January is a month that studios typically use as a dumping ground for the not-good films and The 355 is no exception to the rule. The 355 is billed as a fast-paced espionage thriller but it didn’t feel fast-paced nor much of a thriller. This film takes us to the likes of Paris, Morocco, and Shanghai. There’s a star-studded cast but unfortunately, they can’t elevate the material no matter how much they try. The gist…
"The 355: The First Dud of 2022"Tag: Penélope Cruz
Antonio Banderas delivers a stand-out performance as filmmaker Salvador Mallo in Pain and Glory as the film hits up the fall film festivals. A winner of Best Actor at Cannes, Pain and Glory hits both Telluride and Toronto on its way to a theatrical release in October. Pedro Almodóvar turns in a bold script here. Put it this way–hours after watching the film, I still struggled with what to say about it. On the one…
"Toronto 2019: Pain and Glory"
Pairing Javier Bardem and Penélope Cruz, Everybody Knows (Todos Lo Saben) is a thrilling soap opera with plenty of twists and turns coming around the corner. The film starts with Laura (Penélope Cruz) traveling to her native Spanish village with her children, Irene (Carla Campra) and Diego (Iván Chavero). For whatever reasons, Laura and husband Alejandro (Ricardo Darín) now live in Buenos Aires, Argentina. In any event, she’s back home for her sister’s wedding. The wedding goes as…
"Everybody Knows: A Thrilling Soap Opera"
Murder on the Orient Express makes for some great set pieces and period costumes but the whodunnit mystery doesn’t really need another adaptation. Director Kenneth Branagh, working from a screenplay written by Michael Green, has gathered an all-star cast but with so many suspects, there’s a major fight for screen time. A Rabbi, a Priest, and an Imam walk up to the Western Wall in Jerusalem and despite the making of a classic joke, there’s…
"Murder on the Orient Express: Was This Remake Necessary?"