Tag: Kate Bosworth

REVIEW: Still Alice [2014]

Jared Mobarak

“I knew I shouldn’t have had that champagne” There’s little scarier in this world than a debilitating disease like Alzheimer’s. You may initially feel a sentiment as shared by the titular Alice (Julianne Moore) in Still Alice to be hyperbolic, but the thought that cancer could be a better option is an extreme worth considering. We’d all hope to never have either effect ourselves or our families, but the prospect of losing health does in a certain way seem more appealing than losing one’s self. Because that’s what Alzheimer’s does:…

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REVIEW: Big Sur [2013]

Jared Mobarak

“The circle’s closed in on the old heroes of the night” I’ve never read a novel by Jack Kerouac—the only Beat Generation tome I have leafed through is William S. Burroughs’ Naked Lunch—but I imagine the experience is similar to that of watching director Michael Polish’s adaption of the author’s 1962 work, Big Sur. About eighty-five percent driven by voiceover narration assumedly being read directly out of the book to be heard above a sprawling Explosions in the Sky-lite score from The National and gorgeously composed images of the On…

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Posterized Propaganda January 2012: The Top 10 Movie Posters of 2011

Jared Mobarak

“Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover” is a proverb whose simple existence proves the fact impressionable souls will do so without fail. This monthly column focuses on the film industry’s willingness to capitalize on this truth, releasing one-sheets to serve as not representations of what audiences are to expect, but as propaganda to fill seats. Oftentimes they fail miserably. With January 2012 poster selection leaving a lot to be desired—dump month movies don’t appear to get the same marketing budget as critical darlings—we’ve decided to better spend our monthly…

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REVIEW: 21 [2008]

Jared Mobarak

“Did that dazzle you?” Not long after reading Ben Mezrich’s novel Busting Vegas did I see my first preview for 21, a film based on his previous novel about card counters. The idea of MIT students getting recruited by their professor to take down Vegas is an intriguing yet not so unique concept. Busting Vegas had more interest with its elaborate scheme to win big without needing to count cards in the traditional sense. However, the book was well put together and so I wasn’t averse to checking out this…

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REVIEW: Win a Date with Tad Hamilton [2004]

Jared Mobarak

“Everyone is Tad Hamilton to someone” Unobtrusive would be a good word to use when describing the film Win a Date with Tad Hamilton. Is it obvious? Yes. Is it clichéd? Yes. Is it horrible? Not quite. With a few good laughs, some fun performances, and a decent soundtrack, the movie ends up being nice filler on an evening with nothing else to do. I even think it was better than Robert Luketic’s previous “chick flick” effort Legally Blonde, but then, I hated that one. With no expectations at all,…

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REVIEW: Superman Returns [2006]

Jared Mobarak

“With the planet on his shoulders … Daily” Superman Returns. The name says it all. Our Man of Steel returns to our collective consciousness after almost 20 years. Has he arrived with the big bang all the hype has culled together? Unfortunately, not even close. Bryan Singer leaves his flourishing X-Men saga to helm an obligatory bridge episode in an already watered down series. While Chris Nolan had a ton of success with his reinvention of the Batman chronicles, Singer is hindered by the fact that this is a continuation…

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