A quick Google search will show you the average life expectancy for North Americans is around 80 years, which may be why turning 40 freaks out so many people. This Is 40, the new film from writer-director Judd Apatow, is a sharply perceptive, hilarious and moving comedy-drama about how the regular stress and frustration of family life gets amped up by the arrival of that magic age.
Read the rest of my review at Oakville.com:
Although movies are meant to hold a mirror up to life, sometimes the details hit too close to home. Such is the case with Jack Reacher, a perfectly serviceable mystery thriller undone by disturbing parallels with recent real-world shooting violence.
Read the rest of my review at Oakville.com:
Director Peter Jackson returns to Middle-Earth with The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, a prequel to the Lord of the Rings trilogy and first of three (possibly four) more movies. The result is very much like the previous films, which, depending on your level of involvement with the source material, is either a good or a bad thing.
Read the rest of my review at Oakville.com:
http://www.oakville.com/articles/the-hobbit-an-unexpected-journey-movie-review/
Every December, the TV schedule fills with themed TV episodes, specials, and classic films to celebrate the Christmas season. Many of these are much-loved and still considered mandatory viewing, but they’re re-run every year, and what do you do if you and the family are finally bored of It’s a Wonderful Life or A Charlie Brown Christmas?
Read the rest of this article at Oakville.com:
http://www.oakville.com/articles/great-christmas-movies-for-the-whole-family/
Crime doesn’t pay. It’s an old adage, but one that’s keenly felt by everyone in Killing Them Softly. Unfortunately, despite some good performances and a couple of compelling action scenes, there’s no real payoff for the audience either.
Read the rest of my review at Oakville.com:
http://www.oakville.com/articles/killing-them-softly-movie-review/
Film adaptations of novels are usually frustrating. Not only does the director’s vision supplant the images readers have formed in their own mind, the condensed depiction of the book may not even match the reader’s concept of what the story is about. It’s odd that I was reminded of this while viewing Life of Pi, because I haven’t even read the book it’s based on. It’s a brilliant film, effectively covering all the bases of the medium, but one or two shortcomings make me wonder if something was lost in translation.
Read the rest of my review at Oakville.com:
As Movember 2012 draws to a close, some of my thoughts about the experience as a first-timer:
Over the month, that commitment has often been tested, because… 2. The moustache has really lost respect.
I’ve been told over the past month that my mo makes me look like everything from an adult film star to a sex offender, from a used car salesman to the man in the black top hat who ties helpless damsels to railroad tracks. Maybe I just have that kind of face, or my friends are loving the chance to get one over on me. But it seems to me that what was once a grand symbol of manliness has lost its mojo over the years. Sure we still have a few moustache icons – Ron Swanson, Ned Flanders, the Montreal Police – but they’re dwindling. I’m glad that events like Movember are reclaiming the proud tradition of sporting upper lip hair, if only for the eleventh month of the year.
Of course, I’m writing in jest. Here’s the point. Movember is coming to an end, and I’d love for you to make a donation to my cause. I’m especially close to Movember’s new support of mental health issues. I recently suffered from short-term, mild depression, and at the time I felt like all I needed to do was “man up” and handle it on my own. I’ve since learned that attitude may have allowed things to get worse, and interfered with or extended my recovery. Your donation to Movember will help fund campaigns to raise awareness among men that it’s not embarrassing or a sign of weakness to seek treatment for potentially serious health issues of the body and mind. More information and donate online here: http://mobro.co/davidraitt
Thank you in advance for your gracious consideration. And even if you choose not to donate to my cause, please consider donating to some form of charity this year. It’s the season of giving, after all.
Fifty years and twenty-two (official) films after the release of Dr. No, the James Bond franchise is still running strong. The series has defined the modern spy genre, and though many competitors have arisen over the years, none seem to generate anticipation as much as the latest exploits of 007, even if they sometimes seem as worn and comfortable as a pair of old slippers. Skyfall, the third film starring Daniel Craig, will give Bond purists much to love and to quibble over, but it’s a top-notch action film, well worth the anticipation.
Read the rest of my review at Oakville.com:
Today’s action movies are often compared to video games, so why not an action movie about video game characters? Disney Animation’s Wreck-It Ralph is the latest successor to the Toy Story formula of portraying the adventures our playthings get up to when we’re not around. And while it’s not quite as funny as might be expected, it does benefit from smart writing and attention to detail.
Read the rest of my review at Oakville.com:
http://www.oakville.com/articles/wreck-it-ralph-movie-review/
Even landlocked as we are, in the middle of North America, it’s still easy to understand the allure of surfing the Big Wave. Pounding breakers, especially of the heights generated by ocean coastlines, are an awesome sight, and though we might think the daredevils who attempt to ride wooden sticks on top of them are crazy, you’ve gotta admit it looks pretty cool.
Jay Moriarity was a teenage surfing prodigy who became world famous when his spectacular wipeout on the Mavericks break was captured on film and made the cover of Surfer magazine. Chasing Mavericks dramatizes the story of Jay’s life leading up to that moment, but while the surfing scenes are as jaw-dropping as you’d expect, the rest of the movie is under water.
Read the rest of my review at Oakville.com:
http://www.oakville.com/articles/chasing-mavericks-movie-review/