The Fourth Kind tells a frightening tale that on the surface appears to be real. In 2004, filmmaker Olatunde Osunsanmi was wrapping another project in North Carolina when he heard the story of Dr. Abigail Tyler. Abby, as most refered to her, had relocated from Nome, Alaska after a series of events took place that changed her forever. Osunsanmi's fasination with Abby grew after discovering that all of her claims were, in fact, heavily documented.

The story begins after the death of Abby's (played by Milla Jovovich) husband Will Tyler. Before his death, Will was doing an ongoing study on residents of Nome that seemed to be having disturbing sleeping patterns and a troubling lack of memory of events they were certain occured. After his death, Abby felt that she should continue Will's work as it would have been what he wanted.

Continue reading The Fourth Kind Review: Fact Or Fiction?..

Danish auteur Lars Von Trier has made a career out of controversy. Films like "The Idiots" in which perfectly sane people act like the mentally handicapped for artistic purposes, or "Manderlay" in which he attempts to prove that African Americans yearn for, and therefore doom themselves to perpetual slavery, are magnets for dissection. His newest work, "Antichrist," begs for similar treatment. Von Trier contends that the film is a sincere horror picture about how the universe was not created by God, but rather by Satan, and thus nature itself is evil. But like most of his films, his comments usually cannot be taken at face value. This film can't be nailed down by any one interpretation, and to take a cinematic prankster like Lars Von Trier at his word would be an error in judgment, and would never capture the vast beauty or revulsion the movie conjures up.

The film is built of two characters, He and She, played by Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg, both of whom create harrowing portrayals of two deeply damaged individuals. He is a pedantic, overly cerebral psychoanalyst and She is a wounded woman working on her doctoral thesis. They are married and they've just lost a child, the death of which opens the film in a prologue that is so crisply photographed in luxurious black and white the pathos of the images gives way to awe; another filmic prank as the audience is taken in by the beauty of the picture while witnessing the horror of a young child's death, making the viewer question if the soothing images soften the blow of the tragedy or heighten it.

Continue reading Antichrist Reivew: Marriage Is Hell..

Being a prolific music video or commercial director usually means that you have a great feel for eye popping visuals, but often times their endeavors in feature film making are all style and no substance. That criticism can hardly be applied to Spike Jonze. Maverick is a better term to describe this ex-skateboard photographer turned director by way of hundreds of TV commercials and music videos. His prior two films, "Being John Malkovich" and "Adaptation," were stylistic gems that relied heavily on their pristine Charlie Kaufman scripts. His new feature, "Where the Wild Things Are," is pure Spike Jonze and is all heart, a rare thing from someone who came from a world overwrought with shallow consumerism.

"Wild Things" marks the first feature of which Jonze had a hand in writing. Co-Written by author Dave Eggers, and based on the beloved children's book by Maurice Sendak, the script departs liberally from the source material. The set up is the same, Max (Max Records), a precocious youngster acts out at home and is sent to his room without dinner, only to escape to a magical world to become the King of the Wild Things. However Jonze takes Sendak's simple and unique vision, adds layers upon layers of depth, and winds up with his own story.

Continue reading Where The Wild Things Are Review: Where The Heart Is..

Law Abiding Citizen is a clever thriller for viewers that seek multiple twists, mind games, and vigilante justice. Clyde Shelton (Gerard Butler) is common family man whose wife and daughter are brutally murdered during a break in. Nick Rice (Jamie Foxx), an up and coming prosecuting attorney, is assigned to Clyde's Case. When Nick has to make a deal with the defense, one man goes free while the other walks. Clyde is not happy with this outcome, and questions Nick's decision to make deals with a murder.

Continue reading Law Abiding Citizen Review: Don't Make Deals With Murderers..

After twenty-five years of a near flawless track record the Brothers Coen have made their mark with misanthropic violence, midnight black humor, and a sense of wonder. Through their eyes we have glimpsed hyper-real worlds filled with the most interesting characters, films like "Raising Arizona" or "Fargo" might even be referred to as Magical Realism. Their newest film, "A Serious Man," actually turns out to be their most simple, subdued, and straight forward work. It also might be their most perfect.

The film begins with a prologue of a Jewish man and wife in an era gone by. He was helped on the path home by a Rabbi, who by his wife's recollection died the previous year. He doesn't buy it, but when the Rabbi shows up at their door the wife declares him a dyybuk, or evil spirit of Judaic lore. Is the Rabbi a good man or a force of evil? Should he be cast out or given credence? In the man's eyes this Rabbi, a symbol of Judaism, should be brought in the home and given warmth. The wife, on the other hand stabs this symbol of old myth, tossing him out of the house, thus providing a central question for the entire picture. What role does Judaism, or religion in general, play in the lives of modern people with modern problems?

Continue reading A Serious Man Review: Are You There God..