Trashwire
Movie reviews, Whatcha Watchin podcast, and more
Author: Alexis Gentry
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Imaginative sci-fi bogged down by teen romance in ‘The Host’
We all know Stephenie Meyer from Twilight, the franchise that set teen hearts aflutter with sparkly vampires and bland high school love interests. She’s back with something of the non-blood-sucking variety with The Host, adapted from her sci-fi novel of the same name. The film takes an classic sci-fi concept (aliens taking over the human…
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‘Oz the Great and Powerful’ fails to sizzle despite visual wonders
I don’t think I’ve ever met a person who wasn’t a fan of The Wizard of Oz. The 1939 film practically defines the term “classic” with iconic themes and visuals that have stuck in the collective mind of moviegoers for over 70 years. Sam Raimi promised stunning 3D and a Wizard-focused origin story, but really…
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‘Identity Thief’ squanders talents of comedic stars
When it comes to comedies, there is no offense greater than wasting the talent of your brilliant stars. Identity Thief commits this sin in spades, squandering the skills of stars Jason Bateman and the comedically gifted Melissa McCarthy in a derpy, often slapstick comedy that could be described as Tommy Boy meets Due Date.
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‘Warm Bodies’ brings new life to teen romance genre
What do you get when you cross Romeo and Juliet with George Romero? You get a refreshingly original zombie romance in the form of Jonathan Levine’s Warm Bodies. Told from the POV of a teenage zombie who’s grown apathetic with his post-apocalyptic existence, Warm Bodies delivers a sweet, funny and fresh take on a classic…
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CBS bans porn site’s safe-for-work Super Bowl ad
It’s “Big Game” time (since apparently combining the words Super and Bowl is a trademark no-no) and, like every year, we’ll be seeing a slew of new commercials gracing our flat-screens on Sunday. One commercial you won’t be seeing is a spot for PornHub.com, one of the internet’s largest porn tube sites. CBS reportedly rejected…
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Tarantino’s ‘Django Unchained’ bloody, brutal and brilliant
Could any other director besides Quentin Tarantino bring us such a masterful spaghetti western/fairy tale/historical fiction period piece about slavery? Absolutely not! With Jamie Foxx in the titular role, Christoph Waltz, Samuel L. Jackson and Leonardo DiCaprio in the mix, Django Unchained is one of the most unique films of the year and proves that…
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‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey’ a visual treat, but no ‘Lord of the Rings’
Peter Jackson has finally returned to give us The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the kickoff film in his long-awaited cinematic adaptation of The Hobbit, which arrives 11 years after the release of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, the first installment in Jackson’s LOTR trilogy. This time, the stakes aren’t as…
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‘Twilight’ finally comes to a close with ‘Breaking Dawn Part 2’
Twi-hards everywhere are shedding a collective tear with the release of The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2, the fifth and final film in the Twilight series, adapted from the massively best-selling young adult book series by Stephenie Meyer. The series, which began with a mousey teenager falling in love at first sight with a…
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‘Seven Psychopaths’ a killer comedy
Who would have thought a little Shih Tzu could be so much trouble? For the characters in Martin McDonagh‘s Seven Psychopaths, one little dog can lead to exploding cars, pissed off gangsters and even a shootout in the desert, all on the journey to curing writer’s block and finishing an awesomely titled screenplay.
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Galifianakis and Ferrell win votes with ‘The Campaign’
Politics of 2012 are already ridiculous, from Newt Gingrich’s moon base to Mitt Romney’s animal abuse to Rick Santorum’s general awfulness. The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, give us hilarious takes on campaign speeches and Super PACs for real politicians. In The Campaign, Will Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis bring us two fictional politicians we…
