Life of Pi
Stunning visuals coupled with the story of a young man named Pi (Suraj Sharma) who
becomes lost at sea with a a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker (after a clerical error)
pulled me into the film,but its strong look at faith,religion,the dark side of human nature,
and triumph of the human spirit made me reflect on my own views of religion and faith.
The story is lacking in certain turns,but still manages to charm throughout and features
some of the boldest 3D effects and SFX i have ever seen on the big screen.
Scale of 1-10 an 8½
Killing Them Softly
At 97 minutes Killing Them Softly is one of the shortest mob films i have ever seen,but crams in a lot
of colorful characters,stinging and raw dialogue coupled with brutal violence.Scoot McNairy as Frankie and
Ben Mendelsohn as Russell are 2 low level crooks who look like they should be taking showers for a month instead of
robbing an illegal card game run by Markie Trattman (Ray Liotta) at the behest of Johnny Amato (Vincent Curatola)
The robbery leads to hitman Jackie Cogan (Brad Pitt) being called in to track down and take out anyone that was involved.
KTS interestingly uses the 2008 Presidential election and the economic collapse as a parable to whats
playing out on the gritty streets. Pitt,including Richard Jenkins as Driver, the aforementioned actors, and a handful of other character actors
are great but its James Gandolfini as Mickey a hit man who likes his alchohol and prostitutes but cant stop talking about
his wife who is threatening to leave him is the standout.
Even with its short running time KTS drags a bit but still held my attention and definitely entertains.
Scale of 1-10 an 8½