tomduerr584 Reviews

American Sniper (2014)

American Sniper: Misses the Mark

[4/10 · 20 January 2015]

Like many, I had very high expectations for this film. Regardless of the high praise it was getting from critics, American Sniper looked at first glance like it would be one of the best films of the year. It had all the makings of a truly great war flick, great true story, talented leading role and a more than capable director at the helm in Clint Eastwood. With all this in mind, I went into the theater with rather high expectations and I left only to have all of them shattered. American Sniper falls flat on almost every account. I never really felt any emotional connection to Kyle. All the situations in which Eastwood creates in order for the audience to feel for Kyle; his brief and terrible childhood sequence, his impromptu phone calls to his wife in the middle of battles, his struggle with PTSD after returning from duty, all felt like a desperate and poor act by the director to get me to relate or feel for Kyle. I'm not doubting that some of these events occurred, I'm sure some of them did - but they way they were portrayed in the film were such Hollywoodized versions of real life events that I really struggled finding any shred of believe-ability in them. The movie does not even succeed in its action aspect, having battle sequences that are extremely poorly shot and generic (the few that there are). Cooper, a lone bright spot in the the film, does a solid job with what little content he has but not even he is enough to save this train wreck of a movie from being what it really is; a movie with no heart, devoid of all true emotion.

The Master (2012)

A Masterful Failure

[3/10 · 30 September 2012]

This film, much like Terrence Malick's "The Tree of Life" (2011), will most likely be up for best picture this year. It will, and already has, critics drooling over it's deep meaning and will receive countless awards for it's originality and creativity. Let me say that just because a movie is hard to understand does not make it best picture material....or just good movie material in general. The Master, written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, is a perfect example of this. This film has no apparent plot, it's confusing and in the end it's just plain boring. No amount of excellent acting could save this film from being what it really is, mainly, a 2hr 18min spew of nothingness, complete and utter nothingness. Although it will most likely be up for best picture, avoid this film. Instead go rent "There Will be Blood", a film that truly shows Anderson at his best, unlike this horrible excuse for a movie.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)

Infinitely Amazing

[9/10 · 30 September 2012]

Every once in awhile a movie comes along that completely surprises you. After sifting through all the major blockbusters that come out every year there is always a movie like "Perks of Being a Wallflower", written and directed by Pittsburgh's own Stephen Chbosky, that surpasses everyone's expectations and ends up being one of the best films of the year, despite being an independent film. "Perks" does so many things right. Chbosky assembled a cast and then knocked this thing out of the park. He does something big blockbuster so often don't do, he makes you characters that genuinely care about which makes the film as powerful as any other you will see this year. I highly recommend "Perks", if for no other reason than that it's by far one of the most heartfelt and original films you will see this year.

The Lovely Bones (2009)

An Extremely Misunderstood Film

[8/10 · 7 January 2012]

I'd first start off saying that I don not believe in any afterlife, something in which this film heavily pushes. But that didn't matter. Peter Jackson made one of the most emotionally moving films not only of the year but of all time. I have not been as emotionally affected by a film as much as I was by this since Steven Spielberg's, Schindler's List. It, and its director Jackson, deserve much more credit than it has received up to date. It was a truly actuate depiction of Alice Sebold's novel which should rank as one of Jackson's best as well as one of the best films of 2009. It is, by far, one of the best examples of how a film can truly be art.

500 Days of Summer (2009)

A Truly Moving Film

[9/10 · 7 January 2012]

I am not one to like "Chick Flicks", I am most certainly not one to put one on my Top 10 of the Year list. But this movie is not a normal love story chick flick. I could not even truly classify this as a said "chick flick" because of just how great this movie was. Not only does it move you emotionally, even as a guy, but it adds in much of the aspects that normal "chick flicks" do not; mainly comedy and a good story. I would highly recommend this film, not only for its tremendous performances by its actors, but by the sheer emotional power of its story and that it is by far one of the Top 10 Movies of 2009 by far and everyone should make an effort so view this film.

Cars 2 (2011)

This is not a Pixar Movie.

[4/10 · 27 June 2011]

When I go to see a Pixar movie I expect to be blown away. Cars 2 simply did not. There were many problems with Cars 2, mainly that the story strength just was not there. Yes it did have some funny moments but they were few and far between. The main problem with this movie however was that Pixar made Mater, voiced by Larry the Cable Guy, the main character. After 20 minutes into the movie I wanted to leave because of how annoying he was. Larry is annoying as a human, making him a the main character as a car is just stupid. It was honestly the only Pixar movie so far that I left feeling completely nothing. What a disappointment this was as this topped my summer movie list. What a disappointment...