50/50

Rogen deals with another unintentional growth in the tragicomedy, Knocked Down. JGL bares his soul and his head with carefully delivered performance in this devastating and hilarious film. Does the heart come from cast’s stunning performances or the fact that it’s the writer’s autobiography? After several MRIs, looks like 50/50.

Choke

Clark Gregg adapts Palahniuk’s novel with the finesse of a high-school film-student. Over-played jokes, over-acted performances, and twisty attempt to pull one over on the audience leave everyone waiting for the film to be… over. Rockwell and MacDonald perform characteristically well, but even they can’t breathe life into this film.

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

Wes Anderson finally dives in a bit over his head. Murray reprises his Royal Rushmore character and Dafoe, Goldblum and Blanchett make splendid additions to the Anderson team. Stylized cross-section shots work fantastically but Selick’s stop-motion fish feel a bit out of place. Overall fun film drags in final act.