Avengers: Age of Ultron
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Tempo Prediction: 4.5 Stars
When Tony Stark tries to jumpstart a dormant peacekeeping programme, things go awry and it is up to the Avengers to stop the villainous Ultron from enacting his terrible plans.
Fun Fact: The trailer was viewed 34 million times in the first 24 hours after it was released. This broke the record that was previously held by Iron Man 3 (2013).
Directed By: Joss Whedon
Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo
Furious 7
Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller
Tempo Prediction: 4.5 Stars
Deckard Shaw seeks revenge against Dominic Toretto and his family for the death of his brother.
Fun Fact: Body doubles, stunt doubles, and CGI were used to complete the film following Paul Walker’s death. Walker’s brothers Caleb Walker and Cody Walker were among the doubles, and also provided voiceover for the character Brian O’Connor.
Directed By: James Wan
Cast: Vin Diesel, Jason Statham, Dwayne Johnson
The Culling
Genre: Thriller
Tempo Prediction: 3.5 Stars
Info: A terrifying supernatural thriller in which a group of college friends on a road trip find themselves fighting off dark forces at a remote farmhouse after a chance encounter with a strange little girl.
Fun Fact: Rustam manages to take every possible cliché and turn it into a film that really isn’t very character driven but that does have one very good horror moment.
Directed By: Rustam Branaman
Cast: Jeremy Sumpter, Elizabeth Di Prinzio, Brett Davern
She’s Funny That Way
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Tempo Prediction: 4 Stars
A married Broadway director falls for a prostitute-turned-actress and works to help her advance her career.
Fun Fact: First feature Peter Bogdanovich has directed in 12 years, since The Cat’s Meow (2001). He and former wife, Louise Stratten share the screenplay credit.
Directed By: Peter Bogdanovich
Cast: Jennifer Aniston, Imogen Poots, Quentin Tarantino
MOVIE REVIEWS:
The Cobbler
The Cobbler takes on the empathy clause “living on someone else’s shoes” literally. Adam Sandler plays the role of Max Simkin, the fourth generation in the line of shoemakers. After a long dragging backstory that stretches up to 18 minutes things start getting a bit interesting. After getting a certain pair of shoes repaired on the machine handed down to him for generations, Max unwittingly tries them on, and gets the surprise of his life – only then do the first few minutes of the movie make sense. On the technical aspects, the mix of usage of moving, still and even handheld camera views give the audience the integrated movie feel without compromising on the quality of the video. The background music cues were keyed in just at the right moments without any abrupt intros or ends. If you’ve seen Sandler in “Click”, you’ll get to see the same feel and formula in this movie: the fictitious “power” and its after effects, the need to do good, and of course, the ever clichéd father-son conflict. This tried-and-tested technique might not generally be liked by movie-fanatics who are tired of these clichés, but there are still some heartfelt moments in the movie to watch for. All in all, The Cobbler is a nice movie for the family with lots of values to learn from and scenes to enjoy.
May in the Summer
May in the Summer is a lovely story, set in the Amman Jordan, that tells of a Middle Eastern wedding’s effect on the entire family – through the course of trials, conflicts, and the emotional rollercoaster ride from the perspective of the bride to be. The more May kept herself busy with all of the preparations together with her sisters, the more she asked herself: “Am I ready for this at all?” Cherien Dabis plays the main character of May, in a fully immersed performance that takes the audience through a pendulum of emotions. The subplots of the story give a good feel of what it would have been like to live in the shoes of May and her sisters. Save for the abrupt background music entrances and stops, the camera shares expansive view of Amman – the establishments, the desert, the sights. All in all, May in the Summer is a touching tale of marriage, the dynamic relationship of family, and the special bond that exists between moms and daughters. A fresh film perspective of the Middle East that is not about war and suffering, but about love and family. Beautiful score by Kareem Roustom.
