Green Room (2015)

Written and Directed by Jeremy Saulnier

Starring Anton Yelchin, Imogen Poots, Alia Shawkat and Patrick Stewart

After witnessing a murder, the members of a punk band are forced into a vicious fight for survival against a gang of malicious skinheads.

For whatever reason, I couldn't find a trailer on Youtube to embed on this review. But click here and check it out.

Blogger is being a piece of fecal matter right now so here is my short, but sweet review.
The setting alone for this film are enough to turn closed minded audiences away. But for those brave enough to venture into the theatre, (or in my case, just a fan of aggressive music) they will be treated to the most suspenseful film I have seen in a while.

There are no rules to this story. Everyone is fair game and I was honestly unsure of where the film was going. Which, in a world filled with cookie-cutter plotlines was like a breath of fresh air. Director Jeremy Saulnier created yet another masterpiece (GO SEE "BLUE RUIN") with his third feature film.

In his short career, he has birthed a sub-genre of horror/thriller movies that stand out amongst a sea of such films. I don't know what he calls them, but I hereby dub his genre "Boonie Slasher".
In a film this small, it is awesome to see someone like Patrick Stewart involved. And he is utterly terrifying.

GO SEE THIS MOVIE YOU IDIOTS!!!!
My Rating: 9/10

This Must Be The Place (2011)

Directed by Paolo Sorrentino
Written by Paolo Sorrentino and Umberto Contarello
Starring Sean Penn, Judd Hirsch, France McDormand and Eve Hewson

Cheyenne, a retired rock star living off his royalties in Dublin, returns to New York City to find the man responsible for a humiliation suffered by his recently deceased father during W.W.II.

In a role that seems to contradict itself, Sean Penn plays a quiet, mild-tempered former rock star who seems to be trying everything he possible can to not be a cliché. This alone makes for an interesting character, but the filmmakers try to add more, unnecessary elements to make the movie more deep than it needs to be.

The first act is remarkably engrossing. The mannerisms and voice of the character Penn created was an astonishing change from the norm. The study of who this rock star really was after all of the lights and cameras were away and after he grew out of his drug habits was worth making a full-length movie. But they didn't focus on that too long.

In an attempt to make a statement that had already been made in the first five minutes, the writers decided to add the element of a dying Father who was held at Auschwitz during WWII. This played less like a genius twist in the story and more like a cry for an award. The plot had already been set and with the destination not having changed at all, the entire middle forty-five minutes just seemed gratuitous.

Sean Penn gives a killer, toned down performance that rivals many of his other roles. It's just a shame that it is wasted on half of this film. Despite a few technical editing problems (that are more of a personal opinion), I really enjoyed the beginning of this movie. It felt a lot like a Coen Brothers film. But the last half just killed it for me. It was trying to be something it just simply wasn't.

My Rating: 5.5/10