First off, The Amazing Spider-Man. The film already came out on Tuesday and has made so far made $71 million, but I had the great opportunity to check out the early advanced screenings a day before. I already reviewed the film calling it entertaining with nice action sequences, cool special effects and good acting, but did mention that there are a few plotholes and the romance between Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) and Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone) could have been worked on. Those reasons end up making the film less than amazing. You can read the whole review here. The film has 73% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 66 on Metacritic.
After the commercial success of Justin Bieber: Never Say Never, Paramount delves into the 3D concert documentary genre again this time with Katy Perry: Part of Me. The film follows a year in the life of the pop star as she goes on tours and deals with the divorce between her and Russell Brand. Oh, how I couldn't care less. Like Bieber, I find her music absolutely annoying and the film just looks like another stupid cashgrab. Surprisingly, most critics say it's more than that (notably A.O. Scott of the New York Times, saying it's more interesting and her negotiation of stardom and marriage is poignant). Still not convinced. I don't think I'll ever be convinced. RT: 78% (?!), Metacritic: 57
Savages marks Oliver Stone's return to gritty and violent filmmaking after giving us the Wall Street sequel and an interesting biopic of George W. Bush. Based off Don Winslow's book of the same name, the film tells the story of two pot dealers (Taylor Kitsch and Aaron Johnson) getting revenge on a Mexican drug cartel led by Salma Hayek after kidnapping their shared girlfriend (Blake Lively). From the looks of it, this is an action thriller on steroids. Or Ritalin. Whatever fits best. It'll be interesting to know what audiences think. While many critics agree it's a return to form for Stone, it's garnered mixed reviews so far, which worries me, especially two different ones coming from two of my favourite film critics: Roger Ebert says it generates ruthless energy and some humor while Peter Howell of the Toronto Star says the film is too dumb to know when to "sheath the blade". Again, let's see what audiences think. RT: 52%, MC: 62
His last stop was Paris, now Rome. Woody Allen head to the beautiful Italian city for To Rome with Love, which follow four separate stories with vistors and residents of Rome and the wacky misadventures they get into. Like many of Allen's films, this packs an all-star cast which includes Alec Baldwin, Jesse Eisenberg, Greta Gerwig, Penelope Cruz, Roberto Benigni, Ellen Page, Alison Pill, Judy Davis and Allen himself, his first acting role in 2006's Scoop. The film has mixed reviews, which doesn't necessarily bother me since I'm a fan of the Woodman. RT: 45%, MC: 55
And finally, The Do-Deca Pentathlon, the latest film from Jay Duplass and Mark Duplass. The comedy follows two grown brothers who secretly compete in an homemade Olympic-like competiton during a family reunion. This came out a few weeks before on demand, but I haven't gotten the time to watch it yet. It is pretty cool that it came out a few months after Jeff, Who Lives at Home, which unlike this film is star-studded. Nevertheless, good hopes for this one. RT: 67%, MC: 60
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