Movie reviews of Alex Brannan

It’s hard to fault the film for its unabashed ambition. That said, this thing is bound to alienate the uninitiated, casual viewer. Review

The film rarely emerges from this unimaginative space; instead, it is a largely visual piece whose aesthetic is bland and whose visuals are repetitive. Review

Wrong Turn does satisfy an itch for the horror fan looking for a true blue, gritty slasher that knows all too well the sandbox that it is playing in. And it is the rare film with a third act that is stronger than its first act. But the film shows more promise than what it ultimately delivers. Review

This is the best I’ve seen Grant perform. And her script weaves an intriguing web that unfolds with a deliberate pace and produces some effective deadpan humor. Review

I dwell on this opening musical sequence, because the remainder of this film is just tedious and flat. And, frankly, there isn’t much to say about it. Review

Visually, I Care a Lot has its moments, exciting flourishes which come most often in the form of set pieces where any dialogue is completely drowned out by the thrumming score from Marc Canham. Review

All in all, though, the script is filled with jokes I found unsatisfactory, severely limiting the extent to which I could engage with these performances. And in the end these two performers are the glue holding this high concept film together. Review

Psycho Goreman definitely has its charm. It is an easy watch for a horror fan looking for something that is self-aware and doesn’t take itself too seriously. Review

This intrigue keeps you invested in the setup, but the answers are dumped into our laps as an expository afterthought, seemingly as a means of expediting the narrative towards the meat-and-potatoes of the murder investigation (a meal which could use some seasoning). Review

These scares are as tedious as they are ineffective. The drama surrounding these scares is fairly limp. And the rinse-repeat approach to the persecution of Kirk’s Haverstock is tiresome. Add to this an unremarkable visual style and an overbearing organ score, and The Reckoning is more of a headache than it is an unsettling psychological drama. Review

Another Round has a fascinating tone. It has a dry humor mixed in with moments of bitter realism, and this tone culminates in an almost fantastical sequence at the end. The ensemble complements this tone well, doing a particularly sound job of acting inebriation. Review

Collective is disturbing in the sense that it puts a spotlight on the hollow bureaucracy of government corruption, as well as the uphill battle to even address that corruption, let alone stop it. It is also one of the most compelling documentaries of the year. Review

When the plot could fall into the traps of addiction narrative cliches, or romantic melodrama, or hollow emotional appeals, it instead does something unexpected. Thus, its ties to these genres produce genuine and powerful emotional moments. Review

The interplay between Jones and Murray is the selling point of the film. There is a significant chemistry to their rapport that makes much of this film watchable. Review

I cannot deny being swept up in the film’s atmosphere. However, I failed to be swept up in the old Hollywood charm enough to forgive the meandering and occasionally indulgent narrative. Review

While this static tension is the only significant string Greyhound has to play on, the rhythm achieved through it is admirable. Review

Chastain and Davis make the best out of what they’re given, but they aren’t even given an inch. Review

It is an elegant, beautiful story of finding new erotic feelings, exciting feelings the performer admits to not experiencing in some time, and translating those feelings into erotic art. Review

Viewed solely as a unique story in one of the more fascinating sports histories, You Cannot Kill David Arquette is fairly fun. But perhaps this is because I, a non-wrestling fan, would love to watch a doc on the history of WCW. Review

Undergods is a well-made film. It is colored ugly (intentionally), which sucks energy out of the lives of these characters. For the audience, though, Wojciech Golczewski’s score balances this energy level out. Review

Given the lack of narrative reasoning for this evil, this reads as abjection for abjection’s sake, ugliness without motivation. Review

PVT Chat is a novel premise—two people falling in love after first engaging in a transactional sexual relationship online—executed unevenly and with a strangely-written protagonist. Review

It is clear from the beginning that these stories will all become relevant to the two characters’ present situation, converging into a neat and tidy resolution. But it is such a long walk getting to what is, in execution, a fairly plain result, leaving the film feeling slightly tedious. Mitte, to his credit, gives the strongest performance in spite of the dialogue. Review

It is an idealistic anti-war message, but it is one presented with the passion and experimental formalism of a master. Ôbayashi’s swan song is an opera; perhaps the perfect cap to a prolific career. Review