Black Sea

Any film having to do with submarines immediately fills one with claustrophobic dread. Directed by Kevin Macdonald (The Eagle, The Last King of Scotland) and written by Dennis Kelly takes a ten little Indians/Moby Dick plot within the cramped dark environment with English and Russian misfits who have nothing to lose. It's a tense with black comedic undertones. It's like the worse case scenario and everything bad that can happen...will happen. It's edge of your seat kind of stuff.

Jude Law plays Captain Robinson who just got laid off from his job as a submariner with a salvage company. He was with them for 11 years and working with subs for over 30 years. It's the only thing he knows. It ruined his family life and he can only watch his son and ex wife from afar. A friend tells him that he heard of a way to make some ridiculous money. There's a rich guy who will fund this adventure of retrieving some Nazi gold that was being transported by a Uboat during WWII. In order to get it, they will need a submarine and divers. They manage to get a really old rusted Russian submarine. With a basic crew of 9 men, half English and half Russian (since they will be near Russian seas, they need Russians on board just in case) they fix the basics and set out with the company lackey Daniel (Scoot McNairy). Daniel is sort of like the smarmy Burke in Aliens. He's totally unfit for the job at hand and easily panicked.

When Robinson tells the crew the mission and how much they aim to make in the haul, it brings out the worst in some of the crew members. Fraser (Ben Mendelsohn) the master diver, thinks the Russians will get greedy, so it's best to get them before they you. The Russians think the young kid Tobin (Bobby Schofield) is a bad luck virgin. The oldest is a broken down geezer with emphysema (David Threlfall). The crew members glower and sneer at each other and fanning the flames of their paranoia is Daniel and Fraser. Robinson manages to keep a tight cap on everyone's boiling over hysteria. The hierarchy of a ship's crew which is so firmly embedded in their need to survive corrals most of the arguments even by a hair.

But bad stuff happens, truths are revealed and crew members end horribly. Plus they are sitting at the bottom of the sea and taking on water. It's a gloomy and grimy but probably one of the best films to come out in January. So this is one to watch.
(Review by reesa)

Mommy

Mommy is a very endearing film that shows the rawness of a relationship between a mother and her son. This is one of the best foreign films I have ever seen; not because of the story and the relationship, but for the way it is shot as well. Let’s first start with the direction. Xavier Dolan directs this compelling drama of a mother who gets her son out of a juvenile center and tries to re-kindle their relationship. As they start to bond without a father figure, their neighbor across the street starts to become involved in their life. That’s all I will say, as I want you to experience this emotional journey. I really like the realness between all three characters. It feels like I am watching a real family and their problems. I can become more invested that way if I can relate to the characters and this film nails that. With the tone and direction of this film being top-notch, he also makes the decision to shoot this entire film in 1:1 aspect ratio. This is a ratio equivalent of shooting in on a cellphone. You are probably thinking, “Why would you do that?” Well, I thought the same thing at first, but I got used to it and I saw what Xavier was going for. When you shoot a film in that ratio you get close and a real intimate story; and I believe that’s genius. I realize people can be turned off from that, but I thought it was an absolutely amazing choice from the director. The acting is outstanding and I felt like they were a close-knit family. Anne Dorval plays the mother and her performance is very heartbreaking as she struggles to have a normal relationship with her son, played by Antoine-Olivier Pilon. He also gives a great performance and has a nice character arc towards the end. The cinematography, as stated above, is shot with a warmness and closeness to the entire film. It does surprise with some scenes where the image expands to regular widescreen and that brought a smile to my face. The editing is where my only complaint would be. The film is about two and half hours and in some parts I could feel the drag. It is still an engaging film, but that has to been noted for people that might want to see it. The language spoken is French so there are English subtitles. This is simply a beautiful film with a strong emotional bond and I have been thinking about it ever since I saw it. 9/10
(Review by Chase Lee)

Black or White

The race issue is viewed from another side by writer/director Mike Binder (The Upside of Anger, The Sex Monster) with a story involving a white grandfather and custody of his bi-racial granddaughter. The film premiered at the 2014 Toronto Film Festival stars Kevin Costner who also produced the movie. Supposedly the story is based on true events it doesn't really tackle any thing substantial except annoyance that the whole premise is whether a young girl is better off with the white or black sides of her family. Can't she have both?

Costner plays Elliott, a lawyer, just lost his beloved wife in a car accident. He has to break the news to his granddaughter Eloise (Jillian Estell) with whom she lives as her mother died in childbirth. The only family she has lived with is grandmother and “papa”. Her father Reggie (André Holland) is a crackhead, thief, and has not been the child's life. His mother Rowena Jeffers (Octavia Spencer) also known as WeeWee is concerned that Eloise should live with her family in South Central. She believes that her granddaughter should be exposed to her “people”. She is also concerned because Elliott seems to be having a drinking problem.

It is frustrating as an audience member watching Elliott drink and attempt to take care of a little girl. So to show that Elliott is really not weird or unsavory, he hires a tutor from CraigsList. Duvan (Mpho Koaho) steals the show from the rest of the great cast. He plays an African civil war survivor who has studied well, writes papers on his work, self taught in 9 languages and he becomes Eloise and Elliott's tudor in middle school math, but also Elliott's driver when he's too sloshed to be behind a wheel.

Rowena decides to sue Elliott for full custody or even shared custody of Eloise. She hires her lawyer brother to help her. The uppity Ivy-Leaguer lays out his strategy with the “race card”. The paint by numbers stereo types is played in full day glo colors. Elliott is the typical white, paunchy rich guy who is used to getting his way. Rowena is the loud, over emotional, self rightous, self made black woman who supports multiple extended family while running a few businesses from her garage. She gives that all knowing “look” while rolling her eyes. Octavia Butler is basically used as comedic fodder especially when trading eyes with the judge.

The movie rolls along fine establishing characters and there are some funny moments that will have you chuckle out loud. But the last act of the film is somewhat expected, and Costner needs to make his obligatory speech about it's not about race...blah blah blah. We know already. It's not about black or white, it's sort of just grey.
(Review by reesa)

Movies Scheduled 1/25-1/31

Make sure when you are wanting to reply to a post that you don't just hit reply. If you do then it just goes to the group where it will be rejected. If you are unable to figure out how to reply to the sender than look at the bottom of the email and it will say posted by sendersemail@provider.com. Take that email and copy it and then instead of hitting reply hit forward and then copy the email into the address bar and bam you will send it to the sender and not the group. That way you can get the passes or give your passes!

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me and I will get to you quickly. My email address is damitdaina@hotmail.com.


Sunday Jan. 25th


Monday Jan. 26th


Tuesday Jan. 27th

Black and White 7:30 p.m. AMC Northpark
Blacksea 7:30 p.m. TBA
McFarland, USA 7:30 p.m. Angelika Dallas


Wednesday Jan. 28th

Project Almanac 7:30 p.m. AMC Northpark
Blacksea 7:30 p.m. TBA
Kingsman Secret Service 7:30 p.m. TBA


Thursday Jan. 29th


Friday Jan. 30th

Experience Arlington Cinema 7:00 p.m. UTA Fine Arts Building/Film Theater


Saturday Jan. 31st

The Spongebob Movie: Sponge Out of Water 10:30 a.m. Cinemark West Plano

Two Days, One NIght

This is a simple, stripped-down story that packs an emotional punch and really questions our morals as humans. Marion Cotillard stars as a mother who has lost her job. She finds out that her co-workers took a pay bonus in exchange for her dismissal. Convincing her boss to let her keep her job, she goes to every one of the co-workers and persuades them to change their minds and let her stay with the company instead of them getting a bonus over the weekend. What I just told you is exactly what the film is; encounters of her and her co-workers explaining to them why she needs to keep the job. I won’t spoil on how it ends. Short, sweet and to the point, right? Yes, but there is some real, authentic human emotions we don’t see in film that often. The direction in this film is bare-bones storytelling, but very effective on how relatable this situation is to real life. If you look deep into it, the directors try and show us how we have crappy morals sometimes. Picking money over having a human being keep her job so she can support her family? It’s pretty heavy stuff, especially since Cotillard’s character has problems at home and within herself, too. On a moral standpoint, why would we take the money? Many on the co-workers in the film have families as well and have to support them. It’s a lose-lose situation, you will feel guilty no matter what. And that’s what the director’s display so well in this film. Unless you don’t care and take the money, then you might just not care about the main character. You laugh, but I know people like that. Marion Cotillard, recently, got an Oscar nomination for her work in this film and she deserves it. She carries this film and brings an intensity and rawness to her character and, easily, makes this one of most relatable characters she has played. She is simply, like the story, outstanding. The cinematography is nice and really sinks into the human emotion as it will stay on certain shots for 5-10 minutes straight. For this story, you don’t need ridiculous camera positions and fast cuts as you should let the story and dialogue carry it. As far as the editing goes, I said it stays on shots for a long period of time and it works. It never dragged and it had a nice slow-burning rhythm. For people who don’t like a slow-burn might find this boring. It’s a compelling human drama that questions our morality and how far someone will go just to keep a measly job; and maybe sometimes there is more to life than just a job. This was a nice surprise and I am glad Marion Cotillard got a nomination for this role. I highly recommend it. 9/10
(Review by Chase Lee)

The Humbling

First impression of The Humbling that most people will refer to is Birdman. The story from a 2009 novel by Philip Roth with a screenplay by Buck Henry about an actor experiencing professional angst is similar to Michael Keaton's tearing up the screen battling his personal demons. Director Barry Levinson centers the camera on Al Pacino's craggy face while he recites his lines for a contemporary Shakespeare play while doing his own makeup. The actor who knows really nothing of the world outside his artificial creations must now deal with the real world when his talent begins to wane.

Al Pacino is known for eating up the screen in no matter what part he plays. His deliberate delivery of speech often borders on overkill. He plays the famous stage and film star Simon Axler who suddenly discovers that the passion of his talent is suddenly lost to him. He can't remember his lines, and he's mixing lines from other parts into what he's doing. He can't seem to separate his dreams from reality to the point where he takes a dive off the stage during a performance. When taken to the hospital he cries in pain getting the sympathetic nurse to help, and he's analyzing his performance asking if she actually believed him. After trying to do a Hemingway, after all that is why he has a shotgun to begin with, he institutionalizes himself for awhile. The stay helped a bit, but while there he meets this wacky young woman Sybil (Nina Arlanda) who wants him to kill her husband because he did a movie where he killed someone and he was good in it.

He goes back to his big beautiful home of 14 years, where he only lives on the bottom floor. His acting jobs have dried up and his agent (Charles Grodin) can only find him work doing hair loss commercials overseas. Axler Skypes his therapy sessions with his shrink (Dylan Baker). His god daughter Pegeen (Greta Gerwig) shows up at his doorstep and confesses she's loved him since she was 8 years old. She initiates a sexual relationship with him even though she tells him she's a lesbian. Pegeen's lover (Kyra Sedgwick) at Westcott College where she's a professor in theater arts begins to make cryptic calls to Axler. Plus Pegeen's ex lover who became a transgender Priscilla to Prince is hoping to get back together now that Pegeen is doing heterosex. Adding to the mix is Sybil who keeps stalking Axler to kill her husband. Pegeen's parents find out about their affair and as Axler's best friends (Dan Hedaya and Dianne Wiest) from the past they are aghast demanding him to stop seeing her.

Axler who had no real friends and family and has always been alone, basically just watches as the characters around him collide. He finds himself watching everyone and critiquing their performances. Pacino dominates the screen even when he's being passive. There are some very funny moments in the movie, but the film is very over the top. The cast is wonderful, especially Dianne Wiest). The film sort of falls apart at the end, but getting there is pretty interesting.
(Review by reesa)

A Most Violent Year

The director/writer J.C. Chandor of Margin Call and All is Lost sets his newest work in the winter of 1981 which was the most violent year on record for New York City. The story follows three turbulent days of a young upwardly mobile couple who run a heating oil business. The movie is bathed in muted tones, and the cold harsh city's industrial districts. The costuming by Kasia Walicka Maimone is spot on for the times, and the music scored by Alex Ebert enhances the feeling of the film. It's almost a gangster movie, without real gangsters.

Oscar Isaac who was so memorable in Inside Llewyn Davis plays Abel Morales, a Latin American businessman who had bought a heating oil company from the gangster father of his wife Anna (Jessica Chastain). In a short time he's made it a successful venture that he hopes to expand by investing in a new piece of property that is not only on a waterway, but has several storage tanks and pumps. They invest all their savings into the down payment. The Orthodox Jewish owners give him a few days to bring the rest of the funds or they will lose their payment. Things seem to be going their way when another of their trucks are hijacked and their driver injured. Abel who prides himself as a self made man who rises to the top on his own positivity doesn't want to fall into the trap of using violence against violence. The teamsters want to arm the drivers. His fellow businessman turn a blink eye and don't want to help. Even his wife offers to have her father step in. It becomes worse when Abel's investors back out because of the violence with the hijackings. And a certain prosecutor (David Oyelowo) is bound and determined to prove Abel is a crook like everyone else in their line of work. Abel has to hustle, bargain, beg, and deal to raise the additional money.

It's the characterizations from the talented cast that makes this movie special. Isaac's Able is an intense guy. He trains his sale crew with his special methods of closing a sale. He strives to run his a legitimate business and very well dressed. He's trying to live the American dream. His wife is his partner, bookkeeper and mother of his children. Being the daughter of a gangster she was her own ways of dealing with things. Chastain inhabits Anna so well that you hardly notice that it is her. His lawyer Andrew Walsh (Albert Brooks) seems a bit shady and fellow businessman Peter (Alessandro Nivola) give color and smarmy attitude to the proceedings.

It's not a movie for everyone. It looks and feels well done and important. But at the same time, it drags and makes you wish for something else to happen. Chastain should nab a supporting nod.
(Review by reesa)

Alamo Drafthouse Announces New Location in Little Elm

Alamo Drafthouse Cinema DFW
Announces Location #4:
Alamo Drafthouse Little Elm


Dallas – January 21, 2015—Alamo Drafthouse Cinema DFW announces today that the fourth location of the Alamo Drafthouse in North Texas is in the Denton County Town of Little Elm. Alamo Drafthouse Little Elm will open in the first quarter of 2016. The theater plans to open in the newly developing, Main Marketplace at the northwest corner of Main Street and FM 423.

“Stepping into Denton County and being a part of the massive growth happening in Little Elm is very exciting. Additionally having an Alamo closer to UNT and TWU as well as landing in the same city with another great Austin-centric brand, Hula Hut, makes this the perfect combination. We can’t wait to open our doors to the community and put on Alamo-sized movies and events in Little Elm,” said Bill DiGaetano, COO/Owner Alamo Drafthouse Cinema DFW.


Details of ALAMO LITTLE ELM
Alamo Drafthouse Little Elm will be a state of the art location. Each of the eight auditoriums will be equipped with the latest in 4K digital projection, precise screen-size-to-room ratio, and 7.1 Dolby Surround Sound. Select auditoriums will also feature 35mm projectors so fans can experience classic and repertory films as they were meant to be seen. In addition to the superior AV equipment, the layout of each theater eliminates the traditional front row, ensuring every seat in the house allows for an optimal viewing experience. In addition to in-theater dining, Alamo Little Elm will feature a large lounge and all-weather patio offering an extensive menu of local draft and bottled beers, wine, cocktails and freshly made food. The lounge will offer patrons an inviting place to socialize whether they are waiting for a movie or simply coming to sample the made-from-scratch food, cocktails and craft beer.


From the Little Elm Perspective
“Little Elm has worked very hard to carve out its niche in an extremely competitive development market,” said David Hillock, mayor of Little Elm. “Finding the right partners and unique venues are key. We were lucky that Goveia Commercial Real Estate helped us land Wired.com's ‘Coolest Movie Theater in the World’ in Little Elm, a fresh, young town heading in the same direction.”

“Following on the heels of Hula Hut, another Austin original, Alamo Drafthouse will feel right at home at Goveia’s project and surrounded by the unique culture and relaxed atmosphere our lakeside community has to offer. As a community, we are very excited that Alamo Drafthouse has decided to call Little Elm home,” Hillock concluded.


From the Developers' Perspective
California-based Goveia Commercial Real Estate is behind the development of the forthcoming Main Marketplace, which will be home to Alamo Drafthouse Little Elm. In addition to Alamo Drafthouse, the 18-acre development will house 114,000-square feet of restaurants and retail.

“We are delighted to work with Mayor Hillock and his team to bring Alamo Drafthouse Cinema to our project, Main Marketplace, and know that this will be a perfect fit for the Town of Little Elm and its future,” said Joe Goveia, president, Goveia Commercial Real Estate.

###


For developments on Alamo Drafthouse Little Elm, follow us on Facebook & Twitter.
Facebook: facebook.com/AlamoDrafthouseDFW
Twitter: twitter.com/AlamoDFW
Website: drafthouse.com/dfw

Alamo Drafthouse social media:
Facebook: facebook.com/AlamoDrafthouse
Twitter: twitter.com/drafthouse
YouTube: youtube.com/alamodrafthouse
Tumblr: birthmoviesdeath.com/
Instagram: instagram.com/drafthouse
Vimeo: vimeo.com/alamodrafthouse
Website: drafthouse.com

About the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema:
Tim and Karrie League founded Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in 1997 as a single-screen mom and pop repertory theater in Austin. 17 years later, the now 19-location chain has been named “the best theater in America” by Entertainment Weekly and “the best theater in the world” by Wired.com. The Alamo Drafthouse Cinema has built a reputation as a movie lover’s oasis not only by combining food and drink service with the movie-going experience, but also introducing unique programming and high profile, star studded special events. Alamo Drafthouse Founder & CEO, Tim League, created Fantastic Fest, a world renowned film festival dubbed “The Geek Telluride” by Variety. Fantastic Fest showcases eight days of genre cinema from independents, international filmmakers and major Hollywood studios. The Alamo Drafthouse’s collectible art gallery, Mondo, offers breathtaking, original products featuring designs from world-famous artists based on licenses for popular TV and Movie properties including Star Wars, Star Trek & Universal Monsters. The Alamo Drafthouse Cinema is expanding its brand in new and exciting ways, including Drafthouse Films, which has garnered two Academy Award nominations in its short three-year existence and Badass Digest, an entertainment news blog curated by veteran journalist, Devin Faraci.

Alamo Drafthouse DFW won two important accolades in 2014: Best Theater Dallas Observer 2014 and D Magazine’s Reader’s Choice for Best Theater for 2014.
Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas DFW opened in Richardson August 2013 and will open in Dallas on South Lamar mid-2015 with a third location opening in Las Colinas in early 2016.

Movies Scheduled 1/18-1/24

So I found by accident how to cancel my passes from gofobo so I thought I would share. Go to the top of the screen after you logged in and then hit account. You should then see your name, email and birth date. Under all that you should see your passes and to the right of your passes you can download or email and under that you can delete.

So the movie passes at Northpark have no unattended chairs on the passes so make sure you have someone in line!

As always if you have any questions please email me at damitdaina@hotmail.com


Sunday Jan. 18th


Monday Jan. 19th



Tuesday Jan 20th

The Boy Next Door 7:30 p.m. AMC Northpark
Killers 7:30 p.m. Alamo Drafthouse


Wednesday Jan. 21st

The Boy Next Door 7:30 p.m. TBA
The American's 7:00 p.m. Angelika Dallas

Thursday Jan. 22nd.

Mortdecai 7:30 p.m. AMC Northpark


Friday Jan. 23rd


Saturday Jan. 24th

Spare Parts

I walked into the theater expecting an exciting story about high school teenagers working together to complete an awesome project. I instead found myself never getting into the film and the exciting part I was expecting wasn’t there. I do respect though that the film really did try to show the problems of Immigration Enforcement with the boys and how their lives were altered every day. I thought that “Spare Parts” didn’t have natural acting from the lead Carlos PenaVega and that everything was in an ordered fashion. I never had a scene where a character touched me or got me uplifted for this robot that the boys were making. The different obstacles each boy went through were represented well. For instance, one of them has a father who does not understand him and always wants him to protect his mischievous little brother. Another teenager, Oscar, is trying to serve for the US and does not have his birth certificate because he illegally immigrated. With George Lopez’s role of the coach, I thought that he strongly conveyed his passion for the kids and his caring for each one of them. His character at one point in the film gives the guys over $100 to complete their budget for parts. Marisa Tomei plays a teacher that looks out for bad behavior but also has a special connection with her students. She is very encouraging to Oscar and wants him to find his path of success.

The film was set in Phoenix around a school that had a lot of undocumented persons and not too much funding. Even though this wasn’t a fantastic film for me I could still feel the school atmosphere and the heat of Immigration Enforcement following the characters. I do appreciate that it showed that not everybody has a normal life. Some teenagers deal with a lot more than a phone being taken away. The making of the robot that would have to go underwater showed the intricate way that the boys had to involve items to make their project a reality. The fact that this is a true story is very re-assuring that people from any background can work hard to make a better situation happen. Yes this film could have been made with more feeling but I thought it wasn’t a big waste of time to see it. I think that “Spare Parts” could create hope for people but that it still was a bit monotone.
(Review by Wyatt Head)

Blackhat

Technically a blackhat is someone violating computer or Internet security maliciously or for illegal personal gain. In director Michael Mann's new film written by Morgan Davis Foehl, an imprisoned “blackhat” is used to find another “blackhat”. Mann who also did Heat and Collateral knows his way around tense action sequences and using competent actors to work around the technobabble and computer geek jargon that may confuse the average viewer. It's hard to visualize a computer virus, so there are some Tron lightshow moments to let you know something dangerous is about to occur. The movie is interesting to watch, before you start thinking too hard on the plot holes.

Chinese authorities led by cyber defense Captain Chen Dawai (Leehom Wang) is assigned to investigate a computer hack causing a power plant meltdown. He enlists the help of is sister Lien Chen (Wei Tang who starred in Lust, Caution with Leehom Wang) who is a network systems engineer. His investigation leads to him appealing to the U.S. to enlist the help of convicted hacker Nicholas Hathaway (Chris Hemsworth). Chen and Hathaway were once MIT roommates and had written part of the code used in the recent virus. Hathaway is furloughed with a ankle bracelet and a U.S. Marshall attached after getting them to agree to free him if he solves the crime. The investigation is meticulous and exacting procedural led by CIA's Carol Barrett (Viola Davis) follows the clues that takes them back to China. There they stalk some shady guys and the gunfights escalate. There's a pretty high body count in this movie and no one is safe. Hathaway's hacking skills gets him trouble with the N.S.A. and a warrant is issued. But the bad guy's this close to getting caught! What's a hero to do?

There's this romantic sub-plot with Chen's sister that you can see coming a mile away. Two beautiful people, one's been in prison for awhile, the other is a ninja computer geek with flyaway hair. Of course the protective brother has something to say about the future between the two. That's about the only emotional moments in the whole film. The rest is everyone typing like crazy and reading code on screen looking for clues. The final act is Hathaway tracking down overweight geek and his insidious plot. That guy looks like the stereotypical nerd. Hemsworth doesn't look like someone who sits at a console all day. Nice to look at he's not that charismatic as he is as Thor. His line delivery is somewhat stunted while everyone else breathes some life into the little parts they are allowed . It's not the Michael Mann film that one would expect. But for a January action film, it's something to do on a date.
(Review by reesa)

Paddington

Paddington Bear is a fictional childrens favorite since 1958 written by Michael Bond and first illustrated by Peggy Fortnum. Paddington books have continued over the years, had a BBC television series, a Hanna-Barbera TV series, a Royal Mail 1rst class stamp and even balloon at Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. He's as loveable and recognizable as Pooh Bear, but for older children. This new movie directed by Paul King who also wrote the script with Hamish McColl features the origins of Paddington and how he comes to London. It utilizes live action actors and computed generated imagery and animatronics. It's a visual treat and family friendly that will delight kids as well as their parents.

Bears were discovered in the deep jungles of darkest Peru by an explorer Montgomery Clyde when he meets a family of semi intelligent bears who can learn English. The bears, Lucy and Pastuzo live with their nephew in a tree house with all the English furniture and accessories left my Clyde including his hat. When an earthquake destroys their habitat and kills the uncle, Lucy sends her nephew to London to make good on Clyde's welcome to come stay with him. Wearing Clyde's old hat, he manages to stowaway on a ship and wait at the train station for someone to help him. The Brown family comes by and the mother Mary (Sally Hawkins) offers the lonely bear respite from the cold despite the misgivings of her husband Henry (Hugh Bonneville) and the teenage daughter Judy (Madeleine Harris). Their son Jonathan (Samuel Joslin) is more welcoming as well as Mrs. Bird (Julie Walters) their housekeeper. They decide to name him Paddington (voiced by Ben Whishaw) after the station at which they found him. After a series of misfortunes that Paddington causes in the Brown household, they decide to help him find the owner of his hat. Meanwhile the Brown's noisy neighbor Reginald Curry (Peter Capaldi) is lured by Millicent Clyde (Nichole Kidman) who is a taxidermist at the Natural History Museum to capture Paddington. She became aware of Paddington and wants him for her collection.

There may be some dark moments in the film that may be somewhat scary for the little ones, but they are balanced by the mischievous and loving moments with Paddington and the Brown family. The family over comes their misgivings of having a troublesome bear in their midst by the innocent and good-hearted Paddington. He's always unfailingly polite and loves marmalade. Plushies sales of Paddington Bears are pretty much a guarantee.
(Review by reesa)

2015 Oscar Nominations Announced

The Oscar nominations was announced by "Star Wars" honcho J.J. Abrams and Alfonso Cuarón, who won Best Director last year for "Gravity," announcing the technical categories. Chris Pine and Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences president Cheryl Boone Isaacs announced the top awards, marking the first time all 24 categories will be unveiled during the live telecast in Los Angeles.


Best Picture
"American Sniper"
"Birdman"
"Boyhood"
"The Grand Budapest Hotel"
"The Imitation Game"
"Selma"
"The Theory of Everything"
"Whiplash"

Best Director
Wes Anderson, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
Alejandro González Iñárritu, "Birdman"
Richard Linklater, "Boyhood"
Bennett Miller, “Foxcatcher”
Morten Tyldum, "The Imitation Game"

Best Actress
Marion Cotillard, “Two Days, One Night”
Felicity Jones, "The Theory of Everything"
Julianne Moore, "Still Alice"
Rosamund Pike, "Gone Girl"
Reese Witherspoon, "Wild"

Best Actor
Steve Carell, "Foxcatcher"
Bradley Cooper, “American Sniper”
Benedict Cumberbatch, "The Imitation Game"
Michael Keaton, "Birdman"
Eddie Redmayne, "The Theory of Everything"

Best Supporting Actress
Patricia Arquette, "Boyhood"
Laura Dern, “Wild”
Keira Knightley, "The Imitation Game"
Emma Stone, "Birdman"
Meryl Streep, "Into the Woods"

Best Supporting Actor
Robert Duvall, "The Judge"
Ethan Hawke, "Boyhood"
Edward Norton, "Birdman"
Mark Ruffalo, "Foxcatcher"
J.K. Simmons, "Whiplash"

Best Adapted Screenplay
Paul Thomas Anderson, “Inherent Vice”
Damien Chazelle, "Whiplash"
Jason Hall, “American Sniper”
Anthony McCarten, "The Theory of Everything"
Graham Moore, "The Imitation Game"

Best Original Screenplay
Wes Anderson and Hugo Guinness, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
Dan Futterman and E. Max Frye, "Foxcatcher"
Dan Gilroy, "Nightcrawler"
Alejandro González Iñárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris and Armando Bo, "Birdman"
Richard Linklater, "Boyhood"

Best Foreign Language Film
"Leviathan"
"Ida"
"Tangerines"
“Timbuktu”
"Wild Tales"

Best Documentary Feature
"CITIZENFOUR"
“Finding Vivian Maier”
"Last Days in Vietnam"
“The Salt in the Earth”
"Virunga”

Best Animated Feature
"Big Hero 6"
"The Boxtrolls"
"How to Train Your Dragon 2"
“Song of the Sea”
"The Tale of The Princess Kaguya"

Film Editing
"American Sniper"
"Boyhood"
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
"The Imitation Game"
"Whiplash"

Best Song
"Everything is Awesome" from "The LEGO Movie" (written by Shawn Patterson)
"Glory" from "Selma" (written by Common and John Legend)
Grateful
I’m Not Gonna Miss You
"Lost Stars" from "Begin Again" (written by Gregg Alexander, Danielle Brisebois, Nick Lashley and Nick Southwood)

Best Original Score
Alexandre Desplat, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
Alexandre Desplat, "The Imitation Game"
Johann Johannsson, "The Theory of Everything"
Gary Yershon, “Mr. Turner”
Hans Zimmer, "Interstellar"

Best Cinematography
Roger Deakins, "Unbroken"
Emmanuel Lubezki, "Birdman"
Dick Pope, "Mr. Turner"
Robert Yeoman, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
Lukasz Zal and Ryszard Lenczewski, “Ida”

Best Costume Design
"The Grand Budapest Hotel"
“Inherent Vice”
"Into the Woods"
"Maleficent"
"Mr. Turner"

Best Makeup and Hairstyling
"Foxcatcher"
"The Grand Budapest Hotel"
"Guardians of the Galaxy"

Best Production Design
"The Grand Budapest Hotel"
“The Imitation Game”
“Interstellar”
"Into the Woods"
"Mr. Turner"

Best Sound Editing
"American Sniper"
“Birdman”
"The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies"
"Interstellar"
"Unbroken"

Best Sound Mixing
"American Sniper"
"Birdman"
“Interstellar”
"Unbroken"
“Whiplash”

Best Visual Effects
Captain America:
"Dawn of the Planet of the Apes"
"Guardians of the Galaxy"
"Interstellar"
"X-Men: Days of Future Past"

Best Short Film, Live Action
"Aya"
“Boogaloo and Graham”
“Butter Lamp”
“Parvaneh”
"The Phone Call"

Best Short Film, Animated
"The Bigger Picture"
"The Dam Keeper"
"Feast"
"Me and My Moulton"
“A Single Life”

Best Documentary, Short Subject
“Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1”
"Joanna"
"Our Curse"
“The Reaper”
"White Earth"

2015 Golden Globes Award Winners

Drama

Winner: Boyhood

Foxcatcher

The Imitation Game

Selma

The Theory of Everything


Actor, drama

Steve Carell, Foxcatcher

Benedict Cumberbatch, The Imitation Game

Jake Gyllenhaal, Nightcrawler

David Oyelowo, Selma

Winner: Eddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything


Actress, drama

Jennifer Aniston, Cake

Felicity Jones, The Theory of Everything

Winner: Julianne Moore, Still Alice

Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl

Reese Witherspoon, Wild


Comedy or musical

Birdman

Winner: The Grand Budapest Hotel

Into the Woods

Pride

St. Vincent


Actor, comedy or musical

Ralph Fiennes, The Grand Budapest Hotel

Winner: Michael Keaton, Birdman

Bill Murray, St. Vincent

Joaquin Phoenix, Inherent Vice

Christoph Waltz, Big Eyes


Actress, comedy or musical

Winner: Amy Adams, Big Eyes

Emily Blunt, Into the Woods

Helen Mirren, The Hundred-Foot Journey

Julianne Moore, Maps to the Stars

Quvenzhane Wallis, Annie


Director

Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel

Ava DuVernay, Selma

David Fincher, Gone Girl

Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Birdman

Winner: Richard Linklater, Boyhood


Supporting actress

Winner: Patricia Arquette, Boyhood

Jessica Chastain, A Most Violent Year

Keira Knightley, The Imitation Game

Emma Stone, Birdman

Meryl Streep, Into the Woods


Supporting actor

Robert Duvall, The Judge

Ethan Hawke, Boyhood

Edward Norton, Birdman

Mark Ruffalo, Foxcatcher

Winner: J.K. Simmons, Whiplash


Animated feature film

Big Hero 6

The Book of Life

The Boxtrolls

Winner: How to Train Your Dragon 2

The Lego Movie


Screenplay

Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel

Gillian Flynn, Gone Girl

Winner: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Nicolas Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Armando Bo, Birdman

Richard Linklater, Boyhood

Graham Moore, The Imitation Game


Original song

Lana Del Rey, Big Eyes (from Big Eyes)

Winner: John Legend, Common, Glory (Selma)

Patti Smith, Lenny Kaye, Mercy Is (Noah)

Greg Kurstin, Sia Furler, Will Gluck, Opportunity (Annie)

Lorde, Yellow Flicker Beat (The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1)


Original score

Alexandre Desplat, The Imitation Game

Winner: Johann Johannsson, The Theory of Everything

Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Gone Girl

Antonio Sanchez, Birdman

Hans Zimmer, Interstellar


Foreign film

Force Majeure Turist

Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem Gett

Ida

Winner: Leviathan

Tangerines Mandariinid


PRIME-TIME TELEVISION


Comedy

Girls

Jane the Virgin

Silicon Valley

Winner: Transparent

Orange Is the New Black


Actor, comedy series

Louis C.K., Louie

Don Cheadle, House of Lies

Ricky Gervais, Derek

William H. Macy, Shameless

Winner: Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent


Actress, comedy series

Lena Dunham, Girls

Edie Falco, Nurse, Jackie

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep

Winner: Gina Rodriguez, Jane the Virgin

Taylor Schilling, Orange Is the New Black


Miniseries or TV movie

Winner: Fargo

The Missing

The Normal Heart

Olive Kitteridge

True Detective


Actor, miniseries or TV movie

Martin Freeman, Fargo

Woody Harrelson, True Detective

Matthew McConaughey, True Detective

Mark Ruffalo, The Normal Heart

Winner: Billy Bob Thornton, Fargo


Supporting actor, series, miniseries or TV movie

Winner: Matt Bomer, The Normal Heart

Alan Cumming, The Good Wife

Colin Hanks, Fargo

Bill Murray, Olive Kitteridge

Jon Voight, Ray Donovan


Actress, miniseries or TV movie

Winner: Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Honorable Woman

Jessia Lange, American Horror Story: Freak Show

Frances McDormand, Olive Kitteridge

Frances O'Connor, The Missing

Allison Tolman, Fargo


Supporting actress, series, miniseries or TV movie

Uzo Aduba, Orange Is the New Black

Kathy Bates, American Horror Story: Freak Show

Winner: Joanne Froggatt, Downton Abbey

Allison Janney, Mom

Michelle Monaghan, True Detective



Drama

The Winner: The Affair

Downton Abbey

Game of Thrones

The Good Wife

House of Cards


Actor, drama series

Clive Owen, The Knick

Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan

Winner: Kevin Spacey, House of Cards

James Spader, The Blacklist

Dominic West, The Affair


Actress, drama series

Claire Danes, Homeland

Viola Davis, How to Get Away With Murder

Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife

Winner: Ruth Wilson, The Affair

Robin Wright, House of Cards

Movies Scheduled 1/11-1/17

This was on the Blackhat pass. Maybe it will finally wake people up. Especially if they enforce it. No unattended chairs in line. Movie goers must physically be in line for admission & 2 wristbands only. Moviegoers may not save seats or spaces in line for persons not admitted on this pass. Moviegoers leaving unattended chairs may be relegated to the end of the line upon return.

Make sure you try the contests or click the links we send out to you before you ask for passes Don't just wait until the day before the screening to ask for a pass.

If you have any questions please feel free to email me at damitdaina@hotmail.com


Sunday Jan. 11th


Monday Jan. 12th

Two Days, One Night 7:30 p.m. Modern Museum of Ft. Worth


Tuesday Jan. 13th.

Blackhat 7:30 p.m. AMC Northpark
The Wedding Ringer 7:30 p.m. AMC Valley View


Wednesday Jan. 14th

Friday Night Tykes 7:30 p.m. Alamo Drafthouse
The Wedding Ringer 7:30 p.m. AMC Northpark
Black Sea 7:30 p.m. Angelika Dallas


Thursday Jan. 15th

Spare Parts 7:00 p.m. Angelika Dallas
Blackstrom 7:30 p.m. Angelika Dallas


Friday Jan. 16th


Saturday Jan. 17th

Predestination

I don’t know where to begin. This is, without a doubt, one of the best uses of time travel I have ever seen. This is a film that will blow you away and as soon as it starts and doesn’t let go. Let’s start with the fantastic direction. It’s directed by the Spierig Brothers who have previously brought us Daybreakers, also starring Ethan Hawke. It’s easy to screw up a time travel idea, but if you take care of it well enough, you can a thrilling ride and an entertaining film. The story is told very clear and if follow along, nothing should go by you. The thing with time travel movies is that you need to establish your own rules for your world that you are creating. If you follow these rules and execute them masterfully, you can create a great time travel film. It’s really hard to explain without spoiling anything, but these guys need to make more films. The one thing I really appreciated is that the directors made characters we ultimately cared about and I felt like we went on this journey with them. From the way the story played out, to the brilliant acting, cinematography and score, the directors make an emotional journey about one’s self and ultimately making the right choices in life, even if there are things you can’t control. Ethan Hawke is amazing in just about everything he does and this is no different. He brings an extreme depth to his character and all comes together at the end of the film beautifully; but the biggest surprise was Sarah Snook. She was outstanding and really brought all the emotional depth in this film. She was so good, that she should be nominated for an Oscar. Yeah, she is that good. She also managed to bring me to tears in a few scenes and that’s always a great sign of a good actress. The cinematography leads us into a gorgeous, surreal dreamscape of many time periods and sets. Simply put, it’s just a good looking film. The pacing of this is something I haven’t seen since Whiplash. It was tight, precise and intense; this is a great roller coaster ride of emotion and character development. As mentioned above, the music added another layer to the scenes that had it providing an extra emotional pull from the heart. This film is the definition of “criminally underrated”. You need to see this. 9.5/10
(Review by Chase Lee)

Inherent Vice

Director Paul Thomas Anderson has a long list of quirky intense movies like The Master, There Will Be Blood, Punch Drunk Love, Magnolia and Boogie Nights. Adapting the equally quirky wordy novel by Thomas Pynchon, Inherent Vice which is so filled with off beat humor that it may be a hard sell to the general movie going audience looking for shoot outs and car chases. It however may become the next cult classic. If you give this film a chance, there are some laugh out loud moments of absurdity, sometimes scenes drag too slowly, and characters come and go, but you will be rewarded eventually.

Joaquin Phoenix plays Larry “Doc” Sportello a hippie PI who lives in the fictional town of Gordita Beach during the 1970's. His old girlfriend Shasta Fay Hepworth (Katherine Waterston) asks him for some help to find her current boyfriend, real estate mogul Michael Z. Wolfmann (Eric Roberts). During his investigation he meets with various characters who also ask for his investigative services that coincidentally seem to be related to Woflmann. Lt. Det. Christian F. “Bigfoot” Bjornsen (Josh Brolin) has a flat top crew cut and a hatred for hippies sets up Doc for a murder of Wolfman's Aryan bodyguard. Doc's maritime lawyer Sauncho Smilax, Esq. (Benicio del Toro) manages to get him released as Bigfoot is only using him to get more information. Along the way he meets up with Hope Harligen (Jena Malone) who is looking for her husband Coy (Owen Wilson) who has been declared dead, but she thinks otherwise. Un-expectantly Doc meets up with Coy who wants him to check up on his wife and child. He is also connected to Wolfmann and the Golden Fang, a schooner that Doc is told to beware.

Cryptic clues leads Doc to a office building of the Golden Fang and Dr. Rudy Blatnoyd (Martin Short) who snorts coke and has sex with his receptionist and patients. He says the Golden Fang is a dentist consortium. Doc tries to get information from his girlfriend Penny (Reese Witherspoon) who is a Deputy D.A. in exchange for the whereabouts of Wolfmann and some shady F.B.I. involvement. Somewhere along the way, kilos of heroin show up. It's a complicated and often confusing plot. Scenes are short and filled with familiar faces like Jenna Newsom, Jeannie Berlin, Serena Scott Thomas, Maya Rudolph and Martin Donovan.

It's a movie for stoners. Doc who is constantly smoking, which probably keeps him from freaking out and losing it if he were straight. His low key and contemplative attitude is tempered by his wanton lust for the women around him and his focus on the investigative task at hand. Set dressings and costumes are so meticulously detailed adds to the visual appeal of the film. As well as the dialogue that punches and swerves. This movie is not for everyone, but if you have the patience and a smoke, then enjoy.
(Review by reesa)

Selma

It's been said that history is written by the victors, but these days history is re-written by the movies made of historical events. Who doesn't imagine characters of the past by the actors who portrayed them in films? Everyone should also know by now that you can't always judge what you see on the big screen or TV as being the whole truth. Like there wasn't really Lord of the Rings fighting trees in Noah's time, right? Anyway, the controversy over the Internet lately regarding some inaccuracies of the script by Paul Webb and re-written by director Ava DuVernay should not distract from the excellence in the storytelling of a timely and important subject. Considering the nasty head of racism that still exists, we need a reminder of the efforts made by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to inspire us all.

The story centers on the events of Dr. King (David Oyelowo) during the 1965 Selma to Montgomery voting rights marches. The brutal art of politics and compromise comes into play as MLK tries to convince President Lyndon B. Johnson (Tom Wilkinson) to push a voting rights law. While LBJ tells him to wait while he as other agendas on his plate like not ruffling the feathers of segregationist governor George Wallace (Tim Roth). J. Edgar Hoover (Dylan Baker) offers LBJ a plan to discredit MLK, bugging his offices and homes and upset his marriage to Coretta Scott King (Carmen Ejogo) with mysterious phone calls revealing MLK's extramarital affairs. The violence of the times are featured head on as in the bombing that killed young children in a church, the brutal beating received by the marchers in Selma, the thuggish police and officials who are quick to lay down the law as they see fit. The comparisons to the events in Ferguson are inevitable.

The background for the events are laid out and filled with information that sets up the obstacles that must be endured and overcome. Punctuated by MLK speeches and his angst at the leader and the hope of the times, Oyelowo captures the essence of MLK with a dignified calm and intensity. He inspires his followers, reassures his wife, teaches the radicals that want to fight back the only way is for a peaceful protest. All the while he suffers from doubt and insecurity, struggling with the guilt of seeing the marchers getting beaten for their actions.

Despite the articles on the inaccuracies of historical fact, the movie is still important and inspirational. So many young people today are unaware of these events that shaped our country just a few short decades in the past. It reminds us of how far we have come as human beings and that racist mindset should be eliminated from our society for us to survive.
(Review by reesa)

Movies Scheduled for the Week of January 4 - January 10

Hope everyone had a nice relaxing holiday. Once more we are in the winter movie doldrums. Not as many screenings coming up so hopefully you will be able to catch up if you haven't seen the possible award worthy movies before the Golden Globes and the Academy Awards begin.

The North Texas Film Critics Association, which The Dallas Movie Screenings is a member has released their Best of 2014 list. Come check it out and let us know what you think.
https://sites.google.com/a/northtexasfilmcritics.com/www/home/best-of-2014-from-the-ntfca
We are also on Facebook so come friend us!
https://www.facebook.com/NTFCA

Dallas Movie Screenings writers also post their reviews each week at http://www.dallasmoviescreenings.com/



January 4 – January 10

Sunday
January 4

Monday
January 5

Tuesday
January 6

The Boy Next Door – 4:00 pm – Cinemark West
Spare Parts – 7:00 pm – Angelika Dallas
Selma – 7:30 pm – Angelika Dallas
Selma – 7:30 pm – Studio Movie Grill Northwest Hwy

Wednesday
January 7

Inherent Vice – 7:00 pm – Angelika Dallas
The Wedding Ringer – 7:30 pm – Cinemark West

Thursday
January 8

Kingsman The Secret Service – 7:00 pm – Angelika Dallas
Taken 3 – 8:00 pm – Angelika Dallas

Friday
January 9

Saturday
January 10

Best of 2014 from the NTFCA

https://sites.google.com/a/northtexasfilmcritics.com/www/home/best-of-2014-from-the-ntfca


Here are the official results of BEST OF 2014 from the North Texas Film Critics Association annual meeting held at La Madeleine.


BEST PICTURE
Boyhood

BEST DIRECTOR
Richard Linklater/Boyhood

BEST ACTOR
Jake Gyllenhall/Nightcrawler

BEST ACTRESS
Rosamund Pike/Gone Girl

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
J.K. Simmons/Whiplash

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Patricia Arquette/Boyhood

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Hoyte Van Hoytema/Intersteller

BEST ANIMATED
The Lego Movie

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Life Itself/Steven James, Director

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Ida/Poland: Pawel Pawlikowski, Director

Best Ensemble Cast
Birdman