Stoker (2013)

Creepiness abounds

When India's father dies, his estranged brother shows up at the funeral and then infiltrates the home she shares with her mother.  And then things get creepy.  Stoker is a very Hitchcock-ian look into the secrets that lie behind every facade.  Matthew Goode is more than good as the creepy brother Charlie.  Nicole Kidman (India's mother) is one of two things in this film.  She was either 1) great at portraying a really messed up character or 2) her acting was just bad.  Having seen her in a number of films, I think it is the former.  Directed by one of my favorite directors (Chan-wook Park) of one of my favorite films (Oldboy), Stoker is a great English debut from one of Korea's top directors.  Also a great screenwriting debut for Wentworth Miller of Prison Break fame.

Stoker creeps its way to 3 out of 5 Poblanos!

Director: Chan-wook Park
Writer: Wentworth Miller
Starring: Mia Wasikowska, Nicole Kidman, Matthew Goode
Rotten Tomatoes: 69%
Metacritic: 58 out of 100

The Clone Returns Home (2008)

No place like home

An astronaut suffers a serious accident.  A digital copy of his consciousness has been backed up on a super computer.  The space administration then decides to clone him in order to not lost his expertise.  The filmmaker crafts an atmospheric tale of ambiguity where madness mixes with the mundane.  The film manages to be eerie and tense at moments, lighthearted at others, and still confusing at other moments producing a beautiful piece of artwork.

The Clone Returns Home gets a solid 4 out of 5 Poblanos!

Director: Kanji Nakajima
Writer: Kanji Nakajima
Starring: Mitsuhiro Oikawa, Eri Ishida, Hiromi Nagasaku
Rotten Tomatoes: Not reviewed
Metacritic: Not reviewed

The Sapphires (2012)

We gotta get out of this place

A group of young aboriginal Australian girls has a gift for singing.  When an down on his luck Irish musician sees them at a local talent show, he forms them into a Motown type girl group which ends up performing for US troops in Vietnam.  Set in the late 1960s, this Australian film is based on a true story, but it strays a bit far from the real events.  The story behind the film is interesting, but the retelling is less than interesting.  It also suffers from a bit too much sappiness.  At one point late in the movie, I just wanted it to end.  I did appreciate seeing the level of discrimination faced by the aboriginal Australians and how it paralleled the experiences of African Americans. 

The Sapphires lost some of its shine and only gets 2.5 out of 5 Poblanos!

Director: Wayne Blair
Writer: Tony Briggs
Starring: Chris O'Dowd, Deborah Mailman, Jessica Mauboy
Rotten Tomatoes: 92%
Metacritic: 67 out of 100

Kon-Tiki (2012)

Some people have to learn the hard way

When a Norwegian explorer sets out to prove that the South Pacific islands were populated from Peru, he does it the hard way.  Gathering a team of fellow adventurers, Thor Heyerdahl builds and sails a really large raft 5000 miles across the Pacific Ocean.  I love stories of heroism and success in the face of great odds.  The fact that this story is actually true makes this film all the more amazing.  The very palpable tension in this film do stem from the great writing and filmmaking, but knowing that this actually happened to a group of real men makes it even more powerful.   The filmmakers and cast captured the tense moments so well.

Kon-Tiki cuts through the rough seas to get 4.5 out of 5 Poblanos!

Director: Joachim Rønning, Espen Sandberg
Writer: Petter Skavlan
Starring: Pål Sverre Hagen, Anders Baasmo Christiansen, Gustaf Skarsgård
Rotten Tomatoes: 84%
Metacritic: 63 out of 100

Juan de los Muertos (Juan of the Dead) (2011)

Dissdents in the streets of Havana

When the zombie apocalypse hits Cuba, Juan and his compadres have an interesting way of dealing with them.  The government refuses to acknowledge the real situation and refers to them as 'dissidents'.  I'm pretty sure this is the first Cuban film that I have ever seen.  It holds it own against Shaun of the Dead and Zombieland (sorry folks, those are my gold standards for zombie comedies).

Juan de los Muertos kills its way to 4 out of 5 Poblanos!

Director: Alejandro Brugués
Writer: Alejandro Brugués
Starring: Alexis Díaz de Villegas, Jorge Molina, Andrea Duro
Rotten Tomatoes: 78%
Metacritic: Not reviewed yet

Errors of the Human Body (2012)

Whatever doesn't kill you...

A well known American geneticist takes a position in a German research lab.  There he reconnects with an old friend and meets a new enemy.  A very intriguing, well written, and beautifully shot film.  I've not seen a story with this type of storyline that wasn't extremely unrealistic or cheesy or both.  Michael Eklund (who I loved in Xavier Gens' The Divide) does a superior job of carrying the lead role.  He is supported by fantastic cast.

Errors of the Human Body makes few mistakes and gets 4 out of 5 Poblanos!

Director: Eron Sheean
Writer: Shane Danielsen
Starring: Michael Eklund (The Divide), Karoline Herfurth, Tómas LemarquisRik Mayall 
Rotten Tomatoes:
Metacritic: Not yet reviewed

Woman in Black (2012)

Something's rotten in this town

Young Arthur is budding lawyer sent by his firm to finalize paperwork on a property.  When he shows up in the village, tragic things begin to happen.  Arthur soon realizes that all the strangeness is connected to the property.  And the rest is mildly thrilling.  The film does manage to capture a good bit of eeriness.  It also has some quality British actors.  Daniel Radcliffe is doing a fair job of trying to break out of the Harry Potter pigeonhole (Although it will always be hard for me to think of him as anything else).  This film is a respectable, if not memorable, addition to his filmography. 

Woman in Black gets a less than thrilling 2.5 out of 5 Poblanos!

Director: James Watkins
Writer: Susan Hill (novel), Jane Goldman (screenplay)
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Janet McTeer, Ciarán Hinds (There Will Be Blood, Game of Thrones)
Rotten Tomatoes: 65%
Metacritic: 62 out of 100