Mad Max: Fury Road (Film Review)

Holy s#%t this film is amazing.

Jurassic World (Film Review)

I decided to write Jurassic World’s review different than usual—rather than a straight forward review, I’ve created a two-part list split between Jurassic World’s positive aspects, and it’s far more numerous problems.  To be a fair sport, I’ll start with the positives: (BTW this entire review is RIDDLED WITH SPOILERS, so think twice about reading if you haven’t seen Jurassic World).

10 Aspects, Areas, and Scenes I enjoyed throughout Jurassic World:

Girlhood (Quick Review)

Vic (Karidja Touré) is stuck in an inescapable situation—despite ambition and determination, her third year of failing middle school has permanently prevented advancement to high school.  Her paths in life has become limited to futures she doesn’t want—becoming a low wage maid with her mother, selling drugs for a pimp, or hastily getting married to raise kids.  Home brings no comfort either, with her physically violent brother further limiting her life choices.  Vic becomes fed up with life, and resolves to change her lifestyle and persona.  This is the basis of Girlhood, a French drama directed by Céline Sciamma.  In a way the film’s contrary to Richard Linklater's Boyhood; whereas Boyhood is a male focused coming-of-age story starring an all-white cast, Girlhood is a female focused drama starring an all-black cast.  My absolute loathing of Boyhood is not shared between films however, with Girlhood being a vastly superior picture in nearly every way (the exception being Boyhood’s ambitiously unique style of filming).

Pitch Perfect 2 (Film Review)

I’m not going to miss this series when it’s gone.

Clouds of Sils Maria (Film Review)

I was told before viewing Clouds of Sils Maria of its similarity to “a female version of Birdman”.  While both films contain similar plot elements, I completely disagree with such statement.  Clouds of Sils Maria is its own wonderfully unique film with an impressive cast, story, and cinematography.  The film stars Juliette Binoche as aging stage actress Maria Enders.  After the unexpected death of an old director (to whom she owes her career), Maria and her assistant Valentine (Kristen Stewart) stay at his home in Sils Maria, a secluded area within the Alps of Switzerland.  While there, Maria’s offered a co-starring role in a remake of Maloja Snake, the very play which gained her acclaim 20 years ago.  Instead of the same role—as the young seductress Sigrid—Maria would instead play Helena, a disheartened, middle-age woman who’s enticed and used by Sigrid until possibly committing suicide (whether she does or not is left ambiguous).  Maria reluctantly accepts the role, yet begins regretting such decision as she practices lines with Valentine over their time spent in Sils Maria.