My fellow SMU grad, Los Angeles Times critic Robert Abele, joins me and Alonso for a discussion of Zac Efron, Seth Rogen and Snuffer’s cheese fries. Robert and I wanted to laugh harder, but Alonso had a good time....
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What the Flick?! — Walk of Shame
The ordinarily likable Elizabeth Banks throws herself into this terrible role with all the gusto she’s got, but even she can’t make her vapid TV news anchor character feel like a real person. Robert Abele joins me and Alonso to discuss this flat, unfunny slog....
Read moreRogerEbert.com — Walk of Shame
“Walk of Shame” was not screened for critics before opening day. When I went to a matinee of it Friday morning, this made sense to me. Elizabeth Banks’ immense likability and comedic talent go to waste in this misogynistic, flat farce. My one-star RogerEbert.com review. Read the review here...
Read moreWhat the Flick?! — The Amazing Spider-Man 2
The four of us are all on the same page on this overstuffed comic-book sequel: a little more conversation, a little less action, please....
Read moreWhat the Flick?! — Locke
Tom Hardy drives a car along a London motorway for an hour and a half, and it’s gripping. Alonso, Ben and I all went a little nuts for this brilliantly executed, low-budget drama....
Read moreRogerEbert.com — The Amazing Spider-Man 2
Watching “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” made me long for a low-budget, indie version of the same movie — one that took out all the numbing action sequences and focused instead on the character’s inner struggle. I also realize this is a ridiculous proposal in my two-star review for RogerEbert.com. Read...
Read moreLocke
A24 Films Rated R for language throughout. Running time: 85 minutes. Three and a half stars out of four. Movies that take place in real time and/or confined spaces may sound like flimsy gimmicks — see: “Phone Booth,” “Buried” — but when they work, they can be supremely gripping. Take...
Read moreRevisiting Rango
Damn, I love “Rango” so much. It is absolutely gorgeous: vividly detailed, wildly colorful and thrillingly inventive from start to finish, even as it pays homage to such classic and eclectic films as “Chinatown,” “Apocalypse Now” and Clint Eastwood’s spaghetti Westerns. I had the pleasure of revisiting the 2011 animated...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — The Other Woman
From revenge comedy to cautionary tale to scatological raunchfest to female empowerment drama, director Nick Cassavetes’ veers wildly all over the place. For a while, though, Cameron Diaz and Leslie Mann share an enjoyable chemistry as two of the three woman who discover the same serial philanderer has wronged them....
Read moreRogerEbert.com — Brick Mansions
The last film Paul Walker completed before his death in a November 2013 car crash is an English-language remake of the French action thriller “District B13.” It’s ridiculous, but at least it has the decency to acknowledge that it’s ridiculous. And it’s a solid showcase of Walker’s charisma, agility and...
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