• Movies/Entertainment,  Reviews

    G-S-T Review…Side Effects

    Medication and depression these days go hand-in-hand. However, it wasn’t always this way. If you were unhappy, you often put on a brave face and dealt with it. If you were over a certain age, you couldn’t sit and pout. Nowadays, medication has taken away the fear, anxiety, and depression from everyday life for a lot of people. Are we better off with being in a medically-induced euphoria? At one point a character in Stephen Soderbergh’s latest—and possible last—film, Side Effects, tells their patient that these drugs simply allow us to be our real selves. That’s a tricky idea to grapple with. What is our true selves? The one aided by a pill to be more…

  • The CineMagic 8-Ball

    “The CineMagic 8-Ball” – In Theaters 02/08/13

    When so many movies are released each week and trailers often seem better than the movie itself, what should one do? In this precarious situation, we consult the The CineMagic 8-Ball (TM) to help us see through the nebulous marketing haze. Doing so just might save us all a disheartening trip to the cinema and spare us the cost of ridiculous concession stand prices. Let’s see what the 8-Ball says about this week’s releases… ——————————————————————————————————————————————- IDENTITY THIEF  Mild-mannered businessman Sandy Patterson travels from Denver to Miami to confront the deceptively harmless-looking woman who has been living it up after stealing Sandy’s identity. Bateman and McCarthy have proven themselves as capable…

  • Movies/Entertainment,  Trailers

    Sweet Trailer…'Side Effects'

    You may have seen this trailer already, given that it hit the web on Friday, but Steven Soderbergh’s films generally tend to be worth getting excited for and talking about. So, basically, forgive me for being late to the party. After the string of wins Soderbergh has had recently (2011’s Contagion, this year’s Haywire and, much more notably, Magic Mike), the chameleonic director doesn’t seem to be showing any signs of softening up or slowing down; the trailer for pharmaceutical drama/thriller Side Effects more or less confirms this while also continuing Soderbergh’s habit of keeping to a consistent roster of actors. See for yourself: That’s right: after appearing in both…

  • Movies/Entertainment,  Reviews

    G-S-T Review…The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

    In film circles there’s that age old remake question: How do you take something that already has a following and in one sweep appease fans of the original and bring on a whole new audience? Well, most directors would find themselves painted in a corner, but not David Fincher. With his first stab at a remake he effectively translates this dark and unsavory story into something that really pulls you into the mix and rises above being another bland retread. He can chalk up another win to his near perfect scorecard but he’s only half of the equation that makes this work. Noomi Rapace is a very tough act to follow…