Don't Look Now

Don’t Look Now; Creepy film w/clever editing & Venice location shooting creating an air of despair & trepidation. Acting leads play their relationship well, as they live, love & suffer through exploits tragic & mysterious. A thriller that uses film techniques to great effect; B+   

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2

Hunger Games:Mockingjay Pt. 2; Needlessly split second instalment misses emotional beats for action sequences. Too big for novel details; B-

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1

The Hunger Games:Mockingjay Part 1; Slow moving cash grab prologue tries valiantly to film unfilmable mental horror & anguish of Katniss; B-

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire; Hits all the right emotional notes while amping up the action from the first one. Cast delivers spot on; A

Fallen

Directed by:  Gregory Hoblit
Starring:  Denzel Washington, John Goodman, Donald Sutherland, Embeth Davis
Running Time:  2h 04min

This movie had the best ending I've seen in a Hollywood film since Seven came out three years ago.  Washington is such an amazing actor that it seems like he's wasting his time in this wishy washy Angles and Devils cop thriller.  But upon completion of the film you can see why he wanted to do this film.  He is the film's greatest asset, as he makes very contrived scenes enjoyable.  His co-stars play typical characters but pull everything above typical stereotypes, rising to Denzel's challenge.  The direction tries to mimic Seven, with its overall darkness, which is annoying but suitable.  I think I could watch Denzel in just about anything but it's nice to see him break from his usual to give us this film that puts a twist on an old Hollywood genre.

Grade: A-