The Laz Picture Show

Takers Takes You on a Thrill Ride

admin — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 02:33:00 +0000

Takers is one of those rare movies: pretty trite, but takes itself seriously enough so that the audience jumps into the car and goes along for the ride. There are obvious references to a plethora of films. These include True Romance, Heat, The Italian Job, Out of Sight, and Point Break among others. The fact [...]

Twilight Saga: Eclipse no Darker or Edgier

admin — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 15:59:21 +0000

Which leads us to my inevitable disdain for these films (even thought I keep going back for more). As you probably have been able to tell from my previous reviews on these films and my befuddlement over Kristen Stewart’s casting in this series-I am not a fan. I’m going to get on my soapbox for [...]

Oscar Wrap #2

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:10:55 +0000

Golden Moments: Finally! The Right People Won. The reason this year was so enjoyable was because for once, the right people won the major categories, with one exception. I’ll get to that in a bit. In the first award of the night, Christoph Waltz took home the supporting actor trophy and gave a speech that was very [...]

Oscar Wrap #1

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 02:46:51 +0000

Sorry this is coming a little late kids. I was exhausted last night and couldn’t make it to my computer. I had waaaaay too many opinions about the Academy Awards show. Both immaculate and mystifying. So let’s get this on a roll… Steve + Alec= Gold For the first time in years, we had hosts that could actually [...]

Shutter Island is Insanely Imaginative

admin — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 22:44:38 +0000

I have to admit that I was a little worried when Shutter Island was delayed. It was supposed to open back in October last year and then the major studio behind it, Paramount, pushed it back a few months due to financial reasons for the promotion. When a film is delayed either in production, or [...]

Dear John: You are not The Notebook

admin — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:40:33 +0000

When the hype started to build up around Dear John several months back, many industry insiders predicted it would outdo that other very famous Nicholas Sparks adaptation, The Notebook (it doesn’t even come close). Plus, the casting made headlines when it was announced current every-girl heartthrob Channing Tatum (Stop-Loss) as the lead, along with up [...]

Valentine’s Day: Cliché, Predicable and Sweet, Just Like It’s Namesake

admin — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 21:22:37 +0000

Well, I wasn’t surprised when I read many of the early reviews for Valentine’s Day. They all said that the romantic comedy was predictable, groan-inducing, and way too sappy. My first thought to these reactions was, “Well, that’s exactly how the actual holiday is, so if anything, it truly is honoring the masochistic holiday.” Bravo. [...]

Crazy Heart is Crazy Good

admin — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 23:54:55 +0000

I’ve been a huge admirer of Jeff Bridges for years now. Very few actors in Hollywood have as diverse of a work history as him. Bridges has never shied away from independent films, and also has never vied like crazy for commercial results. He has played a ship captain, a psychotic kidnapper, a gymnastics coach, a [...]

2010 Academy Awards Predictions

admin — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 21:23:45 +0000

So the Academy Awards Nominations were announced today, and as per usual, comedies were ignored. The biggest, although not surprising, slight is the absence of the comedies The Hangover, (500) Days of Summer, and It’s Complicated. This is why I have such trouble with the Oscars. As almost any actor will testify, comedy is much harder [...]

Edge of Darkness Does Not Keep You on the Edge of Your Seat

admin — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 15:58:04 +0000

I was so fired up for Mel Gibson’s comeback. Public meltdowns aside, I have a soft spot for the actor, as he has played some of the most iconic roles in the action genre to date including: Mad Max, Martin Riggs, and William Wallace, to name a few (am I going to get totally panned [...]