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| EFC STATS |
| Movies Listed: |
23044 |
| Total Ratings: |
239533 |
| Total Reviews: |
25034 |
![[103183992 Hits]](/cgi-bin/gd.cgi?103183992)
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| SALT OF LIFE, THE |
"Little other flavor."
Jay Seaver says... ""The Salt of Life" is the title given to this movie for it's American release; the actual title translates to "Gianni and the Women", which is kind of literal but less pretentious, which might have been preferable. "The Salt of Life" implies that some sort of wisdom or philosophy will be imparted, but in reality, the audience must settle for a few decent anecdotes." (more)
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| CHRONICLE |
"Come for the gimmick, stay for the good movie beneath it."
Brett Gallman says... "By now, you’ve probably heard that “Chronicle” is the found footage riff on superhero movies that all but abandons its gimmick by the time it ends. This much is true--in fact, you’ll be wondering why director Josh Trank even took the approach when his camera(s) are gracefully swooping and swooshing around during an outstandingly realized action centerpiece. However, you also probably won’t care too much since it’s all so thrilling and grand, matching many other big-budget comic book movies released during the past decade." (more)
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| CHRONICLE |
"Don't overlook it."
Rob Gonsalves says... "Found-footage movies are hot, and superhero movies are hot, so I imagine "Chronicle" — a found-footage superhero movie — being an easy pitch to the studio. The surprise is how serious and emotionally true the film turns out to be." (more)
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| WOMAN IN BLACK, THE |
"The Lady Vanishes And Appears And Vanishes And So On. . ."
Peter Sobczynski says... "Although the name will presumably fail to ring a bell with younger viewers these days, the name of Hammer Films is one that continues to resonate strongly in the hearts (among other organs) of moviegoers of a certain age and certain tastes. For those unfamiliar, Hammer was a British filmmaking concern that became an international sensation in the late Fifties with a string of horror movies that took such iconic characters as Dracula and Frankenstein's monster and presented them in versions that introduced viewers to previously unimaginable amounts of spurting blood, severed limbs and heaving bosoms as well as such heretofore unknown performers as Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. For a while, they were one of the biggest names in genre filmmaking but by the beginning of the Seventies--when the major studios responded to the end of the once-powerful Production Code by upping their levels of on-screen sex and violence--their films began to look as musty and dated as they once made the Universal Pictures horror cycle of the Thirties appear and after a few expensive duds designed to broaden their audience (such as "Shatter," "The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires" and a misguided remake of "The Lady Vanishes"), they pretty much went out of business for good." (more)
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| CHRONICLE |
"I Have Never Felt More Like Leonard Maltin In My Life. . ."
Peter Sobczynski says... "Once upon a time, movies used to be based on books or plays. Later on, they began to take their inspiration from comic books, television shows and, of course, other movies. "Chronicle," on the other hand, often feels as if it has been based on someone's Netflix queue. Here is a film that borrows bits and pieces from the likes of "Spider Man," "X-Men," "Carrie," "Cloverfield," "Kick-Ass," "American Beauty" and a certain Seventies-era schlockfest that became infamous in certain circles a couple of decades later after appearing on the late, great "Mystery Science Theater 3000" (Hint: Leonard Maltin gave it 2 1/2 stars) to name just a few of the most obvious examples. In fact, it carries hints and reminders of so many other past movies that some of the more competitive film geeks out there could challenge each other to a round of Spot the Reference and come up with long lists of possible titles. Making this effort somewhat easier is the fact that the film, while undeniably energetic and entertaining in spots, is one of those slightly frustrating near-misses that never quite manages to live up to its considerable potential." (more)
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| INNKEEPERS, THE |
"A Horror Film That Inspires The Right Kind Of Boos."
Peter Sobczynski says... "A couple of years ago, I reviewed "House of the Devil," an 80's-influenced horror movie about a nubile college student hired for a babysitting job at a remote and spooky home that turned out to. . .well, I am fairly certain that you can pretty much figure it out from the title. While I didn't quite like it enough to recommend it--I admired the slow-burn approach that valued building an atmosphere of dread over cluttering things with cheap "BOO!" moments, the big payoff just didn't quite work for me (possibly because of the spoiler contained in the damn title)--I did note that it was made with a lot of skill by up-and-coming writer-director Ti West and that while he hadn't made a good film this time around, he demonstrated enough promise to make me eager to see what he would come up with next. That follow-up project has now arrived in the form of "The Innkeepers" and it turns out to have indeed been worth the wait after all. Like his previous film, it prefers to gradually create a sense of slow-mounting terror that derives its scares largely from what might be lurking around the corner rather than having monsters or maniacs leaping into the frame every few minutes. The end result may not be a classic but as straightforward scare flicks go, it delivers the goods and then some." (more)
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| MISS BALA |
"This bullet never stops."
Jay Seaver says... ""Miss Bala" was Mexico's submission for "best foreign language film" at the Academy Awards this year, but didn't quite make the cut. That's may be appropriate, depending on how you look at it - its either a thriller that's short one twist and thus settles for being merely very, very good or an excellent attempt to communicate the constant, unending tension of life in certain parts of Mexico. Either way, it's a movie well worth watching, and in many ways exceptional - it's a rare movie that can sustain tension as long and as well as this one." (more)
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| CELESTE AND JESSE FOREVER |
"Celeste & Jesse For Two Hours is actually a bit much."
Jay Seaver says... "SCREENED AT SUNDANCE USA 2012: "I don't like the main character" isn't really a great reason to dislike a movie - there are plenty of disreputable protagonists who are nevertheless intriguing - but in real life, it's not a lot of fun to hang around people who complain despite being the authors of their own misery. That's what "Celeste and Jesse Forever" too often feels like; it wants to be a relationship comedy with some depth, but it seldom has much beyond the superficial." (more)
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THE 11TH ANNUAL EFILMCRITIC OSCAR PICK 'EM (WIN 50 DVDS!)
by Erik Childress |
| "THE ULTIMATE OSCAR CONTEST IS BACK! Blame the economy, blame the terrorists, blame Tyler Perry, but we took a year off and it was clear the absence made your hearts grow fonder. And so we have brought it back with help from a great number of our studio friends who have generously donated some of their most overlooked films of 2011. Overlooked by the Oscars especially. Sure, we have some nominees in there, but surely they could have grabbed one of the two slots filled by Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close. Seriously, any other film would have made a better choice. But that is what we have tried to do with this contest for years. Shine the spotlight on films you may have missed throughout the year - or - re-shine the light on films you loved that clearly Academy voters did not. All you have to do is win and your film library will be all the richer for it. Come in the top five and you are just like one of the Oscar nominees. No trophy, but one heck of a gift basket to go home with. Plus, we have some random gifts to those who just showed up." (more) |
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CRITICWATCH - NO GREY AREAS ON THE WHORE'S LEDGE
by Erik Childress |
| "Criticwatch gets very discouraged when the studios begin a new year with a clean slate and instantly squander it with the same old bullshit. Two years running Shawn Edwards and Joel Amos have been the #1 & #2 Whores of the Year. But, we're getting ahead of ourselves as much as the studio's can't wait to tell us either how bad their films are or how lazy their marketers are in being able to find critics that can be trusted. Even their great stand-by, Peter Travers, is not known to kick into high gear until after the doldrums of the January dump period has been left to the whores who don't even write the blurbs which look oh-so-familiar to anyone who has read any single year-end piece from us. If you have not, please join us once again to show you the worthlessness of these people. And in the case of one moron, clearly not thinking before he chooses his words.....written on a memo for him already." (more) |
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DVD REVIEWS FOR 1/28: "AND INTRODUCING KATHERINE MCPHEE"
by Peter Sobczynski |
| "Okay, I must confess that this article is actually 100% McPhee-free. However, since ever seems to be introducing her even though we have already see her place in a nationally televised talent show, get knocked up in an Anna Faris joint and get eaten by CGI-sharks, why can't I? Besides, if it lures a few more eyes to this column--which features a couple of all-time classics (featuring stars ranging from Catherine Deneuve to Godzilla) to a couple of the most hateful so-called comedies ever perpetrated, so much the better. . ." (more) |
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'I JUST ENJOY WATCHING A TROUBLED TEEN RUNNING AWAY AND BEATING PEOPLE SENSELESS, CALL ME SICK.'
- Superfly, HBS Reviewer
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Articles 
Nick Digilio Film Club
