Category Archives: Movies

A Most Violent Year (2014) ☆☆☆(3/4) : A gloomy, fateful pastiche of crime movies

Posted on February 15, 2015 by kaist455

 In “The Godfather” (1972), crime comes to look more like business at the end of its story. In case of “A Most Violent Year”, a dark, tense drama about an ambitious New York business man trying not to lose everything … Continue reading →

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Winter Sleep (2014) ☆☆☆1/2 (3.5/4) : Dormant in his own hypocrisy

Posted on February 14, 2015 by kaist455

 The first thing to draw my attention in Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s new film “Winter Sleep” is the rocky, mountainous landscape of Cappadocia, Turkey. While making wonderful sights for tourism in their weathered appearances, those soft rocks, which were formed from … Continue reading →

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Kingsman: The Secret Agent (2014) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4) : Prim and violent

Posted on February 12, 2015 by kaist455

“Kingsman: The Secret Agent” is an over-the-top spy action film going wildly between casual ultra-violence and occasional self-conscious humor. It is prim and violent while giving us a little wink with its self-aware attitude, but I only observed its story … Continue reading →

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Selma (2014) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4) : A March to Equality

Posted on February 11, 2015 by kaist455

Focusing on one of the monumental moments during the 1960s Civil Rights Movement, “Selma” instantly takes us to that turbulent era viewed from Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights activists. While being a complex portrayal of its hero, … Continue reading →

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What We Do in the Shadows (2014) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4) : Meet vampire flatmates

Posted on February 10, 2015 by kaist455

“What We Do in the Shadows” is one of the most hilarious comedy films I saw during recent months. It is indeed an one-joke comedy as I guessed from its trailer, but this is a smart, funny horror comedy which … Continue reading →

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The Skeleton Twins (2014) ☆☆☆(3/4) : Estranged Twins’ reunion

Posted on February 10, 2015 by kaist455

While not flinching from the dark, gloomy side of its story, “The Skeleton Twin” works as an intimate and humorous story about the rocky relationship between two estranged siblings who respectively struggle with each own personal problems. As observing their … Continue reading →

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St. Vincent (2014) ☆☆☆(3/4) : Murray as your average cranky old neighbor

Posted on February 9, 2015 by kaist455

As watching Bill Murray in “St. Vincent”, I thought about how Murray has steadily maintained his screen persona for more than 20 years. While he looks shabbier than usual here in this movie, he is still Bill Murray we have … Continue reading →

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Inherent Vice (2014) ☆☆☆(3/4) : A Californian film noir shrouded in marijuana haze

Posted on February 9, 2015 by kaist455

At the end of my reserved review on Paul Thomas Anderson’s previous work “The Master” (2012), I asked, “What will be the next step for him?” I could not get the answer at that time, but now I’ve got it … Continue reading →

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The Humbling (2014) ☆☆1/2 (2.5/4): A ‘romance’ before his last act

Posted on February 8, 2015 by kaist455

Like King Lear, the aging hero of “The Humbling” is a character to be played with age and experience. He feels getting old and tired more than ever as he faces the last act of his remaining life, and he … Continue reading →

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Cheap Thrills (2013) ☆☆☆(3/4) : They will be ready for anything….

Posted on February 7, 2015 by kaist455

“Cheap Thrills” is a mean, vicious black comedy with recognizable human traits as its major driving factor. Some of the uncomfortable behaviors presented in the film are so cringe-inducing that we cannot help but roll our eyes with more horror … Continue reading →

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