Mediocre Movie Club Movie Reviews

Heatstroke

12/29/2016

D
1.08

A family is threatened by poachers and nature on a trip to Africa.

Directed by Evelyn Purcell
Starring Stephen Dorff, Maisie Williams, and Svetlana Metkina
Initial Review by Chris Cook

Based on the novel Leave No Trace by Hannah Nyala West (I wonder if it’s any better), Heatstroke is, well, it’s a movie. The feature film debut of Game of Throne’s Maisie Williams falls pretty flat. A comment earlier from the Facebook page describes the movie as Arya Stark running from poachers in the desert. With this being part of the plotline, it’s a safe bet to say that winter is definitely not coming in this one.

4 Comments

Midnight Special

12/22/2016

10 Comments

B
3.00

A father protects his supernaturally-gifted son from a cult and the feds.

Directed by Jeff Nichols
Starring Michael Shannon, Jaeden Lieberher, and Kirsten Dunst
Initial Review by Jon Kissel

At some point in the future, history is going to judge Jeff Nichols as one of the great American directors. He's made five films so far, and each is quintessentially representative of some facet of the country. Shotgun Stories is a backwoods rivalry story, Mud features a modern day Tom Sawyer, and Loving (though a straightforward retelling of history and his worst film) finds the way that average people fall into grand circumstances but retain the desire to live a modest life. Take Shelter is a masterpiece of modern cinema and Nichols' crowning achievement, a crystal-clear window into the post-recession US and the economic uncertainty that still characterizes so much of the country. Midnight Special is Nichols' most explicitly supernatural film, and therefore elevates some of the proceedings into the fantastical, but between the mystical moments, there's still plenty of his trademark, well-observed emotionality.

10 Comments

Singles

12/14/2016

28 Comments

C-
1.52

Early 90's grunge enthusiasts look for love.

Directed by Cameron Crowe
Starring Bridget Fonda, Matt Dillon, and Campbell Scott
Initial Review by Drew Landry

There are few times in history where I wish I could be at certain points in my life. And to be in my mid – twenties during the beginning moments of the grunge rock revolution and the craze over coffee in 1992 Seattle, Washington, is one of those times. Automatically, Singles got off to a great start with footage of its scenery and soundtrack. The music in this film was sublime but more on that later.

The story of Singles was nothing new as it has been played numerous times from Breakfast at Tiffany’s to The Wedding Singer to nearly any Julia Roberts or Sandra Bullock film. What sets Singles apart from them was twofold. One was its time and relevance. These characters talked about sex and dating in an honest and open manner. The tide was turning in our culture around this point on sex’s open discussion and Singles aided in that effort. Nowadays, viewers see this discussion and do not flinch. We view it as a commonplace but it was not that way in the early nineties.

28 Comments

Weiner-Dog

12/1/2016

12 Comments

C
2.11

The titular hound gets passed between owners.

Directed by Todd Solondz
Starring Greta Gerwig, Kieran Culkin, and Danny Devito
Initial Review by Bobby Schmidt

Anybody who has heard anything about Todd Solondz at all, knows he's weird. I don't have much experience with him, but I tend to like odd movies.

There are some quality shows out (High Maintenance, Easy, etc) that tell stories of different people with little to no connections at all... and for me, that works great in series form with each episode telling its own story, it also worked really well for me in (http://www.mediocremovie.club/reviews/four-rooms)Four Rooms. Wiener Dog's life was a completely different experience than Ted the Bellhop's long night. The former didn't quite hold up for me as well as I was hoping for.

12 Comments

Heatstroke

D
1.08

Midnight Special

B
3.00

Singles

C-
1.52

Weiner-Dog

C
2.11

Authors

Categories

Archives

Heatstroke

D​1.08

Midnight Special

B​3.00

Singles

C-1.52

Weiner-Dog

C​2.11

Authors

Categories

Archives

D
1.08

B
3.00

C-
1.52

C
2.11