The Man in the Iron Mask is a well made adventure film featuring solid performances, namely Gabriel Byrne and Jeremy Irons and fairly impressive for being screenwriter Randall Wallace’s directorial debut.
Emotionally distant at times, Jackie is propelled mostly from the Natalie Portman’s performance and also features respectable production and costume designs as well as an intriguing enough character study.
Black Mass, although decent enough, is a disappointment considering the subject and a well rounded and respected cast headlined by the versatile Johnny Depp. However, in the end it felt underwhelming and pedestrian which is a shame as filmmaker Scott Cooper could be a respectable director.
What started off as an interesting story about the Milgram Experiment turned into a bit of a bore of film in the second half, though Peter Sarsgaard does give a fine performance and director Michael Almereyda certainly didn’t go the conventional route in the story and filmmaking style, so Experimenter does at least stand out in that regard.
Pawn Sacrifice isn’t one of Zwick’s best movies, which for me is still The Last Samurai, but it’s still an adequate drama with strong performances by Tobey Maguire and Michael Stuhlbarg, the latter of whom deserves some award recognition. The Blu-ray release offers good video and audio transfers but falls far short in the bonus material department.
Night Moves is not a movie for everybody. It’s a slow-burn crime-drama with some fine performances, particularly by Jesse Eisenberg yet you also have to be patient for the plot to play out with the first 20-minutes or so is all set-ups with the final 80-minutes used for the aftermath of the characters’ actions.
Rendition is an OK film shining light on a controversial practice but the drama is overwrought with over-the-top acting especially from Reese Witherspoon who seemed to have taken the role aiming for another Academy Award. But Meryl Streep and Alan Arkin are quite good in their limited roles.