All posts by Chris Heller
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Monster Mashup
There is only one reason why anybody would want to endure Pacific Rim. That reason happens midway through the movie, when a giant robot faces...
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A Satisfying Splash
At first glance, The Way, Way Back seems to hit all the benchmarks of a pleasant indie comedy. It's got the sad-eyed teenage boy who's...
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Shakespeare as Summer Sizzler
This is not hyperbole: Much Ado About Nothing reflects Joss Whedon's skill as a director as much as it celebrates Shakespeare's timeless words. (Blasphemy, you...
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Somber Superman
Zack Snyder, visionary director. The title gets plastered across ads for every movie he makes, but lately, it's more the butt of a joke than...
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Friendship in Black and White
A single line by the funky British pop band Hot Chocolate sums up the pleasant worldview of Frances Ha: ''Everyone's a winner, baby, that's the...
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Star Trek Returns
What does it mean to make a Star Trek movie? Director J.J. Abrams skirted this question when he brought the U.S.S. Enterprise back to life...
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Wretched Excess
What kind of maniac tries to adapt The Great Gatsby? Few books are legitimate touchstones in American culture, and for better or for worse, F....
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Flash over Substance
Let's just get this out of the way: Robert Downey Jr. is, and always will be, magnificent as Tony Stark. The character's cocky wit blends...
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Puzzles
I want to like Trance. It's a mostly good-looking movie, with talented actors and a talented crew, all attempting to do something bold within the...
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Film
Where do your film tastes lead you in warmer weather? Is it time for a buddy movie, romance or blockbuster adventure flick? Whatever you're craving,...
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Magic Show
What happened to Steve Carell? He set the comedy world on fire with his naive-fool shtick in The Office and The 40-Year-Old Virgin, sweetening his...
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Woes of Oz
There's something rotten in the state of Oz. It reeks of the billable hour, the legal retainer, the foul stench of litigation. Yes, that fiend...
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And the Oscar Goes To…
There are only three things certain in life: death, taxes and petty arguments about the Oscars. (Well, four if you count Joan Rivers. She will...
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Die Hard Death Knell
Almost a quarter-century after Die Hard premiered, the travesty of John McClane lives on. He's bruised and balder, wrinkled and wearier. Whatever once seemed charming...
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Swan Song
This is the end for director Steven Soderbergh. He says he's packing up, retiring from film, moving on to other artistic projects. If he is...
