THE GUNMAN Review
By Staci Layne Wilson @StaciWilson Based on a French crime novel, helmed by the director of Taken, and starring a, er, mature, muscle-bound male with a perpetual scowl, The Gunman certainly doesn’t break new ground. Unnecessarily convoluted given its simple premise, it’s as though the screenwriters (all three of them) were trying to hide their…
CUT BANK Movie Review
By Staci Layne Wilson @StaciWilson Cut Bank is the name of the small, rural Montana town where the labyrinthine plot unfolds. It begins when handsome but thick Dwayne (Liam Hemsworth) is filming an audition tape for his sweetly vapid, blonde girlfriend Cassandra (Teresa Palmer), and – lo and behold – a murder takes place on…
Black and White and Red All Over – Oscar Fashion 2015
By Staci Layne Wilson @StaciWilson The rain-soaked red carpet at this year’s Academy Awards ceremony may have been saturated… but not with color. Monochrome was all the rage – it was as if Dice, Dalmatians, and Oreo cookies were the inspiration for every fashionista and stylist from here to Hollywood Boulevard. Fifty Shades of Grey notwithstanding,…
The Lazarus Effect Movie Review
By Staci Layne Wilson @StaciWilson What if you had the power to bring back your loved ones from the dead… Would you? And more importantly… Should you? That’s the question explored in The Lazarus Effect and it’s not unlike many other resurrection-themed horror flicks, the most popular among them being oldies-but-goodies Re-Animator, Pet Sematary,…
Blackhat Review
By Staci Layne Wilson @StaciWilson A “blackhat” is a malicious computer hacker. A “whitehat” is the opposite. Since Chris Hemsworth plays versions of both in this new Michael Mann cyber-thriller, I guess he’s two shades of grey. And that about sums up all the nuance and texture this shallow, straightforward suspenser offers up. Writing a…
Fashion Fling – Costume Designer Rita McGhee Reigns on Empire
By Staci Layne Wilson @StaciWilson One cookie that never crumbles – and always looks like a zillion bucks clad head-to-toe in luscious leopard or sparkling Swarovski – is the best love-to-hate-her TV beeyotch to saunter along since “Dynasty’s” Alexis Carrington: she is Cookie Lyon, played to pouty perfection by Taraji P. Henson. In…
The Boy Next Door Review
By Staci Layne Wilson @StaciWilson On a scale of one to Gigli, Jennifer Lopez’s latest cinematic sortie is off the charts. The Boy Next Door – the titular “boy” being a full grown, 27-year old Abercrombie and Fitch model (Ryan Guzman) – starts off with an opening title sequence that’s so cheesy, even Wisconsin would…
'Everly' Review
By Staci Layne Wilson @StaciWilson If you’ve ever dreamed of watching a scantily-clad Salma Hayek’s ta-ta’s bounce in time to the tat-tat of machine gun fire while Christmas carols blare, then do we have the movie for you. It’s called Everly, and is it ever a trip. The titular Everly is played to the hilt…
The Captive Review
By Staci Layne Wilson Director Atom Egoyan made a big splash in the 90s with his most critically acclaimed film, The Sweet Hereafter (which was nominated for two Academy Awards). But the hereafter hasn’t always been so sweet. My favorite film of his, Where the Truth Lies, barely blipped on the public radar. 2009’s sexy…
The Babadook Review
By Staci Layne Wilson It’s been years since a really and truly scary movie has grabbed the hearts and minds of the general public. Yes, there have been some genuine underground hits within the cult horror crowd, but nothing has generated buzz lately quite like a little indie from down-under – and it’s directed by…
