MOVI E CLOSE - UPS
OPENING THIS WEEK
MAX
What starts as a 20-minute commercial for the valiant war dogs of the world morphs into a boy-and-his-dog tale, as Justin (Josh Wiggins) adopts the military dog trained by his deceased brother, and each finds new meaning in life. Sweet and message-y but well done. (Chris Knight)
ME AND EARL AND THE DYING GIRL
This film is the antithesis, or maybe more accurately the antidote to all those cinematic love stories tragically undone by the ultimate villain — a cancer diagnosis. Based on the like-named novel, this Sundance winner never opts for the easy way out. Human connection, camaraderie and friendship take precedence over romantic love in a nicely underplayed story that benefits from a stellar cast. (Chris Knight)
TED 2
The original had, well, originality. The sequel, about a foul-mouthed, self-aware teddy bear’s quest for civil rights, features the line “Oh my God, déjà vu!” and a lot of comic bits that, while individually funny, don’t really add up to a story. Seth MacFarlane provides the voice, script, direction, etc. (Chris Knight)
RECENT RELEASES
ALOHA
Cameron Crowe’s latest feels like a connect-the-dots done with invisible ink; there are scattered shoals of lucidity, but for the rest of the film you’re left floundering. Bradley Cooper and Emma Stone star in a story about launching a new satellite from Hawaii. Or something. (Chris Knight)
AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON
In the latest, increasingly confusing chapter of the Marvel-verse, Iron Man/Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) accidentally creates an artificial intelligence (voiced by James Spader) that wants to wipe out humanity. At least it also has a sense of humour. (Chris Knight)
THE DIVERGENT SERIES: INSURGENT
The middle chapter in the story of young rebel Tris Prior desperately wants to be taken seriously. That may by why it feels the need to open with a bang and close with another, with a whole lot of lesser bangs in between. (Chris Knight)
FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD
Film adaptations have a way of flattening the subtleties of character in Victorian and Edwardian novels. And this version of Thomas Hardy’s story of a woman considering three suitors is no exception. The acting is solid but unremarkable and the scenery is lovingly lingered over. (David Berry)
I’LL SEE YOU IN MY DREAMS
Blythe Danner’s remarkably nuanced performance alone is worth the price of admission to this quirky and egocentric but endearing film that resists the lure of contemporary pop platitudes. Living in the moment has its pluses, but there are gentler, more loving ways to measure the course of our lives and this film makes affecting note of some of them. (Julia Cooper)
INSIDE OUT
Pixar’s latest takes place inside the mind of 11-year-old Riley, who must deal with a move to a new city with the help of five emotions, chief among them Joy and Sadness. It’s funny, but for adults there are unexpected, welcome reserves of depth and thoughtfulness. (Chris Knight)
INSIDIOUS: CHAPTER 3
This one should really be called Insidious: Prologue, as it’s set a few years before the first two chapters. It’s your standard girl-in-peril movie, as teenager Quinn (Stefanie Scott) tries to contact her dead mom and ends up stalked by a ghost. (Chris Knight)
JURASSIC WORLD
Twenty-two years after the original Jurassic Park, this summer popcorn movie features one-note acting from Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard; the apatosaurus delivers a nice deathbed scene though. But go for effects and dino-on-dino fighting action and you won’t be disappointed. (Chris Knight)
MAD MAX: FURY ROAD
Director George Miller’s fourth go at a Mad Max movie feels like an Iron Maiden album cover come to life. But it’s not nearly as quiet. Fury Road is a two-hour car chase, but strapped to the hood (much like Max himself in the early scenes) is a simple, satisfying story about humanity and redemption. (Chris Knight)
PITCH PERFECT 2
Directed by Elizabeth Banks, this is one of those wholly unnecessary but worthy sequels that quickly proves to be a fans-only romp. But the film about collegiate a cappella groups plays to its cast’s comedic chops and is earnest in ensuring everyone has fun. Starring Anna Kendrick and Rebel Wilson. (Manori Ravindran)
SAN ANDREAS
It ticks off all the disaster-movie boxes. Dwayne Johnson is the hero, a helicopter rescue pilot. Carla Gugino and Alexandra Daddario are his estranged family, who need saving. Gugino’s new boyfriend is a cad who deserves what he gets. And Paul Giamatti is the scientist who explains it all. A solid disaster-movie-genre outing. (Chris Knight)
SPY
Proving you can make a movie with a Bond girl but no Bond, writer-director Paul Feig lets Melissa McCarthy, Rose Byrne and Miranda Hart do the heavy lifting in a comedy about a deskbound CIA agent who volunteers to go into the field. Jason Statham provides the complement of testosterone, and hilariously so. (Chris Knight)
TOMORROWLAND
In the future of Tomorrowland, the world is in a sorry state: forests are scorched, cities are drowning, civilizations lay in ruin. All we need to avert global catastrophe, Tomorrowland cheerfully and naively explains, is a can-do attitude and a bit of imagination. (Calum Marsh)
THE WATER DIVINER
A film so concerned with making a solemn statement about the horrors of war, and showing off Russell Crowe’s sensitive face, it never bothers to liven things up with actual touches of humanity. (David Berry)
WOMAN IN GOLD
Based on a true story, the film’s trite characterizations and lazy oversimplifications ignore the complexities of a tale that, in this cinematic telling, feels resoundingly false, despite the decent rapport between stars Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds. (Adam Nayman)