BLACK MASS (2015)
Direction: Scott Cooper (Crazy Heart, Out of Furnace)
Screenplay: Mark Mallouk (writing debut), Jez Butterworth (Edge of Tomorrow [I love this film] and the upcoming James Bond film Spectre)
Cast: Johnny Depp, Joel Edgerton, Dakota Johnson, Kevin Bacon, Peter Sarsgaard, and Benedict Cumberbatch
US Release: 18 September 2015
Philippine Release: 21 October 2015
IMDb Synopsis: The true story of Whitey Bulger, the brother of a state senator and the most infamous violent criminal in the history of South Boston, who became an FBI informant to take down a Mafia family invading his turf.
In the past five years, Mr. Depp has been in more flops than hits (critically and commercially): The Tourist (2010), The Rum Diary (2011), Dark Shadows (2012), The Lone Ranger (2013), Transcendence (2014), and this year's Mortdecai (2015). All of these have been paycheck films and he seems to be really going for these big budget movies. A report even surfaced in 2013 that he exited Black Mass (2015) because the producers cannot afford to pay him USD 20 million! Well, it's good that it turned out to be false as Depp is enjoying what some critics have gone on to say as his best performance to date. James Bulger is a fine departure from the tiring strings of this actor's eccentric incarnations courtesy of his neverending Pirates of the Caribbean (2003) sequels and Tim Burton collabs. He is currently in the top five of pundits in their Oscar predictions. It is yet to be determined how he would fare relative to his competition, especially with another Oscar overdue actor Leo DiCaprio in contention for The Revenant (2015).
A lot is owed to the young director Scott Cooper, who gave Jeff Bridges his Best Actor Oscar in Crazy Heart (2009) after a long and illustrious career. Cooper is a storyteller who has yet to find his stamp and niche but nevertheless, is interested in realizing his optimum talent as a filmmaker.
Mob films are a genre of their own and the exploration of real-life stories of crime bosses, contemporary and from the past, is always an exciting adventure.
Rotten Tomatoes: 75% of critics gave the movie positive reviews
Consensus: Black Mass spins a gripping yarn out of its fact-based story -- and leaves audiences with one of Johnny Depp's most compelling performances in years.
Metacritic: 68/100
Consensus: Generally favorable reviews
Check its box office gross here.
***
SICARIO (2015)
Direction: Denis Villeneuve (Incendies, Prisoners)
Screenplay: Taylor Sheridan (actor, this is his writing debut)
Cast: Emily Blunt, Josh Brolin, Benicio del Toro
US Release: 2 October 2015
Philippine Release: 6 October 2015
IMDb Synopsis: An idealistic FBI agent is enlisted by an elected government task force to aid in the escalating war against drugs at the border area between the U.S. and Mexico.
Before being thrust into the Hollywood limelight with his Academy Award-nominated Incendies (2010), Québécois director Denis Villeneuve was a Cannes staple waiting to be discovered. His excellent adaptation of the Wajdi Mouawad play led to one of the richest stories about the exploration of the human condition and the resilience of the human spirit. This paved the way into high profile Hollywood films Prisoners (2013) and Enemy (2014). Both may have been underseen but a new thriller master director has been born. And Sicario (2015) just proved that (read the spectacular reviews).
Emily Blunt is one of the most interesting actresses of her generation. From her breakout perf in the worldwide hit comedy The Devil Wears Prada ([2006], almost stealing the film from Meryl Streep herself), to sparring with movie stars Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, and the great late Philip Seymour Hoffman in Charlie Wilson's War (2007), to donning period costumes as The Young Victoria (2009), to the unconventional love story co-starring Matt Damon in The Adjustment Bureau (2011), to her unexpected great singing as the Baker's Wife in Into the Woods (2014), and to her exciting heroine turns in action films Looper (2012), opposite Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and The Edge of Tomorrow (2014), opposite Tom Cruise; her versatility has always surprised the viewers and one cannot wait to see what else she has to offer. In this movie, she shows another side which the audiences have not yet seen from her, reminiscent of the steeliness Jessica Chastain displayed in Zero Dark Thirty (2012). Seldom do we have movies with strong female characters in what could have easily been handed to male actors so we need to thank Taylor Sheridan for writing this fantastic lead role. Flanked with strong supporting turns from the underrated Josh Brolin and the stereotyped (but magnificent) Benicio del Toro (buzzed to land an Oscar nomination, his third, for his perf in this film), Blunt's Kate Macer is cold, calculating, hardworking, but naive and human.
Sicario (2015) should be equally entertaining and intense.
Rotten Tomatoes: 90% of critics gave the movie positive reviews
Consensus: Led by outstanding work from Emily Blunt and Benicio del Toro, Sicario is a taut, tightly wound thriller with much more on its mind than attention-getting set pieces.
Metacritic: 82/100
Consensus: Universal acclaim
Box office gross here.
***
BRIDGE OF SPIES (2105)
Direction: Steven Spielberg (The Color Purple, Catch Me If You Can, Minority Report)
Screenplay: Matt Charman (sophomore writing feature), Ethan Coen and Joel Coen (Fargo, The Big Lebowski, No Country for Old Men)
Cast: Tom Hanks, Mark Rylance, Alan Alda, Amy Ryan
US Release: 16 October 2015
Philippine Release: 14 October 2015
IMDb Synopsis: An American lawyer is recruited by the CIA during the Cold War to help rescue a pilot detained in the Soviet Union.
It is hard to define what sets the legendary Steven Spielberg apart from the other master filmmakers. He has gone on to show his versatility by directing blockbusters, historical films, thrillers, alien movies, dramas, and adventures -- from his first box office hit Jaws (1975) and up to present, 40 years later. The prolific talent that he is, one cannot fault him for his misses in his varied filmography. In the latter part of his career, he has shown affinity for re-imagining of historical events such as Empire of the Sun (1987), Schindler's List (1993), Amistad (1997), Munich (2005), and Lincoln (2012). He adds to this list his newest flick Bridge of Spies (2015) set during the Cold War. He enlists the help of his long-time collaborator Tom Hanks to lead this political/war drama. Regardless of how a Spielberg film turns out, the audiences are always eager to see his movies and I am one with his fans in saying I cannot wait to see Bridge of Spies (2015).
After his fifth and last Oscar nomination for Cast Away (2000) in 2001, Hanks has dabbled more in commercial films (and producing): The Terminal (2004), The Polar Express (2004), The Da Vinci Code (2006), Angels and Demons (2009), and Toy Story 3 (2010). His only 'serious' films in between were Road to Perdition (2002), Charlie Wilson's War ([2007], a comedy but it's a prestige film), Larry Crowne (2011), Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (2011), and Cloud Atlas (2012) which all did not translate to both critical and commercial acclaim. It is only in 2013 that the public had shown renewed interest in Mr. Hanks' films through the edge-of-the-seat biographical thriller Captain Phillips (2013) and the Mary Poppins-making backstory Saving Mr. Banks (2013). In Captain Phillips (2013), his all-American charm was on full display with some of his most graceful-acting-under-pressure turns in recent years. But the clincher was actually at the end when his titular character finally breaks down, resulting to his best acted scene ever (I will never be ashamed to admit that I was sobbing inside the cinema, oblivious to the strange stares from the other movie watchers). Immediately, everyone was reminded of the brilliance of this movie star. Alas, it would go down in history as one of the most criminally snubbed performances at the Oscars when it failed to snag an acting nomination for Mr. Hanks.
Are you as excited as I am with this newest Spielberg-Hanks collab?
Rotten Tomatoes:
Consensus: No reviews yet
Metacritic:
Consensus: No reviews yet
Box office gross here.
***
CRIMSON PEAK (2015)
Direction: Guillermo del Toro (Hellboy 1 and 2, Pan's Labyrinth)
Screenplay: Guillermo del Toro, Matthew Robins (The Sugarland Express, *batteries not included, Mimic)
Cast: Mia Wasikowska, Tom Hiddleston, Jessica Chastain
US Release: 16 October 2015
Philippine Release: 14 October 2015
IMDb Synopsis: In the aftermath of a family tragedy, an aspiring author is torn between love for her childhood friend and the temptation of a mysterious outsider. Trying to escape the ghosts of her past, she is swept away to a house that breathes, bleeds...and remembers.
Guillermo del Toro is one of the Three Amigos imports from Mexico, along with equally acclaimed directors Alfonso Cuarón and Alejandro González Iñárritu. However, these two have gone on to direct memorable films and masterpieces, in the process winning Best Director Oscar for each of them. Del Toro is quite the odd one: he's only directed one masterpiece - El laberinto del fauno (2006) - and since then focused more on tentpoles namely Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008) and Pacific Rim (2013). I am one with fans worldwide in awaiting with bated breath his next serious flick and Crimson Peak (2015) seems to fit this mold. This original creation from Del Toro's wild imagination piqued my curiosity afterI saw the trailer. It seemed very Del Toro and plus he cast three of the most exciting actors of our time. But more than being enthusiastic about the perfs from leads Mia Wasikowska (a very bold and fine young actress boasting an enviable filmography), Tom Hiddleston (who has yet to break away from his Marvel cinematic universe character Loki), and the hardworking and gorgeous Jessica Chastain; I am more thrilled with how Crimson Peak (2015) will turn out to be. I really hope it's Pan's Labyrinth (2006) good.
Rotten Tomatoes:
Consensus: No reviews yet
Metacritic:
Consensus: No reviews yet
Box office gross here.
***
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THE BIG SHORT (2015)
Direction: Adam McKay (Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues )
Screenplay: Charles Randolph (The Life of David Gale, The Interpreter, Love and Other Drugs), Adam McKay
Cast: Christian Bale, Steve Carrell, Ryan Gosling, Melissa Leo, Marisa Tomei, and Brad Pitt
US Release: 23 December 2015
Philippine Release: No schedule yet
IMDb Synopsis: Four outsiders in the world of high-finance who predicted the credit and housing bubble collapse of the mid-2000's decide to take on the big banks for their lack of foresight and greed.
The Big Short (2015) is the film adaptation of the 2010 Michael Lewis bestselling non-fiction of the same name. It joins the likes of Margin Call (2011) and Too Big To Fail (2011) in exploring the financial crisis of 2008-2010 (other films related are Up in the Air [2009] and The Company Men [2011], although they focused more on the effects). I am not familiar with credit default swap and collaterized debt obligation but this movie details the rise of the market of the former in lieu of the latter which then led to large profits earned by its creators Meredith Whitney, Steve Eisman, Greg Lippmann, and Ben Hockett, during the financial crisis. This should be interesting enough to deviate our attention from the alarming filmography of the director who catered more to Will Ferrell comedies.
It should also be a relief that this movie has pooled a talented group of actors: Oscar winners Christian Bale, Melissa Leo, and Marisa Tomei; and Oscar nominees Steve Carrell (gee, this still feels new to me), Ryan Gosling, and Brad Pitt (he has an Oscar for producing though but I am treating him here as an actor and yes he's also a producer of this film). Carrell, Gosling, and Tomei reunite from Crazy, Stupid, Love. (2011) while Bale and Leo reunite from The Fighter (2010), which won them their Oscars.
Margin Call (2011) was a great intense film from a first-time director with a great script and a great cast (Kevin Spacey, Jeremy Irons, Zachary Quinto, Paul Bettany, Stanley Tucci, etc.). Comparisons may not be helped so The Big Short (2015) better deliver.
Consensus: No reviews yet
Metacritic:
Consensus: No reviews yet
Box office gross here.
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