Category: Mindless Mondays

Another microscopic indie this time, about a pair of high school virgins who form a connection one night, and contemplate, you guessed it, “the first time.” What makes this film unique is that it’s not just a raunchy sex comedy, but tries to form an honest conversation between the two leads. It feels realistic enough,…

Middle of Nowhere is an ultra-independent film not many will get a chance to see in theaters but should check out when it’s released On Demand/Red Box/Netflix. It’s the kind of small movie that can leave a big impact just by exploring one character very, very well. What Works: The film is about a black…

This is a perfect example of why you can’t judge a movie by its first ten minutes. Because when I started this film (about, you guessed it, seven psychopaths hanging out in Los Angeles, sometimes killing one another) I really loved the opening moments and general setup. But then, as it kept going, it was…

Smashed is an independent film starring Mary Elizabeth Winstead (who always seems right on the cusp of stardom) and Breaking Bad’s Aaron Paul (once again playing a likable, vulnerable addict) as a married couple of alcoholics. The movie is advertised as a story of what happens to them as a couple when Winstead decided to…

As a critic, there are just certain movies you look more forward to than others. I can’t say I go into Alex Cross, with the same level of enthusiasm I go into Cloud Atlas with, but that can actually work for a low-expectations movie. If the bar is set low, they can easily jump over…

Okay, so this movie opened a few weeks back and nobody really cared about it then (it was something of a flop on opening weekend) so I’ll just keep this review nice and trim. Don’t worry though, I have plenty of other reviews coming up later in the day… What Works: This movie (about Kevin…

What better low-key indie to review today (the night of the final presidential debate, which I will be writing about during and after it) than Butter, a movie that technically is about the obscure-passion of Iowa butter carving, but is really an allegory about Sarah Palin vs. Obama, and the clash of values between religious…

Okay, so this movie is a microscopic indie that pretty much bombed out in theaters a couple weeks back. [It opened very limited and still had a lousy per-theater average which is all that matters for indies.] And yet…I saw it when it opened and feel compelled to at least throw out a review. What…

I want to start by saying that this film is very good. I want to start by saying that because the majority of the review will consist of how it isn’t great and may be a slight disappointment if (like me) you loved Ben Affleck’s last two movies: Gone Baby Gone and The Town. What Works: The…

This is the best film about high school I’ve seen in years. I have to admit, it’s not my absolute favorite genre (I feel like it’s just not that interesting, and has been fully explored), but this film works not by finding an entirely revolutionary angle—–it explores some of the same tropes as other high…

This latest bomb from Tim Burton is an original movie that I wish I had liked more than I did. I was rooting for it, I really was, but it never quite grabbed me the way I had hoped. I think the film’s young target audience (it is made for children) will probably hate it….