Review: THE IMITATION GAME

By Mark Saldana Rating: 4 (Out of 4 Stars) Based on the true story of Alan Turing and his top secret work for the British government during World War II, this extraordinary film not only gives audiences insight into the brilliant mind of Turing, but also reveals his tormented personal life.  Adapted from Andrew Hodges’… Continue reading Review: THE IMITATION GAME

Review: FOXCATCHER

By Mark Saldana Rating: 3.5 (Out of 4 Stars) The bizarre murder of Dave Schultz by John du Pont shook the world in 1996 and has now been made into a feature film by writers E. Max Frye, Dan Futterman, and director Bennett Miller.  This movie features some of the best performances of the year… Continue reading Review: FOXCATCHER

Review: ANNIE

By Mark Saldana Rating: 2 (Out of 4 Stars) I was nine years-old when my mother and sister dragged me to go see John Huston’s adaptation of Annie in 1982. They dragged me because I had no interest in what I perceived to be a very “girlie” musical.  Though I was partially correct in my… Continue reading Review: ANNIE

Review: WINTER SLEEP

By Mark Saldana Rating: 3.5 (Out of 4 Stars) Winner of this year’s Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival and Turkey’s official entry for Best Foreign Language Film, Winter Sleep truly is a remarkable film that critiques relations between the wealthy and poor classes in Turkey, but also is an engrossing portrait of disconnected… Continue reading Review: WINTER SLEEP

Movie News: AFCA Announces Its Film Awards for 2014

‘BOYHOOD’ IS AUSTIN FILM CRITICS ASSOCIATION FAVORITE IN 2014 The Austin Film Critics Association (AFCA) announced its 2014 awards today, with Austin filmmaker Richard Linklater’s feature “Boyhood” winning Best Film, Best Director, and two other awards, as well as leading the group’s Top Ten list. “Nightcrawler,” “Birdman” and “Gone Girl” also won multiple awards this… Continue reading Movie News: AFCA Announces Its Film Awards for 2014

Review: THE HOBBIT: THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES

By Mark Saldana Rating: 3 (Out of 4 Stars) Peter Jackson’s Hobbit trilogy concludes with this often fun, occasionally thrilling, but somewhat padded movie that will certainly polarize fans of Jackson’s adaptations of J.R.R. Tokien’s Middle Earth series.  I said it before and will probably say it again, but were three films necessary to adapt… Continue reading Review: THE HOBBIT: THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES

Movie Trailer: THE GUNMAN

In Theaters MARCH 20, 2015 The Gunman, the new action thriller from Pierre Morel, the director of Taken, stars Sean Penn, Javier Bardem, Idris Elba, Ray Winstone and Mark Rylance.