The Flying Saucer, 328 W. Morgan St. in downtown Raleigh, has always had a good thing going on Wednesday night. If there is one thing you can bank on, it’s that people love getting something for free. The Saucer’s Free Pint Glass night has long been a moneymaker: produce a few cheap glasses with a […]
Isaac Weeks
Bio: Isaac Weeks lives in Raleigh and blogs about film.Twitter: http://twitter.com/isaacweeks
Posted inFilm & Television
Film review: Hawking story boasts winning performances in The Theory of Everything
THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING Opening Friday The biopic is a troubled genre. So many movies based on the life of someone well-known boil down to casting an actor who looks and sounds like the subject, which can be easily dismissed as mere mimicry. And then there’s usually the thankless female role, where an award-winning actress […]
Posted inCulture
Movie review: Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day ★★★ Now playing If you are above the age of 10, the constant ads for Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day have probably been driving you up the wall for months now. Based on the beloved children’s book by Judith Viorst, […]
Posted inCulture
Movie review: Dracula Untold a story best left … um … untold
Dracula Untold★★ Now playing The filmmakers behind Dracula Untold, the latest in a seemingly endless series of vampire retreads, could have gone a thousand different directions in exploring the legend of ol’ Vlad the Impaler. Stay mostly true to the real story, and add a few flourishes of monstrosity at the end, so the horror […]
Posted inFilm & Television
Film review: Reese Witherspoon and Sudanese refugees in The Good Lie
THE GOOD LIE 1/2 Opening Friday Reese Witherspoon is an interesting actress who can be hard to take seriously. She’s as good as any A-list star at avoiding bombs, give or take a This is War or two, and she won an Oscar for her role as June Carter Cash in Johnny Cash biopic Walk […]
Posted inCulture
Movie review: Denzel Washington stars in ’80s TV show revamp The Equalizer
The Equalizer ★★★ ½ Now playing A film like The Equalizer would be easy to brush off as a cynical cash-grab for all involved. Star Denzel Washington surely must have seen how financially successful the Taken franchise has become for Liam Neeson, right? Director Antoine Fuqua realizes his most celebrated film, both critically and at […]
Posted inFilm & Television
If I Stay: Should you go?
IF I STAY 1/2Opening Friday Like this year’s superior The Fault in Our Stars, IF I STAY is a Young Adult fiction adaptation featuring teens in love, medical emergencies and a charismatic young star in the lead role. Unfortunately, the similarities between the films don’t extend to quality. If I Stay stars Chloë Grace Moretz […]
Posted inCulture
Movie review: Sex Tape exploits anxieties about cloud storage
Sex Tape ★1/2 Now playing There is something to be said for films that announce their entire plot in the title. As we live in an unsubtle age, Sex Tape proudly airs the storyline of its entire 90-minute running time in each commercial, lobby stand and poster that advertises its arrival. Cameron Diaz and Jason […]
Posted inCulture
Movie review: Sad looks and quiet pauses in Hellion
Hellion ★★ Now playing The difficulties of television actors who try to become movie stars fill countless pop-culture magazines and online clickbait lists. Viewers experience a degree of schadenfreude watching an actor from one of their favorite TV programs struggle to gain a foothold on the big screen, as if to say, “That’s what you […]
Posted inCulture
Movie review: Kevin Hart’s charisma can’t save Think Like a Man Too
Think Like a Man Too ★★ Now playing Budding superstar Kevin Hart returns to the big screen with THINK LIKE A MAN TOO, a sequel to the surprise 2012 hit based on Steve Harvey’s book Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man. It downplays the gender games of its source material to follow a […]