Ostensibly, Young Adult is a story of arrested development and perpetual adolescence; however, it’s not the comedy that the previews portend it to be. There are funny moments, but they are, intentionally, uncomfortable, leaving you unsure if the laughter is from circumstance or to cover its depressing reality; in a way, you indulge in the catharsis that […]

 

 

Mar07

Oscar Predictions 2010

The 82nd Academy Awards are tonight, and the best, brightest and beautiful of Hollywood will gather yet again to honor the year that was in cinema. Below are my predictions for who will win the hardware tonight. Fill out your Oscar pools carefully. (And as a reminder, here is a full list of the nominees in all […]

 

 

The other night, I watched Fight Club and the haiku scene spoke to me: First off, it emphasizes the mundane routines that most of us trudge through each day, but more poignantly, seventeen syllables really sum up the theme of the movie.  That said, I figured I’d go through this year’s Best Picture nominees and see if I could […]

 

 

Jan17

The Best Movies of 2009

[Ed. Note: Please welcome film aficionado Robert Cotto to the Do You Like Movies About Gladiators? team. He watches way more movies than I and is thus here to breakdown his best of 2009 as we enter Golden Globe/Oscar season.] 2009 was a rather important year in cinema for me. Not because of the films that came […]

 

 

Thus far, Jason Reitman is three for three and has managed to make the dramedy relevant again.  In Thank You For Smoking and Juno, Reitman tackles the tobacco industry and teenage pregnancy without beating the audience over the head with the righteous stick or presenting epiphanies that change the characters from concrete villains to saccharine heroes.  His […]