Fall (2022)
Some Like It Hot (1959)
Take Shelter (2011)
Take Shelter (2011)
Push (2009)
The Covenant (2006)
Constantine (2005)
Shenandoah (1965) ///
Fall (2022) On anniversary of mountaineering husband's death, morose Grace Caroline Currey is persuaded by thrill-seeking best friend Virginia Gardner to climb remote, abandoned 2000-foot tower. Physical intensity and vertiginous visuals sustain giddy momentum even as logic fails and schematic character resolve kicks in.
Some Like It Hot (1959) Witnesses to a mob hit in prohibition Chicago, pliable bass player Jack Lemmon and manipulative sax performer Tony Curtis escape to sunny Florida as part of all girl band - and find love with uncertain singer Marilyn Monroe and carefree millionaire Joe E Brown. Deftly conceived and performed, always fresh and funny.
Take Shelter (2011) Anchored by conflicted Michael Shannon's unnerving doubts over sanity versus apocalyptic future, controlled visuals create increasingly tense atmosphere as relationships fracture with wife Jessica Chastain and rural community. Immaculately conceived despite narrative slightness.
Push (2009) Conceived with kinetic energy and saturated imagery, Hong Kong provides chaotic backdrop for superpowered characters battling controlling agency. Coherence and tension overwhelmed by half-dream, half-assault style of storytelling that isolates good-looking performers with jumble of motives.
The Covenant (2006) Solid visuals and embracing sound mix initially persuade level of goofy teen supernatural drama, rapidly undone by blur of handsome leads in perplexingly uninteresting plot. Technical assurance can't paper over nonsense of inheriting intoxicating supernatural powers.
Constantine (2005) Playful visuals maintain pace and storytelling is cynically surprising for doomed exorcist Keanu Reeves facing earth's existential threat with the Devil's rise. Conflicted cop Rachel Weisz and plotting angel Tilda Swinton add spice to theological blast, though extended final act dampens effect.
Shenandoah (1965) Solidly produced, sentimentally constructed Civil War drama, with typically commanding James Stewart as Virginian farmer in futile attempt to maintain family's neutrality. Engaging support cast pulls through tragedy and action though sedate pace tends to underwhelm.
