by Kevin Gardner
Even a major movie studio can be vulnerable to a major hack. Sony learned that the hard way in 2014. Before the Sony hack, some in Hollywood may not have asked "What is network security?" or "Why is it important?". Yet this incident, which took place prior to the planned release of the comedy The Interview, showed studios that they needed to better protect their data.
Read MoreTo build a master list, I turned to the Pub Meeple Ranking Engine. I entered a list of just under 200 five-star and high four-star movies and let the hundreds of clickable “versus” matchup permutations slot everything. It’s really a slick tool, and it nailed my results. The cream of the rose to the top, just as they should. I’ve said this before on other lists, but this is more about “best” than “favorites.” Also, I did not include documentaries. Quality edges easy entertainment more often than not. Here are the results with a little commentary here and there in between!
Read MoreAs I grow with press credentials and professional affiliation locally and nationally, I find myself more and more landing and conversing in circles with other film critics of various levels. Much like the David Ehrlich survey I participate in, I answered an open social media call from Jordan Ruimy of World of Reel. He is a fellow Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic who also has contributed to The Young Folks, The Playlist, We Got This Covered, and The Film Stage. His poll was to collect the Top 5 films of the 2010s from critics and other industry folk. I was honored to chime in with my quintet.
Read MoreIn returning to my "Movie Classroom" series of interactive whiteboard video reviews with new vigor, new skills, and new tools, I wanted to bring back and upload my old video attempts to my Every Movie Has a Lesson YouTube channel. In a massive file drop, I recently uploaded 29 of my past Movie Classroom videos from 2014, including winners like Whiplash and Birdman. Head over and reminisce on some fine films and commentary by yours truly.
Read MoreAll eyes are on the hotly anticipated live-action "re-imagining" of Walt Disney Pictures' enormously successful "Beauty and the Beast" from 1991. That March 2017 sure-fire blockbuster will garner tremendous attention in its attempt to honor the animated Best Picture Oscar nominee and double Academy Award winner. In the meantime, the fairy tale's home country of France throws down its own gauntlet to give Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve's 1740 original story and Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont's abridged 1756 standard the grand, epic big-screen treatment it warrants. Let's just say the French sure know what they are doing.
Read MoreAccording to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the most basic two-part definition of the word "identity" is "who someone is" and "the qualities, beliefs, etc. that make a particular person or group different from others." That notion of identity speaks to both our distinguishing physical appearance and persona on the outside as well as our internal soul, thoughts, preferences, and desires. In 2015, a captivating year where our own country has legalized same sex marriage and the introduction of Caitlyn Jenner set off shockwaves, our society is coming around to learning and understanding that not all identities fit into the usual two check-boxes of "male" and "female." We are witnessing the emerging battle for LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) equality right before our eyes.
Read MoreIn the current cinematic landscape filled with modern technology and instant gratification, there is a lost appreciation for hand-done work. Traditional animation, stop-motion, and claymation have become a dying art form with the advent of computer animation and modern tools. It's easy to look past the old and simple in favor of the new and shiny toy, but sometimes the old and simple can show up the new and pretty with ease. That's the beauty of something like "Shaun the Sheep."
Read More"Welcome to Me" is a Mobius strip of a trainwreck. The film is a trainwreck... of a trainwreck. Starring an extremely invested Kristen Wiig, the film is, to its credit, a bold character piece and black comedy that seeks to put a trainwreck of a person on display in an effort to preach larger moral questions. As bold as it is in that intention, "Welcome to Me" doesn't achieve that and overshoots every landing possible. It's that really well planned gag or stunt that can't match the real thing because it's been too manufactured to where the unpredictability is taken away or feels forced. It's the second coming of "Dinner for Schmucks," in terms of cringe comedy, and that film was bad but at least funnier.
Read MoreThe new foreign-backed "Clouds of Sils Maria" is the latest film to challenge the parallels of a performer channeling what may or not be a version of themselves. Written and directed by Olivier Assayas, "Clouds of Sils Maria" premiered in competition at last year's Cannes Film Festival and worked the film festival circuit last winter, including stops in Toronto, New York, and the 50th Chicago International Film Festival. The film finally makes its limited U.S. theatrical release on April 10th. Honed down to a serious scale far smaller and more intimate than the likes of "Notting Hill," the cinematic star in the center of this solar system microcosm is Academy Award winner Juliette Binoche. As a gracefully aging actress of peripheral prominence playing a fictional one of the same sort in a different situation, we are taken inside a phenomenal character study. "Clouds of Sils Maria" is a fascinating actor's showcase that deserves and earns your attention for the behind-the-scenes tribulations of acting and the livelihood attached to that career.
Read MoreAmerican Westerns have become a lost art and a dying breed. So much has been done that it's hard to find a fresh take. If you have felt that loss and need a jolt, an extremely taut and good homage to the American Western has emerged in "The Salvation," playing now in limited release and Video on Demand, from Danish filmmaker Kristian Levring. Headlined by Mads Mikkelsen, Eva Green, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and Jonathan Pryce, the film moved the needle a bit during the 2014 film festival circuit, including a pair of screenings at the 50th Chicago International Film Festival last October (where yours truly caught the ride).
Read MoreLet's put a bow on the 2014 Oscar race. Last night, I correctly predicted 16 of the 24 winners. In my final update of this year's Awards Tracker, here are the final tallies, Oscar winners, and my reactions. The Oscar winners in each category are in bold. See you next year for another data session and awards season!
Read MoreIn this seventh and final post, we've come to the big one, folks. Here's my analysis and breakdown of the race for Best Picture. This is a close one, so read on! Let's do this! I've said it all season. Stick with me and I will win you your Oscar pool.
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