St. Vincent; Familiar story made interesting by the casting of Murray. Telegraphed plot is enjoyable because cast plays the right notes; B
Into the Woods; Sondheim songs hit emotional depths of humour, horror and sadness. Perfectly cast and performed. Highly entertaining; A-
Big Hero 6; All the good reasons why Marvel & Disney united. Touching, exciting, inspiring. Pixar's heart combined w/Marvel's action fun; A
The Book of Life; Spectacular animation deserves more than the typical kid flick slapstick. Would be much better played straight. Still; A-
The Boxtrolls; European flavoured, wildly creative and fun, another brilliant original masterwork from Laika with great voice casting; A-
Dolphin Tale 2; Dramatization would be better as a documentary, child actors can't hold their own. Suitable for a niche crowd of 8-10 yrs; C
Edge of Tomorrow; Sci-fi Groundhog Day cleverly enacts its conceit. Liman knows how to balance theme & action beautifully.Tightly edited; A-
Guardians of the Galaxy; Fully realized space adventure is funny & exciting while establishing its own Marvel universe.Misfits work well; A-
Edit (Aug 8th): I just did something I don't think I've ever done before.Saw a movie three times in the theatre. In less than a week.
Only other movie I probably saw in theatres more than twice is Pulp Fiction. Saw that one four times. Maybe the original Batman three times.
I may have to revisit my initial review of Guardians of the Galaxy after seeing it in IMAX 3D. Actually makes it an A or dare I say, A+ even.
Free Birds; Offensive on so many levels, the worst of which is how criminally not funny it is. Only Takei and Poehler escape unsullied; F
G.I. Joe: Retaliation; What did we do to deserve this? Trailer is > the movie. Designed to sell toys. Two hours I will never get back; D
Blended; Sandler and Barrymore are a classic pairing that works, especially within their new parental roles. Sweetly silly, goofy fare; B
Ride Along; Another buddy comedy, adds nothing new but is an enjoyable entry. Twists so obvious & sequel inevitable but laughs aplenty; B-
Ender's Game; Surprisingly intense sci-fi w/serious themes & interesting effects. Concerned more about humanity than action & explosions; B+
All is Lost; Compelling survival story, like Gravity at sea. Wastes no time w/backstory, marvel at Redford's silent acts of perseverance; B
Earth to Echo; Excellent PG fare; best since Holes that I've seen. May induce motion sickness but stays true to demo. Fun for pre-teens; B+
How to Train Your Dragon 2; Grown up Hiccup's as entertaining as before, w/amazing animation & expanded dragon universe. Enjoyably dark; B
Maleficent; All about the look, but after the amazing score, costumes and art design, lacks any substance. Dull, pedestrian story arc; C-
The Amazing Spider-Man 2; Overstuffed, often teetering btwn Burton Batman/Batman & Robin territory. Emotional heft & good acting overcome; B
X-Men: Days of Future Past; New mutants to franchise provide thrills while old mutants offer dramatic weight. Expertly paced & crafted; A-
