The Magnificent Seven

Aside from diversity, re-remake adds nothing and the whole is less than the sum of its parts. Irrelevant anecdotes can’t magnify seven enough to carry overabundance of action in a film that’s literally stunted. The peculiar performances peak well before Hawke and Washington give the town a Fuqed up Training.

Black Mass

Hollywood’s obligatory annual crime movie is too broad to feel personal but too small to feel important, much like FBI’s investigation.  Underwhelming structure or lack thereof produces a mediocre mess despite great performances.  Depp’s first actual acting in years. Maybe if the Mass were #white he would’ve gotten the Oscar.

Lovelace

‘Somewhat Near Deep Throat’ struggles to achieve documentary’s depth.  Miscasting, misdirection, and an excess of inference result in a tedious unpalatable drama that relies on fragmented chronology and repeatedly shoving it’s message down the viewer’s throat to compensate for a lack of compelling material.  But James Franco’s in there, so…

Blue Jasmine

Jasmine and her Sister marks Woody’s return to quasi-comedic female-lead character studies.  Loosely plotted, chronologically fractured character study is held aloft by characteristically brilliant Blanchett and soaring support from Hawkins.  Brits' ‘American’ are backed by bleak modern perspective.  Allen even rolls Dice on Clay for result that’s anything but crap.

Green Lantern

Reynolds is green with envy for all the decent superhero scripts as he fails to light a spark of enjoyability in this dim lantern. Effects unworthy of Pixar, and the dialogue makes Star Wars look like Shakespeare ensure that a film about manifesting the imagination completely fails to do so.

An Education

Sarsgaard resumes his frequent creepy guy role, this time enhanced by being convincingly British and in pursuit of impressively talented Carey Mulligan. A peppering of bigger stars in smaller roles support the story excellently, and beautifully written, witty dialogue prevents an otherwise endearing script from becoming too clichéd or preachy.