The Place Beyond the Pines (2013)

You can't choose your family

The film is a very clear three act presentation of three related threads of the same story.  The connections become clear later in the film, although Derek Cianfrance tips his hand a little making the payoff a bit predictable.  This film starts off really strong, but finishes a bit weakly with the second and third acts lack the power of the first one.  Cianfrance is the man behind Blue Valentine, one of my favorite films of the past few years.

The Place Beyond the Pines gets 3 out of 5 stars!

Director: Derek Cianfrance
Writer: Derek Cianfrance
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper, Eva Mendes
Rotten Tomatoes: 81%
Metacritic: 68%

My Week With Marilyn (2011)

Blonds have more fun
Young Colin Clark has managed to get a break in the film industry and is working on his first film.  Marilyn Monroe travels to England to make a film with Laurence Olivier.  Colin becomes a sort of confidant to Ms. Monroe.  The story is interesting enough, but not engrossing.  After a while, I stopped caring about the characters.  The most poignant moments of the film were when Ms. Monroe alluded to her past.  Michelle Williams captures her essence brilliantly.  She made me forget I was watching her play Marilyn Monroe; she seemed to be channeling instead of acting.  Oh and did I mention Hermione (Emma Watson) is in it too?


My Week With Marilyn is an average film with one standout performance which gets 3 out of 5 Poblanos!


Director: Simon Curtis
Writer: Adrian Hodges (screenplay), Colin Clark (books)
Starring: Michelle Williams (Blue Valentine), Eddie Redmayne and Kenneth Branagh
Rotten Tomatoes: 83%
Metacritic: 65 out of 100

Blue Valentine (2010)

Good lovin' gone bad
Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams play out the story of blossoming love between Dean and Cindy.  Told with a dual time-line, the film moves back and forth between the older them and the younger them.  Both of these actors give stand out performances.

Giving us a painfully honest look at the deterioration of a relationship,  Blue Valentine wins my heart with 4 out of 5 Poblanos!


Director:  Derek Cianfrance
Writer:  Derek Cianfrance, Cami Delavigne and Joey Curtis
Starring:  Ryan Gosling & Michelle Williams
Rotten Tomatoes -  88%
Metacritic - 81 out of 100