Al Pacino was once considered the greatest living actor. Some people still dispute that he still is the greatest living actor. I’m not so sure of that – I adore and admire Pacino, but he has become quite the critical punching bag, and to be perfectly honest, looking at some of his film choices lately,…

I’m at a loss for words. I can’t believe a film like Birdman actually exists. I don’t think I’ve ever been left this speechless by a film ever in my life. I was really excited for Birdman, and it was one of my most anticipated movies of the year. I wasn’t expecting it to be…

Last year, I was finally introduced to the incredible minds of John and Martin McDonagh. In all my years of watching films, I have never quite encountered films quite like the ones these two have made. The Guard and Calvary (which is one of the best films of 2014) were brilliant pieces of Irish satire…

The Coen Brothers are two of the most consistent directors working today, as they are able to take any subject and genre – comedy or drama – and turn it into a masterpiece. They have made some incredibly intense and grandiose films in the past – Fargo, No Country for Old Men and True Grit…

After seeing Brendan Gleeson’s absolutely amazing work in Calvary a few weeks ago, I was eager to see his other collaboration with John Michael McDonagh, the Irish version of a traditional buddy cop comedy. The film, entitled The Guard, is a real oddity of a comedy – it has a simple premise combined with the…

Very rarely is a film made about writers, which is strange considering how they are mostly responsible for creating the stories we see on screen. I am sure anyone who tries to write regularly, either as a hobby or as part of their career, can relate to the hilariously tragic story of Barton Fink. With…

Brendan Gleeson – what an underrated actor. The brooding, sinister Irish character actor has had some brilliantly memorable roles. However, it is his performance as Father James, the kindhearted Catholic priest in a remote Irish small town that truly shows off his range as an actor. The McDonagh Brothers (Martin and John Michael) have singlehandedly…

Richard Linklater is an oddity – he is capable of making so many different kinds of movies and twisting genres and stories, each one being a complete stranger to the one before. Those of you who follow my reviews know that I proclaimed Before Midnight the best film of 2013, and unless something impresses me…

I want to talk for a moment about typecasting – sometimes, earlier in their career, an actor plays a role so well, they are permanently cast in that type of role. Some of them use it to their advantage, and some of them desperately try to expand their career horizons. Samuel L. Jackson has been…