I am so underwhelmed by most of these movies that I'm not putting in pictures of them or, let's be honest, any effort into full reviews.
Runner Runner
Let's break down the main problems with this movie.
- Justin Timberlake is the lead. Now, I'm into JT as a muscian, as a personality, as a comedian, heck - as an annoying character in The Social Network, but JT cannot sustain a dramatic movie. You just watch him and feel that he's thinking, "I am so acting right now." And he's not. He's just doing this staring intensely thing.
- Ben Affleck is not scary. They try to establish him as this intimidating character in his first scene when he says f*ck like 4 times and talks about all the *other word for kitty* he gets as king of his little island. You feel like laughing. You watch and think, Jennifer Garner is at some farmers market with your adorable children right now. He doesn't even do full-on bad guy stuff. He throws some guys to get eaten by crocodiles, and then he pulls them out... Oh, Ben.
- You literally don't care what's happening. Is there a plot? I can't remember. (Bullet points one and two really contribute to this).
Prisoners
This movie felt very much like a two hour episode of CSI or whatever crime show you prefer. All the acting by Jake Gyllenhaal, Hugh Jackman, Paul Dano, and the rest of the cast is better than the acting would be in a show like that, but that's really the only difference. The switching between Gyllenhaal and Jackman's point of view lessens the impact of the film overall; you don't become fully immersed in either character. The mystery aspect is decent, and the film is somewhat suspenseful. But, I'd rather watch an episode of Sherlock any day.
Gravity
I've been hearing a lot of mixed reviews of this film, so I guess I'll just throw mine into the ring. I was bored. I know, it seems like it would be difficult to be bored when so many crazy, dangerous, space things are happening, but I was bored. You don't really get any introduction to the characters or what's happening, you're just thrown in space and expected to care about what's going on. Why should I care? I have no way to relate to anything that is happening. It's constant life-threatening scenarios in space. What would I know about that? Any flicker of humanity doesn't show up until about 2/3 into the movie.
Now, I've been told that it just needs to be appreciated as art. Okay, fine. If you want to just experience beautiful, space views, maybe you'll like this movie. If you want to marvel at the elegance of a 20 minute take, go for it. But, I need a bit more when I see a movie. I need a reason to care about what's happening on screen. (ALSO, SHE SHOULD HAVE DIED LIKE 20 TIMES).
Don Jon
As a big Joseph Gordon Levitt fan, I was really hoping JGL would hit a home run with his first film. And, out of all these movies, Don Jon was probably my favorite. It's certainly not everyone's cup of tea, as a large portion of the film is dedicated to the main character's obsession with porn. If the idea of that makes you squirm, you probably shouldn't see this one. But, if you're a girl looking to get a peek into the male psyche, you man find this interesting.
JGL uses the cliche of a guy just out to hook up with a new girl every night and takes a deeper look into who he that guy is. Not a romanticized version of that guy where he suddenly falls in love and changes everything about himself, but a guy who is dealing with all the issues of being in a relationship for the first time. It also looks at one type of girl out there. The one willing to change everything about her boyfriend to create perfect husband material. Scarlett Johansson does a great job playing someone who is both not that different from your best friend, but also someone the audience can't side with. There's a lot of really interesting boy-girl dynamic stuff for your brain to nosh on. Seeing which character you side with at which point will make you think. The film certainly had it's flaws, but it was the most original and intriguing of this bunch,
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