Review here.

Sweden’s newest vampire flick, Let the Right One In (Låt den rätte komma in, also the title of the book it is based on), tears away from the cheap trinkets that have cheapened American vampires for years. Instead of a ridiculous dark romance or a soulless action thriller, the film is the tender, terrifying, and frigidly melancholy story of growing up and finding the dearest things in life, whatever their terrible forms. In a fashion befitting of its wispy vampire, Let the Right One In also crept by, deft as smoke, unnoticed by all but the fortunate few.

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Review here.

Though the mythological reference may fly past some, Ovid’s legend of Dryope is a tale of tragedy, blood-gushing flowers, and tree-hugging. Theatre Suburbia’s newest production, Dryope and Iole, delves into family secrets, filial love, and a few poplar trees. How do these time-crossed stories compare? Dryope and Iole features a talented cast and more pronounceable names, but Ovid’s packs far more originality.

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Review here.
Teenage girls are annoying. At least, the Hollywood species, where every soul-shattering, apocalyptic relationship problem can be solved with a Prada bag and some "girl time." Perhaps that's why everyone loathes the Hollywood teenager. She preens and over-dramatizes, but everything still works out. That this creature is absent from The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 makes it an above-average film, while good acting and writing make it even better.
*** / ****

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X-Files: I Want to Believe, 2008

Posted on 9:36 PM, under


Review here.

The original X-Files series crept onto the scene in 1993, steadily built up a magnificent cult status, then stumbled out in 2002 in a jumble of convoluted soap-opera mush. X-Files: I Want to Believe follows the same pattern, but the 100-minute running time leaves no time for anything magnificent.

* 1/2 / ****

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Review here.

They don't make 'em like they used to. Today, your standard summer blockbuster glitters from afar with the flourish of CGI. Upon closer inspection, though, it's just a paper tiger with little beyond its sparkly shell. Luckily, Guillermo del Toro's Hellboy II: The Golden Army saunters in with just as much gloss, yet beneath that lies a sarcastic, goofy heart, some wonderful action and a whole petting zoo of creepy.

*** / ****

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The Hulk, 2008

Posted on 9:21 PM, under , , ,


Review here.


Superhero movies walk a fine line. On the one hand, people want explosions and smackdowns. On the other, people need something more: the wittiness of Iron Man or the emotional center of The Crow. The Incredible Hulk almost succeeds in this balancing act, but it's just too rushed and clumsy to pull it off.

** / ****

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Review here.

*** / ****

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