Drive

Action
Rod Lott
To race right to the finish line, as it were, “Drive” is — so far — the year’s best film and a new crime classic.

 

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Higher Ground

Can she get an 'Amen'?

Drama
Rod Lott
Many Christians’ condemnation of Hollywood is that Hollywood output often condemns Christianity. “Higher Ground,” the directorial debut of actress Vera Farmiga (“Source Code”), is not one of those movies.

 

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark

‘Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark’ reminds one of the superior scary movie.

Horror
Rod Lott

In general, I prefer the films of Guillermo del Toro that he doesn’t direct (“The Orphanage,” “Splice”) to the ones he does (particularly “Hellboy” and its sequel). That pretty much holds true for “Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark,” which he only co-wrote and co-produced, ceding the director’s chair to newcomer Troy Nixey.

 

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Going ape

The documentary ‘Project Nim’ recounts the strange case of Oklahoma’s most famous chimp.

Documentary
Phil Bacharach
Project Nim
7:30 p.m. Thursday, 5:30 and 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday
Oklahoma City Museum of Art
415 Couch
okcmoa.com
236-3100
$8

 

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

The Debt

Near-excellent espionage lies at the core of ‘The Debt.’

Thriller
Rod Lott
First with “Red” and now with “The Debt,” Helen Mirren has cornered the market on films with senior-citizen assassins. Whereas “Red” was goofy and spoofy, “The Debt” is stone-cold serious — the rare thriller that’s actually smart. Would you expect less from a director as literary-minded as “Shakespeare in Love”’s John Madden?

 

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Beats Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest

Hip-hop giants A Tribe Called Quest are chronicled in the documentary ‘Beats Rhymes & Life.’ You got to get it, got got to get it.

Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark

Don’t pass up the original.

Horror
Rod Lott
In general, I prefer the films of Guillermo del Toro that he doesn’t direct (“The Orphanage,” “Splice”) to the ones he does (particularly “Hellboy” and its sequel). That holds true for “Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark,” which he only co-wrote and co-produced, ceding the director’s chair to newcomer Troy Nixey.

 

Friday, August 26, 2011

Once I Was a Champion

Like a real-life ‘The Wrestler.’

Documentary
Rod Lott
Mixed-martial-arts fighter Evan Tanner once told the camera that in his life, “the best is yet to come.” It didn't. Three years ago, at the age of 37, he was discovered dead in the San Diego desert. To this day, friends and family debate whether it was a suicide, and the documentary “Once I Was a Champion” takes a look at his brief life, extraordinary career and tortured soul.

 

Friday, August 26, 2011

World on a Wire

The little-seen 'World on a Wire' was remade as 1999’s bomb 'The Thirteenth Floor,' starring Gretchen Mol, but don’t hold that against it.

Features
Rod Lott
Friday-Saturday

 

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Another Earth

Out of orbit.

Science Fiction
Phil Bacharach
You’ve got to admire the DIY ethic of “Another Earth.” Raw and grainy, it is steadfastly committed to its own smarts and vision — even if it ultimately falls short of its ambitions.

 

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

One Day

Drama
Phil Bacharach
“One Day” turns on a gimmick, chronicling the tumultuous, on-again/ off-again romance of two people by dropping in on them the same date — July 15 — each year. It’s a clever device, if not enough to disguise the fact that otherwise, this tearjerker is as old-fashioned as they come.

 

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Final Destination 5

‘Final Destination 5’ has plenty of blood and nearly no brains. But as long as you know that …

Horror
Rod Lott
Last summer, the fourth “Final Destination” movie swapped a numeral for a definitive article, because producers figured the franchise had run its course. Then “The Final Destination” made $181 million worldwide, so this summer, we have another chapter, and the numbering system has been reinstated.

 

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Beautiful Darling

This Candy sours

Documentary
Rod Lott
Candy Darling would’ve loved “Beautiful Darling,” the documentary of her brief 29 years alive, because, as one of the persons interviewed reveals, the thing that mattered most to her in life was being considered gorgeous enough to grace the silver screen.

 

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Chimps ahoy!

Science Fiction
Rod Lott
Say what you will about Tim Burton’s widely despised 2001 remake of “Planet of the Apes,” but if it hadn't made serious bank, this prequel would not exist.

 

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Cowboys & Aliens

No joke, pardner: ‘Cowboys & Aliens’ is pure popcorn entertainment.

Science Fiction
Phil Bacharach
“Cowboys & Aliens” sounds like one of those high-concept flicks for which you might expect the idea went no further than the jokey title. Think “Snakes on a Plane.”

 

Wednesday, August 3, 2011