Movies Graded

Director: Christopher Nolan Stars: Al Pacino, Robin Williams, Hilary Swank Runtime:  118 minutes Synopsis:  Two Los Angeles homicide detectives are dispatched to a northern town where the sun doesn't set to investigate the methodical murder of a local teen. Performances: 8/10 Screenplay: 6/10 Editing: 4/10 Cinematography: 7/10 Score/Soundtrack:  6/10 Verdict: When Christopher Nolan's filmography is brought up, most people tend to leave out his first two projects which I've always found odd considering the fact that one of them is a psychological thriller starring Al Pacino, Robin Williams, and Hilary Swank. I cannot speak for his feature debut "Following" yet as it's the only Nolan film I have yet to see as I'm writing this review, but having viewed "Insomnia" twice now I can understand why it's considered to be one of the British director's weakest, or rather least interesting, works. Nolan is widely known for his innovative and unique a...

Director: David Dobkin Stars: Will Ferrell, Rachel McAdams, Pierce Brosnan Runtime:  123 minutes Synopsis:  When aspiring musicians Lars and Sigrit are given the opportunity to represent their country at the world's biggest song competition, they finally have a chance to prove that any dream worth having is a dream worth fighting for. Performances: 6/10 Screenplay: 4/10 Editing: 5/10 Cinematography: 5/10 Score/Soundtrack:  6/10 Entertainment Factor:  4/10 Verdict: To be honest, I'm not a big fan of Will Ferrell's approach to comedy. It always feels recycled and predictable, without any real depth or subtlety to them. And while "Eurovision" (I'm not going to bother with the full title) is not exactly his worst work, it pretty much serves as exactly what you'd expect from yet another comedy of his. The movie tells the story of two musicians with big dreams. Lars and Sigrit have always been the laughing stock of their hometown in Iceland but are given a once ...

Director: Mel Gibson Stars:  Gerardo Taracena, Raoul Max Trujillo, Dalia Hernández Runtime:  139 minutes Synopsis:  As the Mayan kingdom faces its decline, a young man is taken on a perilous journey to a world ruled by fear and oppression. Performances: 6/10 Screenplay: 5/10 Editing: 4/10 Cinematography: 7/10 Score/Soundtrack:  6/10 Verdict: This is it, folks. The movie that scarred me as a kid. I was only about 11 years old when I watched Mel Gibson's "Apocalypto" in theaters, and I remember being horrified from the very first scene in which a group of Mayan hunters dissect an animal they freshly captured and devour its organs raw. Things only get worse as the movie progresses, but something about it kept me hooked despite the gruesome imagery. I may have not slept well in the following days, but I was at the very least fascinated by that movie. Being available on Netflix, I decided to give it a rewatch since I haven't seen it i...

Director: Fernando Frias Stars:  Juan Daniel Garcia Treviño, Xueming Angelina Chen, Coral Puente Runtime:  112 minutes Synopsis:  In Monterrey, Mexico, a young street gang spends their days dancing to slowed-down cumbia and attending parties. After a mix-up with a local cartel, their leader is forced to migrate to the U.S. but quickly longs to return home. Performances: 8/10 Screenplay: 7/10 Editing: 5/10 Cinematography: 8/10 Score/Soundtrack:  9/10 Verdict: "I'm No Longer Here" is a Mexican film that was released on Netflix not too long ago. The acclaim it received earlier this year at the Tribeca Film Festival made me eager to check out what it was all about, but to my surprise, it barely generated any buzz upon its wide release on the streaming service. For that reason, I kept postponing it due to an internal fear that it wasn't going to live up to my initial expectations. These doubts, thankfully, turned out to be very wrong as Fernando Frias' effort wa...

Director: Andrei Tarkovsky Stars:  Margarita Terekhova, Filipp Yankovskiy, Ignat Daniltsev Runtime:  107 minutes Synopsis:  A dying man in his forties remembers his past. His childhood, his mother, the war, personal moments, and things that tell of the recent history of all the Russian nation. Performances: 9/10 Screenplay: ?/10 Editing: ?/10 Cinematography: 9/10 Score/Soundtrack:  ?/10 Verdict: "The Mirror" marks my introduction to Andrei Tarkovsky's work. The Soviet director is considered by many to be one of the best filmmakers of all time, and while I had never seen any of his movies, I had a small idea of the type in which they belong. And that is probably the reason why I postponed them for such a long time. Tarkovsky is known for his slow pacing and usage of spiritual themes to drive his films, and I had a feeling that I'd have a hard time connecting with them. My experience watching "The Mirror" confirmed what I had fea...

Director: Christopher Nolan Stars: Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano Runtime:  113 minutes Synopsis:  A man with short-term memory loss attempts to track down his wife's murderer. Performances: 8/10 Screenplay: 9/10 Editing: 10/10 Cinematography: 8/10 Score/Soundtrack:  8/10 Verdict:  Whenever someone is asked what their favorite Christopher Nolan movie is, the answer provided can rarely be anticipated. The English filmmaker's made many fan favorites over the years, but "Memento" will always have a special place in my heart. To me, it perfectly combines innovative storytelling and indie filmmaking and manages to subvert all expectations without relying on gimmicks or illusions of grandeur. What makes "Memento" such an intriguing watch is the unique way in which the events are presented. The opening scene acts as the story's conclusion and the final one acts as its beginning (or rather middle?), a very fitting way of narrating a revenge tale in...

Director: David Koepp Stars: Kevin Bacon, Amanda Seyfried, Avery Tiiu Essex Runtime:  93 minutes Synopsis:   A former banker, his actress wife, and their spirited daughter book a vacation at an isolated modern home in the Welsh countryside where nothing is quite as it seems. Performances: 4/10 Screenplay: 2/10 Editing: 3/10 Cinematography: 5/10 Score/Soundtrack:  4/10 Verdict: I should have listened to the film's title. FINAL GRADE:  3/10