Boston Herald - Boston Herald

‘Dirty Wars’ explores dark side of covert ops

James Verniere — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

“Dirty Wars” Not rated. At Kendall Square Cinema. Grade: B

More relevant than ever after the recent NSA revelations, “Dirty Wars” may remind you of “Zero Dark Thirty” or a Jason Bourne movie. That’s because director Rick Rowley (“Deserter”), composer David Harrington (“The Fountain”) and co-writer and journalist for The Nation magazine Jeremy Scahill made it that way.

Clips

herald.staff — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

“THE INTERNSHIP”

Rated PG-13.

Grade: B

‘East’ goes off rails

James Verniere — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

“The East” Rated PG-13. At AMC Loews Boston Common and Kendall Square Cinema. Grade: B-

Am I the only one not very impressed with Brit Marling’s hair acting? I am, however, impressed that she has once again co-written a film with director Zal Batmanglij with a strong role for herself. But isn’t this the same movie as their previous joint venture “Sound of My Voice”?

Troubles plague Belfast spying tale

James Verniere — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

“Shadow Dancer” Rated R. At Kendall Square Cinema. Grade: B-

New Superman fails to take off

James Verniere — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

“Man of Steel.” Rated PG-13. At AMC Loews Boston Common, Regal Fenway Stadium and suburban theaters. Grade: C+

Are you ready for “Jesus Christ: Superman”? It’s not a new Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, but rather “Man of Steel.” in which the hero’s celestial father sends his only begotten son to Earth to save the human race from a demonic adversary. If you watch carefully, the Christ symbolism is rampant.

Weak 'End': Celeb pals  confront apocalypse with raunchy  party

James Verniere — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Search-engine comedy finds chemistry and surprising fun

James Verniere — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

“The Internship”
Rated PG-13. At the AMC Boston Common, Regal Fenway 13 and suburban theaters.
GRADE: B

Clips: Movies playing this weekend

herald.staff — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

“AFTER EARTH”

Rated PG-13

Grade: C-

‘Before Midnight’ a brilliant stroll through life

James Verniere — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

“Before Midnight”
Rated R. At AMC Loews Boston Common, Coolidge Corner Theatre, and Kendall Square and Embassy cinemas.
Grade: A

Richard Linklater’s “Before Sunrise” (1995), “Before Sunset” (2004) and now “Before Midnight” are a fictional version of the British “Up” series, featuring the same actors playing a couple of hyper-articulate, highly educated, believable lovers from different countries with whom an entire generation of filmgoers has grown up.

Vacation turns hellish in ‘Wish You Were Here’

Stephen Schaefer — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

“Wish You Were Here”
Rated R. At Kendall Square Cinema.
Grade: B+

Just one look at a bloodied, stoned Joel Edgerton as he walks along a beach at dawn is enough to suggest the awful secret at the center of the Australian “Wish You Were Here.”

What exactly is a piece of the puzzle that is only revealed at the climax of this arresting thriller.

‘Purge’ punishes moviegoers

James Verniere — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

“The Purge”
Rated R. At AMC Loews Boston Common, Regal Fenway Stadium and suburban theaters.
Grade: D

Resist the social-media darling “The Purge,” a barely 80-minute, no-budget thriller aimed at fleecing young audiences in search of something new and different.

In addition to being shot in ugly, eye-gouging, low-res shaky cam, the film lacks any thrills outside of seeing characters you don’t know but don’t like getting gunned down.

‘The Prey’ worth catching

James Verniere — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

“THE PREY”
Rated R In French with subtitles. At AMC Loews Boston Common.
Grade: B+

Boys of ‘Summer’ make  coming-of-age tale a winner

James Verniere — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

“THE KINGs OF SUMMER”
Rated R. At Kendall Square and West Newton cinemas.
Grade: B

Son don’t shine on this ‘Earth’

James Verniere — Fri, 31 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

I don’t know what is more annoying: how feeble “After Earth” is, or the sense that superstar Will Smith is shoving his children down our throats. In the film, Smith and 14-year-old son Jaden, who was quite good in “The Karate Kid” reboot, play futuristic father and son Cypher and Kitai Raige, the former is a general and famed warrior among his soldiers the Rangers, the latter just failed his Ranger test, and daddy is not happy.

Clips

herald.staff — Fri, 31 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

“EPIC”

Rated PG.

Grade: B

‘Ricky Jay’ doc works its magic

James Verniere — Fri, 31 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

“Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries & Mentors of Ricky Jay” Not rated. At the Kendall Square Cinema Grade: B+

Perhaps better suited to an installment of “American Masters” on PBS, “Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries & Mentors of Ricky Jay” is a nonfiction film celebrating the art and life of famed American magician, prestidigitator, actor and magic historian Ricky Jay.

Magicians make millions disappear in heist flick ‘Now’

Stephen Schaefer — Fri, 31 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

A “How’d they do it?” whodunit, “Now You See Me” puts four magicians in an ingenious, headline-grabbing stunt involving millions of dollars while being pursued by the FBI, Interpol and Morgan Freeman.

The four tricksters are introduced as street magicians. There’s Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg), a verbally adept card shark, mentalist Merritt (Woody Harrelson), who easily hypnotizes the unsuspecting Henley (Isla Fisher), Atlas’ former assistant turned solo illusionist, and Jack (Dave Franco), a gymnastics expert at sleight of body stuff.

‘Secrets’ a revealing look at WikiLeaks

James Verniere — Fri, 31 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Julian Assange: Hero or terrorist? This is the ethical query posed by Alex Gibney’s “We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks.” The film also asks us to what extent, if any, a democratic government should keep secrets from its citizens under the often abused guise of national security.

Take journey with see-worthy ‘Leviathan’

James Verniere — Fri, 24 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

‘Maisie’ divorced from reality

James Verniere — Fri, 24 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

A New York City-set contemporary variation on a theme of Henry James’ 1897 novel, “What Maisie Knew” tells the slightly misogynistic tale of a child named Maisie (tiny scene stealer Onata Aprile), who is caught between the Scylla and Charybdis also known as wealthy Manhattan parents about to be divorced.

Boston Herald - Boston Herald

‘Dirty Wars’ explores dark side of covert ops

Clips

‘East’ goes off rails

Troubles plague Belfast spying tale

New Superman fails to take off

Weak 'End': Celeb pals confront apocalypse with raunchy party

Search-engine comedy finds chemistry and surprising fun

Clips: Movies playing this weekend

‘Before Midnight’ a brilliant stroll through life

Vacation turns hellish in ‘Wish You Were Here’

‘Purge’ punishes moviegoers

‘The Prey’ worth catching

Boys of ‘Summer’ make coming-of-age tale a winner

Son don’t shine on this ‘Earth’

Clips

‘Ricky Jay’ doc works its magic

Magicians make millions disappear in heist flick ‘Now’

‘Secrets’ a revealing look at WikiLeaks

Take journey with see-worthy ‘Leviathan’

‘Maisie’ divorced from reality

Weak 'End': Celeb pals  confront apocalypse with raunchy  party

Boys of ‘Summer’ make  coming-of-age tale a winner