The Little Things Review

Synopsis
Former Los Angeles detective and current Kern County deputy sheriff Joe Deacon (Denzel Washington) returns to LA to pick up some evidence. While there, he notices similarities between one of his unsolved cases and a current case being investigated by Detective Jim Baxter (Rami Malick). Deacon teams up with Baxter to solve the case.

Review
A good psychological thriller will find a hook that gets you into the story then won’t let you go and keep you on the edge of your seat the whole way through. The Little Things manages to do just that. The film finds new ways to pull you in as it goes on, adding new wrinkles to the story, providing new revelations and tension. It manages to keep a good mystery and paces itself well for the most part. As the mystery deepens and more is revealed, we the audience have just as much information and as many details as the characters on screen have, making the story more engaging as we are trying to solve the case at the same time as Joe Deacon (Denzel Washington) and Detective Jim Baxter (Rami Malek). For the majority of the film, the lens is on the the three leading men of Washington, Malek, and Jared Leto. Together, they carry the film expertly and naturally play off each other. Leto in particular was fantastic and easily the stand out of the trio. As is typical in this type of story, the movie is a bit of a slow burn, and as such it feels like it can drag out at times. The cryptic ending doesn’t wrap things up as much as expected but at the same time, it leaves the resolution open to interpretation, which feels fitting for this film.

I thought The Little Things was GOOD 🙂 It’s easy to find similarities between this film and other crime psychological thrillers, but it does everything it’s supposed to do. An engaging story and a core cast that’s at the top of their game provide thrills right up until the very end.

Trailer

Cast & Crew
John Lee Hancock – Director / Writer
Thomas Newman – Composer

Denzel Washington – Joe ‘Deke’ Deacon
Rami Malek – Jim Baxter
Jared Leto – Albert Sparma
Chris Bauer – Detective Sal Rizoli
Michael Hyatt – Flo Dunigan
Terry Kinney – LASD Captain Carl Farris
Natalie Morales – Detective Jamie Estrada
Isabel Arraiza – Ana Baxter
Joris Jarsky – Detective Sergeant Rogers
Glenn Morshower – Captain Henry Davis
Sofia Vassilieva – Tina Salvatore

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There is still plenty of time to join the Ultimate Decades Blogathon 2021. For all the details, check out the announcement post.

Uncut Gems Review

Synopsis
New York City jeweler Howard Ratner (Adam Sandler) is always looking for the next big score and always pushing his luck to find it. When he comes across a “sure thing,” it puts him at odds with friends and enemies alike.

Review
It has been a long time since I have seen a new Adam Sandler movie. I’m talking like 2011’s Jack and Jill and 2008’s You Don’t Mess with the Zohan before that. I’ve even missed Pixels, which my aunt has assured me I would enjoy given the amount of video games I play. But Uncut Gems piqued my interest because it looked like a different kind of Sandler movie. Even by my own admission I haven’t seen many of his movies outside of his early popular hits to compare to, but his role in Uncut Gems is unlike I have ever seen from him and might just be his best performance.

Sandler is absolutely brilliant as Howard Ratner, a shifty jeweler in New York City. Sandler is mostly known as a comedic actor but his role as Howard shows that he can branch out to other types of roles if he puts his mind to it. Howard is not a good person and is involved in shady dealings. Sandler bring a schizophrenic element to the part and makes it seem natural. The further I got into the film, the less and less I believed the person on screen was Sandler and not some doppelganger. Compared to other roles in his filmography, he is unrecognizable. After watching him in this film, I would like to see Sandler take on more dramatic roles such as this.

As I said before, Howard is not a good person, you might even call him a downright awful person. Usually a main character of a film has some sort of redeeming quality so the audience can connect and root for them. Not Howard. This disconnect from the audience actually works towards another purpose. Since he is such a terrible individual, I continuously expected something terrible to happen to him. This is where I found the suspense of the film to come from. I was constantly wondering when something will go wrong for Howard. Once this thought took hold, I was glued to the screen, always expecting the worse to happen in every scene.

The cinematography was expertly used to elevate the tension as well. Tight angles and small, crowded spaces were often used to create a sense of claustrophobia, making the audience more uneasy being up close and personal with such despicable people. Kudos to the Safdie brothers and cinematographer Darius Khondji for creating an uncomfortable feeling using just the camera.

If I had one complaint about the film it would be that it is a bit too long. At 2 hours and 15 minutes, it does drag on a points. If one or two subplots would have been cut to shave the run time down by 20 or 30 minutes, I think this film would have found that sweet spot.

I thought Uncut Gems was GREAT 😀 Adam Sandler completely transforms himself in what is probably his most dramatic role to date. I found myself on edge expecting the worst to happen. While it was just a smidge too long, Uncut Gems is unrelenting and extremely raw, dragging you into Howard’s seedy world and never letting go.

Trailer

Cast & Crew
Benny Safdie – Director / Writer
Josh Safdie – Director / Writer
Ronald Bronstein – Writer
Daniel Lopatin – Composer

Adan Sandler – Howard Ratner
Julia Fox – Julia
Idina Menzel – Dinah Ratner
Lakeith Stanfield – Demany
Kevin Garnett – Himself
Eric Bogosian – Arno
Keith Williams Richards – Phil
Mike Francesa – Gary
Judd Hirsch – Gooey
Noa Fisher – Marcel Ratner
Jonathan Aranbayev – Eddie Ratner
Jacob Idielski – Beni Ratner

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On Monday, the Ultimate 2010s Blogathon was announced! If you would like to participate, all the details can be found in this announcement post.

Inside Man Review

This review was originally posted for MovieRob‘s heist-themed Genre Grandeur (which was chosen by yours truly 😀 ).

Synopsis
Hostage negotiator Detective Keith Frazier (Denzel Washington) gets called in when a Manhattan bank gets taken over by bank robbers, led by Dalton Russell (Clive Owen). Russell claims to have planned the perfect heist and is always one step ahead of the police. Meanwhile, the bank’s owner (Christopher Plumber) hires Madeleine White (Jodie Foster) to speak with the robbers and retrieve his prized possession contained in one of the safe deposit boxes.

Review
For my entry in this heist-themed Genre Grandeur, I was going to pick my favorite heist film, Ocean’s Eleven, but didn’t choose it for two reasons: 1) I’ve already reviewed it (which you can check out here), and 2) I’m hoping someone else chooses it for their Genre Grandeur entry. Instead, I opted to go with another one of my top heist films: Inside Man. Inside Man may not have the same fun atmosphere as Ocean’s Eleven but what it does have is a heist where the audience only has what little information the main characters have.

Heist films can be told from either the robbers’ perspective or the police’s perspective. Most often, whichever perspective the movie is told from, chances are that is who will prevail over the other. However, it is very hard to tell who will win the cat-and-mouse game in Inside Man. The movie is told from the police’s perspective but the robbers always seem to be one step ahead of them. As the audience, we are kept just as in the dark about the robber’s true motives as Detective Frazier (Denzel Washington) and the rest of the police force. It really keeps you engrossed in the film and on the edge of your seat if you don’t already know what is coming.

Denzel Washington and Clive Owen are both fantastic in this film. I wouldn’t say it is one of their best films for either actor but they are both able to take their parts and run with them. I liked Owen better, but only slightly, because he had the calm and collected thief mastermind shtick down. Washington and Chiwetel Ejiofor are so much fun to watch on screen together. They make a perfect pair of detectives, easily bouncing off each other and clearly having fun.

This film utilizes a seldom-used technique of flash forwards. These are used to get the some of the hostages’ perspectives about the bank robbery, as well as offer some exposition and even foreshadow events that are to come. Like I said, this technique isn’t used very often in movies and I thought it was used to great effect here. However, I wish it would have been used more because it only occurred a few times randomly in the middle act of the film. It could have been used more frequently to see more of the robbery from the hostages’ point-of-view. Maybe it was a time constraint (the film runs over two hours) or Spike Lee not wanting to offer too much of a good thing and leave us wanting more.

I feel like Jodie Foster’s character wasn’t necessary to the plot. She mainly served as exposition for what the robbers were going after and why it was so important to the bank owner, Arthur Case (Christopher Plumber). This information could have been given through Case’s discussions with the police or by Owen’s character, since it is the item he is trying to steal.

I thought Inside Man was GREAT :-D. Washington and Owen steal the show with their performances in a film with many other big names. The third main character, played by Foster, doesn’t feel completely necessary to the plot. Flash forwards are a cool effect used in the film that I wanted to see more of. Inside Man keeps you just as off balance as the other characters without becoming too complicated it trips over itself, creating a fantastic payout in the end.

Favorite Quote
Detective Mitchell: Let me see your shoe.
Detective Frazier: Huh?
Mitchell: Let me see your shoe.
Frazier: Why?
Mitchell: ‘Cause I have never seen anybody put their foot that far up a guy’s ass.

Trailer

Cast & Crew
Spike Lee – Director
Russell Gewirtz – Writer
Terence Blanchard – Composer

Denzel Washington – Detective Keith Frazier
Clive Owen – Dalton Russell
Jodie Foster – Madeleine White
Christopher Plumber – Arthur Case
Williem Dafoe – Captain John Darius
Chiwetel Ejiofor – Detective Bill Mitchell
Carlos Andres Gomez – Steve
Kim Director – Stevie
James Ransone – Steve-O
Bernie Rachelle – Chaim
Peter Gerety – Captain Coughlin
Victor Colicchio – Sergeant Collins
Cassandra Freeman – Sylvia

Double Indemnity Review – The Remembering Barbara Stanwyck Blogathon

Crystal, the lover of classic films behind the blog In the Good Old Days of Classic Hollywood, is a huge fan of Barbra Stanwyk.  To celebrate the anniversary of her passing, Crystal is hosting the The Remembering Barbara Stanwyck Blogathon, and invited me to join in on the fun.  Not having much experience with Stanwyk, I was more than happy to join in!  Having heard good things about Double Indemnity, I decided now was the perfect time to check out this classic.  Check out the rest of the entries in the blogathon here.

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Synopsis
Walter Neff (Fred MacMurray), an insurance salesman, falls for the beautiful Phyllis Dietrichson(Barbra Stanwyck). Unhappy with her marriage, she convinces him to kill her husband and collect the insurance money.

Review
I didn’t know much about Double Indemnity going into it other than the main character was an insurance salesman. So you could say I didn’t have any expectations for the film. In the end, it was a good thing I didn’t have any expectations because any that I would have had would have been crushed.

Double Indemnity primarily focuses on two characters: Walter Neff, played by Fred MacMurray, and Phyllis Dietrichson, played by Barbra Stanwyck. When the movie starts, Walter is a good man. He is actually kind of a bad-ass. He is quick witted, full of self confidence, and always has a match ready to light a smoke. MacMurray fills the role perfectly. He has no problem portraying the confident salesman, the gentle lover, or the cold-hearted murderer.

On the other side of the coin, there is Phyllis. When we first meet Phyllis, she doesn’t seem very threatening. As the movie progresses, it becomes clear that she is more dangerous than she seems. Phyllis is a sultry woman, you almost don’t expect her to have this killer instinct. Stanwyk breaths a lot of life to this femme fetale. One moment she is all over Walter, then the next she is straight-faced and ready to kill her husband.

The movie is narrated by Walter in classic noir style. This was a double-edged sword because it somehow both removed and created tension. It created tension because I already knew he was going to get caught. Throughout the movie he kept trying to stay one step ahead Barton Keyes, the man responsible for catching insurance fraud. So every scene I kept thinking “will this be the moment?” But at the same time, since I knew he was narrating, whatever trouble Walter got into, chances are he would have gotten out of it.

I thought Double Indemnity is GREAT :-D. Fred MacMurray and Barbra Stanwyck were simply electric as the two leads. Walter trying to stay ahead of his pursuer made for some pretty tense moments. However, knowing that he was going to get out of whatever trouble he was in removed some of the tension. I don’t have much experience with noir films and this felt like a great introduction to the genre.

Favorite Quote
Phyllis Dietrichson: Nettie, show Mr. Neff to the living room.
Walter Neff: Where would the living room be?
Nettie: In there. But they keep the liquor locked up.
Walter: That’s alright. I always carry my own keys.

Trailer

Cast & Crew
Bill Wilder – Director / Screenplay
Raymond Chandler – Screenplay
Miklos Rozsa – Composer

Fred MacMurray – Walter Neff
Barbra Stanwyck – Phyllis Dietrichson
Edward G. Robinson – Barton Keyes
Porter Hall – Mr. Jackson
Jean Heather – Lola Dietrichson
Tom Powers – Mr. Dietrichson
Byron Bar – Nino Zachetti
Richard Gaines – Edward S. Norton, Jr.
Fortunio Bonanova – Sam Garlopis
John Philliber – Joe Peters

Lightning Review: Sicario

Synopsis
FBI agent Kate Macer (Emily Blunt) is recruited by Matt Graver (Josh Brolin) to assist in a task force trying to take down a drug lord who operates around the border of US and Mexico.

Review
Going into Sicario, I was expecting more of an action movie, not the crime drama that it was. I mention that because I think it skewed my expectations for the film. I thought it was going to be some action-filled, shoot-em-up fest. Instead, it is much more quiet and meticulous than that. There is action, and when the action happens, it really revs up and gets sensational. However, the film is composed mainly of the many quieter moments in between these high octane and intense scenes. A lot of time is spent with Kate Macer to get to know her and get inside her head. Emily Blunt does a great job. Although, as good as Blunt is here, Benicio Del Toro is the stand-out performance of the film. He is mysterious and you never know quite what is going through his head.

As I mentioned, the pace was slower than I was anticipating but Sicario still did a fantastic job of keeping the tension. The audience is just as in the dark as Macer is throughout the film about what her purpose on the task force is. I constantly found myself excited to see what was going to happen next, especially when it came to Alejandro, Del Toro’s character. Cinematography isn’t something I bring up very often in a review but I would remiss not to mention it. This film has some breathtaking shots.  Every shot makes sure you can see everything you need to see and you are focused on what you need to focus on, whether it’s a broad shot from above or a close up. In terms of action, it does well to keep the action visible and in frame, even during the hectic moments. Sometimes it can be fun when a movie ends up being not what you predicted and still manages to be a fun ride.

Rating
4/5

Trailer

Cast & Crew
Dennis Villeneuve – Director
Taylor Sheridan – Writer
Johann Johannsson – Composer

Emily Blunt – Kate Macer
Benicio Del Toro – Alejandro
Josh Brolin – Matt Graver
Victor Garber – Dave Jennings
Jon Bernthal – Ted
Daniel Kaluuya – Reggie Wayne
Jeffery Donovan – Steve Forsing
Raoul Trujillo – Rafael
Julio Cedillo – Fausto Alarcon
Hank Rogerson – Phil Coopers
Bernardo P. Saracino – Manuel Diaz
Maximiliano Hernandez – Silvio
Kevin Wiggins –Burnett
Edgar Arreola – Guillermo

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I’ve started expanding Drew’s Reviews to social media (slowly but surely).  First up is Google+! It’s the least used, I know, but I gotta start somewhere.  So if you want to get my reviews and other posts on Google+, follow me here.  Right now it’s pretty bare but I will slowly expand on it soon.  I hope to see you there! 🙂

Cheers.