (Peter O’Toole and Audrey Hepburn displaying great chemistry) reading sparkling dialogue with aplomb, all under the solid hand of William Wyler. It’s perhaps too light, almost inconsequential, if that’s a […]
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: crime, romantic comedy
The Bling Ring
by Felipe Rosa
The Bling Ring: while it may be tempting to attach the vacuousness of the characters into the film itself, that would neglect that, this being a Sofia Coppola work, there are some other themes in play. She touches, as usual, the feeling of social isolation; curiously, however, that is not the main issue and it seems that by reaching further, she overextended herself a bit. Nevertheless, this is an interesting story and the acting is convincing. The lensing of Harris Savides […]
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: crime, drama
Now You See Me
by Felipe Rosa
Now You See Me: flashy but vacuous as only a film with this title and tagline can be. However, as it’s said here and elsewhere, time and again, this is what generally comes with summer fare. It’s a very good-looking cast, but they are not playing characters, they are just reading dialogue as fast as they can to hide the lack of a decent story. Visually slick, but that’s yet another trick for distracting the audience. In that regard, the […]
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: crime
Fifth about The Seventh 