Nerd in the 'Noke

Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014), R, 119 minutes - I've been looking forward to this film for just about a year now, ever since learning that Michael Keaton would be starring in the latest project from director  Alejandro González Iñárritu.  Since its initial release a month ago I have been waiting not-so-patiently for a) it to come to my local art house theater and b) a little break in the long list of things we've been trying to get done in the new house.  Thanks to a technical difficulty last week that wiped out this review once, I'm finally able to get my thoughts down 'on paper' so to speak. Michael Keaton plays Riggan, a washed up actor whose claim to fame was starring in a superhero franchise twenty years ago.  He's working on writing, directing, and starring in a Broadway show that he hopes will show the world that he still has the drawing power he had in his prime.  Getting the show ready proves to be quite a struggle ...

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014), PG-13, 142 minutes - Somewhat surprisingly, this film didn't quite make my Most Anticipated Films of 2014 list.  It was however, a part of my honorable mention.  The second film of the Spidey reboot - which began with 2012's The Amazing Spider-Man  - continues to build on elements introduced throughout that film and includes a good dose of action along with strong character development, making it a pretty entertaining kick-off for the official summer blockbuster season. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens much the same way its predecessor does, flashing back to Peter's youth and elaborating more on just what happened with his parents.  The film is brought into the present day by a typical Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) sort of problem: getting caught up fighting crime, causing him to miss his girlfriend Gwen Stacy's (Emma Stone) valedictorian speech, and almost miss graduation entirely.  It really is a great way to open the...

The Amazing Spider-Man (2012), PG-13, 136 minutes - When The Amazing Spider-Man was first announced, I had the same thought that a good majority of people had at the time: 'it has only been three or four years since Spider-Man 3, do they really need to reboot the franchise so soon?'  Then they announced that Marc Webb would be directing (I thoroughly enjoyed his (500) Days of Summer from 2009).  Then shortly thereafter the announcements that The Social Network's breakout Andrew Garfield would be Peter Parker and personal favorite Emma Stone would play Gwen Stacy (as Peter's original love interest as she was in the comics).  At that point I knew that I was on board with a Spidey reboot, even if we weren't all that far removed from Sam Raimi's trilogy. If I was 'all-in' so to speak, you might be wondering why it has taken me five months to get a review posted. Well, The Amazing Spider-Man came out the week of the July 4th holiday this past summer, and ...