Three And Above

Network  (1976) A Review by Grant Kanigan Directed by:  Sidney Lumet Written by: Paddy Chayefsky Starring:  William Holden, Peter Finch,               Robert Duvall, Faye Dunaway Rating: PG Release Date: November 27th, 1976 Peter Finch in Network      "I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!" Howard Beale screams to his unseen audience. He tells his audience to pry back the curtains, whip open their windows and scream his mantra out into the street. His broken down rant, on the heels of his firing from his news network is electrifying. He lists street violence, murder, racism, communism and disrespect as the throes of modern life, yet offers no answers but his mantra; "I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!" But who is he talking to, who is he mad at, and what does it all mean?       Network follows two veterans of the news media industry. ...

Birdman (Or: The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)  (2014) A Review by Grant Kanigan Directed by:  Alejandro González Iñárritu Written by:  Alejandro González Iñárritu,                    Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander                  Dinelaris & Armando Bo Starring:  Michael Keaton, Emma Stone                Zach Galifianakis, Edward Norton Rating: 14A Release Date: October 24, 2014 Michael Keaton, Naomi Watts & Zach Galifianakis in  Birdman © 2014 - Fox Searchlight      Michael Keaton has always been a great actor. Arguably the man that gave the comic book cinema credibility with the stellar Batman and Batman Returns,  Keaton also took creative risks throughout his career; the zany, disturbing Beetlejuice , a wry cop in Tarantino's most underrated film Jackie Brown...

Les Misérables  (2014) A Review by Grant Kanigan Directed by: Tom Hooper Written by: William Nicholson, Alain Boublil,                    Claude-Michel Schönberg,                   Herbert Kretzmer, based on                   Victor Hugo's novel Starring:  Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway,                Russell Crowe, Eddie Redmayne Rating: PG Release Date: December 25th 2012 Hugh Jackman gets huge, and jacked, man in  Les Misérables © 2012 - Universal Pictures      A lot of people hate musicals. Who can blame them when all they offer is cheery renditions of well known storylines coupled with recycled show-tunes that they're hearing for the hundredth time? Grease, Purple Rain, Anastasia, Jesus Christ Superstar, Moulin Rouge, Chicago, or Mamma Mia all o...

Fury  (2014) A Review by Grant Kanigan Directed by: David Ayer Written by: David Ayer Starring:  Jon Bernthal, Shia LaBeouf,                 Logan Lerman, Michael  Peña,                 Brad Pitt Rating: 14A* Release Date: October 17th, 2014 Shia LaBeouf, Logan Lerman, Brad Pitt, Michael Peña & Jon Bernthal in Fury   © 2014 - Columbia Pictures      "Ideals are peaceful. History is violent" Wardaddy, (Brad Pitt), tells Norman Ellison, (Logan Lerman). David Ayer's Fury  is not a film of ideals. Fury is the story of five men struggling against the insurmountable cruelty of war. Fury is cold, brutal, violent and brilliant;  Fury is one of the best films of the year.      Entering the Second World War in the final year of combat, Fury  follows the eponymous tank squad. Consisting of 5 members; Don 'Wardaddy' Co...

The Judge  (2014) A Review by Grant Kanigan Directed by: David Dobkin Written by: David Dobkin, Bill Dubuque                   Nick Schenk Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Robert Duvall,                Vera Farmiga, Vincent D'Onofrio                Billy Bob Thorton Rating: PG Release Date: October 17th, 2014 Robert Downey Jr., and Robert Duvall in The Judge © 2013 - Warner Bros. Pictures      Adult dramas are hard to come by these days; it's either period pictures, comic book sequels, or the umpteenth film in the Transformers franchise. I'm not trying to belittle comic book films- pure escapism is warranted now and then - it's just that the scales have been tipped overwhelmingly in The Avengers'  favour. It's a delight, then, to see Iron Man himself take on a role like The Judge' s Hank Palmer.    ...

American Sniper  (2015) A Review by Grant Kanigan Directed by: Clint Eastwood Written by: Jason Hall, based on Chris Kyle's                    autobiography with help from Scott McEwen                   and James Defelice Starring: Bradley Cooper, Sienna Miller Rating: 14A Release Date: January 16th, 2015 Bradley Cooper and Kyle Gallner in American Sniper © Warner Bros. Pictures       Bradley Cooper is fast becoming the best American actor working today. First coming onto the scene as a comic actor as the highlight of Wedding Crashers and The Hangover franchise, he's slowly blossomed into an acting juggernaut. With three consecutive years of Oscar nominations for Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle  and this year's American Sniper , the man is on pace with the greats of yesteryear; Brando, DeNiro, Peck, et al. It's no wonder then...

The Drop  (2014) A Review by Grant Kanigan Directed by:  Michaël R. Roskam Written by: Dennis Lehane Starring: Tom Hardy, James Gandolfini,               Noomi Rapace Rating: 14A Release Date: November 14, 2014 James Gandolfini & Tom Hardy in  The Drop Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation.      Sometimes all it takes to make a great film is the right people working together at the right time. Tom Hardy, fresh off of his demented turn as the villainous Bane in The Dark Knight Rises , James Gandolfini, comfortably slipping into movie stardom after years of brilliant work in The Sopranos , and screenwriter Dennis Lehane, author of Mystic River , Gone Baby Gone , and Shutter Island are all at the top of their game. Couple their willingness to explore the material with Michaël R. Roskam, a foreign director eager to cut his teeth on English-speaking North American cinema, and you have a brilli...