Category Archives: Movies

Mr. Nobody (2009) ☆☆(2/4) : I’m sorry, but which timeline is he talking about?

Posted on November 3, 2013 by kaist455

 “Mr. Nobody” juggles its balls with all the ambition it has, but I could not hold on to that. As going back and forth between its five or six parallel timelines, it eventually loses its ground and then gets lost … Continue reading →

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Like Someone in Love (2012) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4) : Like Someone in Lies

Posted on November 2, 2013 by kaist455

After delighting us with “Certified Copy”(2010), Abbas Kiarostami enjoys himself again in his latest film “Like Someone in Love”. While it looks like a plain, exemplary Japanese film made with the local actors and crew on the surface, his own … Continue reading →

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The Purge (2013) ☆☆(2/4) : A suburban night of legalized killings

Posted on November 2, 2013 by kaist455

“The Purge” starts with an outrageous but intriguing premise: what if the society temporarily allows killings as a way of ventilating the social anger/resentment pressed inside its individuals? I can think of at least five or six implausible aspects of … Continue reading →

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Thor: the Dark World (2013) ☆☆(2/4) : To be continued…

Posted on November 1, 2013 by kaist455

 I usually think reviewing movie trailers is pretty ludicrous, but I seriously doubt that my review on “Thor: the Dark World”, the sequel to “Thor”(2011) and also one of the latest entries in the Marvel Comics mega-franchise, would be inappropriate … Continue reading →

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Halloween (1978) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4) : “It *was* the boogeyman.”

Posted on October 30, 2013 by kaist455

“More than once during the movie I looked around just to make sure that no one weird was sitting behind me.”  – from Gene Siskel’s 1978 review on “Halloween” When I watched John Carpenter’s “Halloween” for the first time in … Continue reading →

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The Gatekeepers (2012) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4) : Their secret jobs and their serious concerns

Posted on October 25, 2013 by kaist455

The interviewees of Oscar-nominated documentary “The Gatekeepers” have fascinating stories to tell. They worked behind the scenes as the soldiers of a long, messy conflict still continuing at this point, and they are quite willing to talk about those turbulent … Continue reading →

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Rough Play (2013) ☆☆(2/4) : An actor’s rough rise and fall

Posted on October 24, 2013 by kaist455

As a story about the rise and fall in the heartless world of entertainment business, “Rough Play” is naturally an unpleasant film to watch, but it is not interesting enough to hold my attention. Although it becomes a little more … Continue reading →

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The Mill and the Cross (2011) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4) : Into one famous painting and its era

Posted on October 22, 2013 by kaist455

 Watching “The Mill and the Cross” sometimes feels like attending a 1.5-hr visual lecture at art museum. Focusing on one famous painting from the renaissance era, the movie presents its historical background and its small but crucial details to us … Continue reading →

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Captain Phillips (2013) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4) : A taut, intense hostage situation on the sea

Posted on October 21, 2013 by kaist455

 “Captain Phillips” is a gripping thriller tightly holding our attention as it is relentlessly sailing on its tumultuous course. Rigorously maintaining its realistic approach to the story and the characters based on a real-life hijacking incident, the movie forcefully accumulates … Continue reading →

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Gravity (2013) ☆☆☆☆(4/4) : It’s really terrifying to be floated alone in the space

Posted on October 18, 2013 by kaist455

 One of the sweet memories during my trip to Chicago in 2010 was watching movies with my friend and mentor Roger Ebert during one sunny Thursday afternoon. We watched three movies together along with his lovely wife Chaz and his … Continue reading →

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