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Non-Review Review: Runner Runner

Posted on October 2, 2013 by Darren

Runner Runner feels like it should be a lot more fun than it winds up being. For a film about gambling, it lays the cards on the table pretty quickly. It’s a story about an ambitious young man who is offered wealth and success, only to eventually discover that the price is nothing less than his soul. As such, our plucky young hero has to keep all the plates spinning as the walls close in around him, trying to keep his head above water and the wolves from his door. There are, of course, other clichés I can throw in there, but these will do for now.

As such, Runner Runner isn’t about originality or insight, borrowing heavily from far better character studies and morality plays – even the casting of Justin Timberlake as a nerdy internet-savvy college student feels like a riff on his role in The Social Network. Runner Runner is all about the execution of these familiar high concepts and plot points. Unfortunately, the movie never seems too invested in its stakes, or too engaged with the game it is playing. When the chips are down, Runner Runner can nothing but fold.

I want to believe this is the same look Ben Affleck had when reading the internet’s response to Batffleck…

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: Affleck, ben affleck, Costa Rica, Federal Bureau of Investigation, film, Gambling, Gemma Arterton, Justin Timberlake, Online gambling, Runner Runner, Social Network, Timberlake, United States | 6 Comments »

Trailer for Aaron Sorkin’s The Newsroom…

Posted on April 4, 2012 by Darren

This has been doing the rounds for a few days, but I’m still quite excited for Aaron Sorkin’s upcoming HBO drama, The Newsroom. While I’m not quite as fond of The West Wing as most are, I’ll concede that the dialogue and characterisation of the first four seasons were almost flawless, and I’m a huge fan of Sorkin’s work on both The Social Network and Moneyball. Taking place inside a network news show, The Newsroom should allow Sorkin to explore the culture of news broadcasting, and should provide ample fodder for his superb cast. Seriously, look at it – you’ve got Jeff Daniels, Emily Mortimer, Alison Pill and Dev Patel. It’s starting on HBO in June, and I can only hope it’ll be coming to Sky Atlantic shortly thereafter for us Irish and UK television junkies.

This is getting added to the planner, even though I’m already well behind on the other shows I’m following (and trying to catch up on retroactively). Check out the trailer below.

Filed under: Television | Tagged: Aaron Sorkin, hbo, jeff daniels, Moneyball, Newsroom, Social Network, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, The Newsroom (HBO), The Newsroom (television), West Wing | 4 Comments »

Fresh Perspectives: Classic Directors and Not-so-Classic Films…

Posted on November 15, 2011 by Darren

I caught Mel Brooks’ High Anxiety at the weekend, and I have to admit, I liked it. I’d only heard the movie mentioned in passing from time to time, never discussed with the same reverence as Space Balls or Blazing Saddles or Young Frankenstein, but never with the same bitterness as Dracula: Dead and Loving It. It never really made it on to any conscious “to see” list with any of the great works from iconic directors. However, I really enjoyed it. Don’t get me wrong – I don’t consider it a forgotten classic, or a misunderstood gem overlooked in Brooks’ impressive filmography. It has its flaws and problems, but I enjoyed it. In fact, while I wouldn’t consider on par with some of his stronger films, I dare say that I actually enjoyed it more than some of them, despite the fact I hadn’t heard that much about it. In fact, I can’t help but wonder if I enjoyed it more because I hadn’t heard that much about it.

High expectations can lead to monstrous results...

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: Annie Hall, arts, DVD, Mel Brooks, Movies, Social Network, the godfather, Woody Allen, Young Frankenstein | 33 Comments »

5% Solution: Why the Oscars’ New First-Preference Rule is a Step in the Wrong Direction…

Posted on October 6, 2011 by Darren

We’re officially out of the summer blockbuster season, which might lead you to believe that it was time for us film folk to have a bit of a rest. After all, we’ve been yammering on about “box office this” and “3D that” for quite some time now, and it makes sense we’d use the lull to compose ourselves. Of course, we can’t – it’s time to start Oscar-speculating. Because I’m situated in Ireland, there’s no point in me putting together a list of potential nominees, as it would just involve plagiarising countless individuals far more informed than myself. However, I have been thinking quite a bit about the latest amendment to the Academy’s infamous “ten nominees” amendment to their Best Picture nomination process: whereby every nominee will now be required to have at least 5% of the first preference votes. The more I think about it, the more I don’t like it.

Not quite the gold standard anymore?

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: Academy Award, Academy Award for Best Picture, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, best picture nominees, black swan, Christopher Nolan, first preferences, five percent. 5%, King's Speech, oscar, Social Network, toy story 3, voting | 4 Comments »

Non-Review Review: 30 Minutes or Less

Posted on August 16, 2011 by Darren

This movie was seen as part of Movie Fest, the rather wonderful film festival organised by Vincent and everybody else over at movies.ie. It was well worth attending, and I’m already looking forward to next year. Good job all.

It’s kinda strange to watch 30 Minutes or Less. It’s an entertaining enough farce that is carried mainly by its superb primary cast, but it feels strange because the viewer gets the sense that the film might have worked better as a quirky caper film instead of a flat-out comedy. I enjoyed the movie, even if it wasn’t really in the same ballpark as Ruben Fleischer’s early film, Zombieland. I spent most of the movie with a smile on my face, rather than laughing out loud.

Banking on another great comedy...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: 30 Minutes or Less, Aziz Ansari, danny mcbride, jesse eisenberg, michael pena, Nick Swardson, non-review review, review, Social Network, zombieland, Zombieland [Blu-ray] | 2 Comments »

Tryin’ to Throw Your Arms Around the World: Oscars 2011

Posted on March 5, 2011 by Darren

You know what? I’m not actually that ticked off with the Academy Awards this year. In fact, as I mentioned in discussing the nominees, I was quite happy with the candidates up for the award. Now, nearly a week after the ceremony, I must concede that I’m generally relatively happy with the way that the awards were divided up on the night. CinemaBlend summed up the ceremony as a “group hug” to movies released in a great year for cinema, and I find it hard to object to that succinct summary.

By all accounts, the hosting was a bit of a drag...

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: academy, Academy Award, academy award for best director, Academy Award for Best Picture, Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, AMPAS, awards, Eli Wallach, films, Hailee Steinfeld, Inception, King's Speech, Melissa Leo, Movies, Oscars, Social Network, the social network | 6 Comments »

GoSave Deals…

Posted on March 5, 2011 by Darren

The guys over at Simply Zesty sent this link on, and it’s something close to my better half’s heart, so I thought I’d share it. Basically, GoSave.ie is a website that runs deals on Irish businesses, and donates a certain percentage of their costs back to charity. It’s a very handy way of supporting the local economy, which is – understandably – a source of concern for many people in this day and age. If you’re Irish, and interested in this, you can check them out on Facebook here or by clicking the link below.

Note: I am sharing this link because I think it’s the kind of thing that might be important people viewing the blog, and I know that supporting local industry matters to some people very close to me in my personal life. I’m not earning or receiving anything in return for this post, nor does it represent a direct endorsement of the service – I’m merely sharing something that some readers might find interesting. It’s unfortunate that this sort of thing needs to be clarified, but it’s important that I am open and transparent with you, the reader, on why I post a link to a corporate website.

Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: business, ethnicity, facebook, Google, Simply Zesty, social media, Social Network, twitter | Leave a comment »

Why The Social Network isn’t an “Outside” Choice for Best Picture…

Posted on October 18, 2010 by Darren

I enjoyed The Social Network. Hell, I loved The Social Network. I think it’s easily one of the best films of the year. It has – deservedly in my humble opinion – generated a huge amount of buzz about the Best Picture Oscar. However, the more interesting facets of discussion measure the film against the other favourites, like The King’s Speech or Black Swan. A number of these arguments suggest that The Social Network deserves the Oscar because it is “more socially relevant”, even painting the Oscar voters at a crossroads – forced to choose between a modern film (The Social Network) and a classy but stuffy period piece (The King’s Speech). However, I find this argument rather disingenuous. While the Oscar voters in that situation would undoubtedly be choosing between two solid films, I think it clearly misrepresents the appeal of David Fincher’s deconstruction of the American Dream.

Will Academy voters be getting a friend request?

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: Academy Award, Academy Award for Best Picture, academy voters, Citizen Kane, david fincher, dest director, facebook, Hurt Locker, Inception, moment, Oscars, Social Network, the king's speeck, timeless, timely, Vietnam War, zeitgiest | 5 Comments »

Non-Review Review: The Social Network

Posted on October 18, 2010 by Darren

Blessed are the geeks, for they shall inherit the earth.

– The Bible. It’s in the back somewhere.

I’m blogging about The Social Network. How post-modern is that?

Should it be the anti-social network?

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: Aaron Sorkin, arts, Citizen Kane, david fincher, eduardo saverin, facebook, films, Mark Zuckerberg, Movies, non-review review, review, Sean Parker, Social Network | 8 Comments »

Is Classism Alive And Well At The Box Office?

Posted on October 11, 2010 by Darren

Richard Nixon introduced the phrase “the silent majority” into the popular lexicon, referring to those people who weren’t out protesting or stirring up a storm, but quietly and strongly sanctioning his actions. Since then the term has become almost synonymous with “middle America” or the “the big red middle”, the clear indication that liberalism and activism were traditionally associated with the coasts of the country – specifically concentrated around Washington, New York and California. Whenever loud and vocal protests arise in these regions, expect the more conservative politicians to speak about the silent majority of decent middle-class folks in “flyover country” who don’t make big deals of things and vote with their feet. These are the people, these politicians will tell you, who save their public political expressions for the election day. And so, it would seem, this central part of the country has voted on The Social Network. And silence was certainly there in spades.