Retro horror ‘House of the Devil’ is so patient and sublimely creepy that it’s easy to forgive its ultimate silliness. An assured throwback.
The nimble, expert ‘Up in the Air’ only seems to endorse its protagonist’s self-satisfied nihilism, but it fails to deeply pierce his armor.
‘The Informant!’ imposes a screwball score and exclamation point on a story that’s absurd but rarely funny. Only Damon’s investment engages.
‘Invention of Lying’ has a simple, resonant premise but is made without rigor. Only intermittent ingenuity saves it from offensive laziness.
Like Selick’s other animations, ‘Coraline’ is merely weird. While imaginative, meticulous, and thematically rich, it’s dull and oddly inert.
Finished Battlestar Galactica. Can I sue Ronald D. Moore to get 3,234 minutes back? Loved the conception and arc; often hated the execution.
‘Hurt Locker’ overplays its coda but is an intense serial with authenticity and narrative momentum, and the script lets the actors carry it.
‘Harvard Beats Yale’ ably manages character, context, and Gore/Bush digressions, but it fumbles the game: erratic pacing and odd inclusions.
The sci-fi of ‘Moon’ is philosophical, humane, rigorous, and austere, and I adore the robot’s hopeful emoticon expressions; that feels right
‘Anvil!’ merely repeats Spinal Tap’s satire and has too much Lips and too little Robb, but the duo’s determination is touching and truly sad
