Dallas Movie Screening

Dallas Movie Screenings started out as a mailing list on Yahoo Groups to facilitate finding free screening passes in the DFW area. When Yahoo Groups shut down, we are now posting screenings on our Facebook page at http://www..facebook.com/groups/dallasmoviescreenings
Earlier Reesa's Reviews can also be found at:http://www.moviegeekfeed.com

Logo art by Steve Cruz http://www.mfagallery.com

Website and Group Contact: dalscreenings@gmail.com

Sunday, November 30, 2014

Movies Scheduled 11/30/12/6

Well I guess Gofobo is now enforcing their policy on 4 passes per 30 days. It is in their rules:

B. It is in the interest of fairness that we ask our guests to limit their RSVPs to all community screenings to NO MORE THAN FOUR (4) SCREENINGS PER 30 DAY PERIOD (“Screenings Policy”). Those found in violation of this Screenings Policy may have their screening privileges suspended for 45 days. Repeated violation of the Screenings Policy may result in deletion of their membership to the Sites and/or Services.

Yes I know we like to try to go to all the movies but it is time to be picky about which ones you want to see.


Please contact me if you have any questions at damitdaina@hotmail.com

Sunday Nov. 30th


Monday Dec. 1st


Tuesday Dec. 2nd.

Wild 7:30 p.m. AMC Northpark
The Wedding Ringer 7:30 p.m. SMG Spring Valley


Wednesday Dec. 3rd

Panic 5 Bravo 7:30 p.m. AMC Valley View
The Hobbit: The Battle of 5 Armies 7:30 p.m. TBA


Thursday Dec. 4th

Wild 7:30 p.m. AMC Northpark


Friday Dec. 5th


Saturday Dec. 6th






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Friday, November 28, 2014

Homesman







If one is wanting to see and experience the harsh, stark reality that was the Midwestern prairie settlement period, check out "The Homesman"
(A homesman is generally referred to as a man who takes immigrants back to their original home.) starring Hilary Swank, Meryl Streep, Tommy Lee Jones, John Lithgow and James Spader, four of who have surprisingly small roles in this Western.

Set in Nebraska in the mid 1800's, the setting and lifestyle portrayals appear a very accurate picture of what life must have been like. The land is stark and the homes and daily life even starker. Basic existence was extremely difficult, unpredictable, full of hazards and pitfalls and could actually drive you crazy. The film opens with a variety of scenes of four different women, three who have gone utterly mad on the prairie. The horror of their individual plights is quite hard to watch their horrors unfold onscreen.
Mary Bee Cuddy (Swank) is a strong, independent (securely so) and very capable woman who maintains her own home and land in meticulous fashion. She is single but not for lack of trying. She is a true Midwestern feminist before feminism hit the mainstream. The local men she tries to woo call her too plain to marry but when the local minister has to select someone out of the community to retrieve the three women gone crazy and deliver them back home to Ohio, Mary is the able bodied one elected to leave home in a secure wagon and do just that, becoming the homesman. While a pillar of religious, moral and community strength, inside Mary is suffering from extreme loneliness and at times seems quite depressed at her situation and string of marriage rejections. As a result, she is very compassionate and understanding with the stricken women she is carrying back to their families. Jones portrays George Briggs, a squatter who is ousted from a sod home and left to hang from a tree when his mount takes a mind to move. Mary Bee finds him, saves him and enlists his help in her quest. So the trilogy of the Good, the Bad and the Ugly is completed.

Along the trail, the party encounters Indians, a lack of food and shelter, the elements, abandonment, the escape of one of the women and what it took to find her and get her back. All the while, the women must be bathed, toileted, fed, and cared for in a compassionate manner, which Mary Bee models. This is REAL life on the prairie.
Spader plays Aloysius Duffy, a rather smug businessman, trying to gain investors towards building a community around his hotel. His rejection of the party for food and lodging ends badly. Streep is Altha Carter, a minister's wife, who's home is the final destination for the three women in Iowa. Haile Steinfeld appears in the town in Ohio as Tabitha Hutchinson, who George attempts to woo quite quickly with little success.

Be forewarned. There are several scenes difficult to watch involving rape, dead bodies, infanticide, disease and suicide. The film was a competitor for the Palme d'Or at Cannes in 2014 and is based on a book published in 1988 and written by Glendon Swarthout. The movie, a Western through and through, has an unusual tone and feel to it that may be hard to come to terms with. It clearly plays along the edges and its art house notes are evident. This is a film that will stick with this three way descendant of prairie-settling immigrants for a long time, knowing vividly why a female ancestor and her brother only lasted one year after the Oklahoma land rush. The prairie life is shown as punch you in the stomach hard. With Jones as director, this tragic Western is ultimately unforgettable. Its conclusion, and a turning point before the ending, may leave you a little bit unfulfilled and confused but what is not to ultimately admire about a piece that is written, produced, directed by and stars icon Tommy Lee Jones. Rarely is this talented, athletic, St Mark's alum, Harvard educated, Academy Award winning Texan very far off the mark.
(Review by Cheryl Wurtz)





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Tuesday, November 25, 2014

Foxcatcher





Has Steve Carell ever terrified you? He will now. This is a wonderful, frightening character study that is an extreme slow burn. Bennett Miller, director of “Capote” and “Moneyball”, brings us this dark and interesting story about Mark Schultz, played by Channing Tatum, and he seeks a coach and mentor in, the wealthy, Jean du Pont, played by Carell, to be the best wrestler and escape the shadows of his older brother Dave Schultz, played by Mark Ruffalo. What Miller does best is let us, as an audience, exploring these characters and see their demons that plague them. This is a brutal story of trust, betrayal and acceptance and I thought Miller outdid himself, because I really like “Capote” and “Moneyball”. I do find “Foxcatcher” more bizarre and interesting than the other two even though I love all three. The acting is off the charts good. These are performances to be remembered in an actor or actresses career. All three transform themselves and really become these characters becoming unrecognizable, Carell especially. Carell has been getting a bunch of buzz but my favorite is Tatum. He completely changed my view of him as an actor, even though I saw some hope when he did comedy in the “Jump Street” franchise. Carell will most likely be nominated, but I wish all three could be. The cinematography is gorgeous and bleak at the same time, with wide shots to really capture the isolation these characters face. It’s just a beautiful looking film, then again all of Miller’s films are. This is where the movie might lose people. The editing and pace of the film is a slow burn and may seem really long to people, even though is only two hours and ten minutes. I like the pace of it because of the disturbing build-up this film has to a shocking conclusion, to where you will sit back and wonder how a story like this even happened. I did feel the drag a little bit but it picked up soon after. This is definitely in my top ten of the year as one of most compelling, disturbing character studies I have seen in awhile. I am going big. 9.5/10
(Review by Chase Lee)






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Penguins of Madagascar





The new 3D computer animated feature from Dreamworks is a crazy, wild, pun-filled adventure perfect for today's hyper children with the attention span of a gnat. The Madagascar series of stories follows the adventures of various circus animals. This version from a screenplay by John Aboud, Michael Colton, Brandon Sawyer, Tom McGrath and Eric Darnell center's on the four penguins. Directed by Simon J. Smith and Eric Darnell, the story starts from their younger days in the Antarctic wanting something more than just walking across the snow fields to the ocean.

The young ones are lead by Skipper (Tom McGrath) who questions what would happen if they veered off the usual path. He's followed by Kowalski (Chris Miller), the brains of the team, and Rico (Conrad Vernon), the lose cannon who has a habit of swallowing most everything not tied down. They chase down a loose egg that is barreling down the mountains. When the egg hatches, the fourth member of the group becomes Private (Christopher Knights) who works hard at getting the Skipper's praise. After the four end up adrift on an iceberg, they end up in the circus where they are all grown up. They later encounter Dave, an Octopus, also known as Dr. Octavius Brine (John Malkovich) who is disguised as a human. Dave has some revenge issues with penguins and his plans include something to do with some green medusa serum and huge mechanical ray gun.

The Northwind is an elite interspecies task force that has been on the trail of Dr. Brine. They pick up the penquins to question what they know. Skipper clashes with the grey wolf Classified (Benedict Cumberbatch) who both want to lead their respective teams to stop Dave. Northwind is highly trained and equipped and include harp seal Shortfuse (Ken Jeong) the demolitions expert, snowy owl Eva (Annet Mahendru) the intelligence analyst and the muscle polar bear Corporal (Peter Stormare) who gets carried away by the penguin cuteness factor. While the Northwinds is supposed to be the superheros of this story, they are oftentimes woefully outsmarted by the usually inept, but creative penguins.

Usually there are some underlining lessons to convey to it's target audience. And maybe what kids may take away from it is the idea of family and loyalty. But once this ride opens after a prologue narrated by Werner Herzog, the story does not stop for it's 92 minute running time. The sight gags, puns and other wackiness, will probably go over the heads of kids, but the adults charged with taking them will keep them amused this holiday weekend.
(Review by reesa)






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Sunday, November 23, 2014

Movies scheduled 11/2311/29


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Moseley, Daina
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Thanksgiving week already, where did the year go? Hope you don’t eat too much turkey!! Be safe if you are going to brave the crowds on Black Friday!!

Well this week I went to the movie and was so upset. Yep two seats down from me was a big talker during the movies. Yes I normally try to stay away from him but alas he sat close by. Please be kind to the people around you and not talk during the movie. You may think you are not talking loud but guess what you are! There is no need to say hey that guy is dead, yes we know he were not under a rock. But thanks for pointing that out! (sarcasm)



Now on to the second thing that bugs me. I have heard a lot of people won Mockingjay part 1 tickets but by the time they went to get their tickets all the tickets were gone. So whomever is forwarding out their winning email and letting all their friends go and taking away from people who actually won isn’t playing by the rules. Come on now, how would you feel to have won, then check it out and bam all the tickets were gone. I don’t think you would be happy about that, now would you? So the moral of this is let’s play fair and let all the people who won get their tickets!



Please contact me if you have any questions at damitdaina@hotmail.com


Sunday Nov. 23rd

Raging Bull Sunset Annette Strauss Square


Monday Nov. 24th


Tuesday Nov. 25th


Wednesday Nov. 26th


Thursday Nov. 27th

Thanksgiving


Friday Nov. 28th

Saturday Nov. 29th







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Thursday, November 20, 2014

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1




The third book of The Hunger Games series based on the trilogy by Suzanne Collins has been broken down into two movies. The screenplay written by Danny Strong and Peter Craig ends the story with the expected cliff hanger to whet the appetite of all young adult book and movie fans. For newbies to the story, it's advised to have seen the previous films (you don't have to read the books unless you want to) to get sense of the world of Panem and why Katniss Everdeen is the reluctant hero of the rebellion. Directed once more by Francis Lawrence the build up is setting Katniss on the path of fighting the evil President Snow in the Capitol. But like all stories that have no ending, it just makes the viewer more frustrated having to wait until next year to see the conclusion.

Jennifer Lawrence is back as Katniss, the tribute that escaped the Third Quarter Quell and shattered the Games forever by shooting an arrow that destroys the force field of the arena. She wakes up in District 13 which has become the spearhead of the new rebellion. District 13's President Alma Coin (Julianne Moore) wants Katniss to become the Mockingjay poster child. She reluctantly agrees only if the still captured tributes in the Capitol are granted immunity. Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) is being used as spokesperson for the Capitol to manipulate Katniss into not joining the rebels. Angry and confused Katniss is distrustful of Coin and Pultarch Heavensbee (Phillip Seymour Hoffman, who finished his filming for Part 1 before his death) who want her to film these propaganda clips to inspire revolt. Her old boyfriend Gale (Liam Hemsworth) takes her to her old District 12 which was destroyed after she escaped. Later when Katniss and the film crew (led by Natalie Dormer as Cressida) visit District 8. The injured at the hospital give her the Mockingjay salute and she realizes that she may be part of that hope.

The movie crawls slowly as Katniss angsts over her role in the plan, although she knows that the government should be overturned. She is also worried sick over Peeta's messages and wants District 13 to rescue the captured tributes including Finnick's girlfriend Annie, and Johanna (Jenna Malone). Effie Trinket (Elizabeth Banks) now forced reluctantly into District 13's overalls lightens the movie's dark tones as Katniss's stylist and manager. Woody Harrelson as Haymitch Abernathy who is now sober is back offering sound advise and a shoulder to cry one. President Snow (Donald Sutherland) who has an affinity for white roses (the reason is given towards the climax of the movie) remains the boogie man who is one step ahead of the rebels taunting and killing along the way.

Jennifer Lawrence is still the next big thing on screen. As Katniss they bring her long hair tumbling around her face to give her a more vulnerable and fragile look. Then more fierce in her designer rebel outfit created for her propaganda clips. Her best accessory are the exploding arrow heads. Sutherland eats up the screen as the smarmy President Snow and his creepy white roses. And Hutcherson who must of lost a ton of weight as the tortured Peeta who wins Katniss's heart from the stoic Gale.

This movie will make money no matter what. If you are fan of the movie and there are ton of them out there, it's a nice addition, but still seems stretched out and lacking. Lacking an ending.
(Review by reesa)


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Citizenfour




Wow, how scary is it really? Are we just cattle moving in a heard and blind by our entertainment and funny videos? “Citizenfour” drags us right into the sea of Edward Snowden’s serious delivery of possibly the US’s most famous piece of classified information. This film is about the NSA super hack into the privacy of millions upon millions of unaware Americans as well as some countries. It follows the name read on multiple TV screens at the time of the release of this information, Edward Snowden.

Now being a citizen I used to think as probably a lot of people did that this was just another guy in big trouble with the US. I had no idea of what Mr. Snowden went through or was trying to do with what information he had. This film revealed the intimate room where the release of this humungous story took place. Edward Snowden is lying on a couch spewing out in layman’s terms the software the NSA had to gather millions of records from telecom companies. He was filmed by documentary filmmaker Laura Poitras who was taking a significant risk by just being there. The events around that time take place one after the other. The White House says that they want Snowden back for a “proper hearing’ and that they were going to do something about the NSA a while ago. A man who worked for the NSA for decades reveals what he was told to do while there and that he was threatened by authorities to stay silent. Meetings are held by countries and Europe to address this imminent problem. This was and still is a magnificent problem that yelled to American citizens that what they did or said was on a screen accessible within the click of a button. Privacy was thrown out the window and life was monitored by a governmental agency. The man who interviews Snowden is Glen Greenwald, a journalist living in Rio de Janeiro. The man questions the safety of all of them and what information Snowden has. There are constant looks out the window for spies from the hotel room where the camera starts rolling. If the public isbelieving in a democracy that is strong, I think this film proves an opposite point. We are told by this piece to point attention towards majorly important issues that will shape our lives in the future and now. The public citizen is told to stand up for injustice in the most hammering way possible.
(Review by Wyatt Head)



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Sunday, November 16, 2014

Movies Scheduled 11/16-11/22

Okay so last week I went to the movies and have not done so in a long time. A couple of things really bothered me. First of all they moved us, sure we have been moved before but before people were nice enough to keep their place in line. Sure I was the third person in line but when they moved us someone tried to get in my spot in line and trust me I wasn’t having that at all! Now then second thing that bugged me was someone got his popcorn and drink. Sure you can do that but get back in line and don’t stay at the front of the line so you can just blend in when they let start to let us in. Yes I said excuse me when you tried to get in front of me, not going to happen!



Now before all the “asking” of passes for Mockingjay Part 1, most of the sites didn’t get many passes so I doubt that people would give up their passes unless something came up and couldn’t go. Yes even I have entered all of the contests for this one. So good luck to us all!


Please contact me if you have any questions at damitdaina@hotmail.com

Sunday Nov. 16th


Monday Nov. 17th


Tuesday Nov. 18th

Mockingjay Part 1 7:00 p.m. AMC Northpark
Flashpoint 9:00 p.m. Alamo Drafthouse


Wednesday Nov. 19th

Horrible Bosses 2 7:30 p.m. TBA
The Wedding Ringer 7:30 p.m. AMC Northpark


Thursday Nov. 20th

Horrible Bosses 2 7:30 p.m. AMC Northpark


Friday Nov. 21st

Saturday Nov. 22nd

The Penguins of Madagascar 10:00 a.m. Angelika Dallas





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Thursday, November 13, 2014

Rosewater




Rosewater is the directorial debut of political comedian, Jon Stewart, of The Daily Show. And it is a solid, moderately impressive first effort. The film is the retelling of the arrest and imprisonment of Maziar Bahari in Iran during the political elections. Bahari is a journalist who was born and raised in Iran. In the year 2009, he returned to cover the presidential election at a time when Iran was trying to make a change and there were charges of election fraud. Protests followed the election, mostly put on by the young, educated and informed (via forbidden satellite dishes which brought in all manner of information to those hungry for it.....and for political reform. They occurred as a challenge to the results that kept President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in office. Soon after, Bahari filmed news video of rioting protesters being shot by police and released it to the world..His arrest came as a result. It did not help him that his father had been imprisoned as a communist under The Shah and his sister had also spent six years in prison before her early death.

The film was made in Jordan and stars Gael García Bernal as Newsweek journalist Bahari. Iranian actresses Golshifteh Farahani and Shohreh Aghdashloo (House of Sand and Fog) star as Maziar's sister and mother. Soon after his mother's apartment is invaded and Bahari's room is searched for "pornography" and illegal videos, he is taken, imprisoned in solitary confinement, and tortured. One would have expected a full blown expose on the horrific conditions in an Iranian prison for "spies", but most of the torture in this film is extremely psychological. The verbal delivery of words, the removal and application of a blindfold (which he wore most of the time) and the touch of a hand on a shoulder or head are conducted in ways that make one's skin crawl with the desperation a 118 day imprisonment must have felt like. A scene where Bahari is outside, feel for and reaches with his hand the area of the wall where the sun shines is quite powerful. He cannot see it, being blind folded, and only can access it by feeling for its warmth as its light moves higher up on the prison wall.

Ironically, is was a satirical piece starring Bahari, in real life on the Daily Show that led the prison officers to feel they had "proof" that Bahari was indeed a spy. Middle Eastern Rosewater manufacturing was shown in the very beginning of the film, but what is not intially realized by the viewer is that one of the interrogators or "specialists" (played by Kim Bodnia) always smelled of Rosewater. The sensory deprived Bahari would always smell it during a "Specialist session". As time wears on, Bahari must find ways to stay optimistic and hopeful, and know that others on the outside had not forgotten him. He transforms his experience into a sort of coming out before he is released. Bahari brought a certain level of comedy into the mix, and exerted what freedoms he still had and expressed himself in ways that he still could. To see his emerging self empowerment on the screen is one aspect that helps to keep the viewer engaged and interested. That in the face of possibly losing his life, these things could sustain him in solitary is a real life testament to Bahari's fortitude. Bahari's wife ended up leading an international campaign to have her husband freed, and media outlets in the west keept the story perinent. Stewart makes use of some visual image film techniques that really add to the enjoyment of the film. Bahari eventually told his story through a New York Timesbest selling book. "Then They Came for Me: A Family's Story of Love, Captivity, and Survival." The film Rosewater is a finely put together and powerful drama that reminds us of the power that the human mind can have over its circumstances.
(Review by Cheryl Wurtz)





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Theory of Everything




Pop culture icon and scientific genius Stephen Hawking best known for his book A Brief History of Time has always been seen trapped in his ALS tortured body speaking from a computer interface. People don't necessarily think about Hawking before having active life before he became disabled. His ex-wife's memoir Travelling to Infinity:My Life with Stephen is the basis of the new movie directed by James March (Project Nim and Man on a Wire) with a screenplay by Anthony McCarten. The story covers his time at the University in Cambridge, England during the 1960's, the romance, his sickness, and his ultimate fame. Eddie Redmayne's performance as Hawking is already garnering accolades with suggestions for the awards season.

Hawking (Redmayne) was a brilliant PHD candidate, but he had not settled on the choice of his discipline until he hears a seminar from mathematician Roger Penrose who inspires his exploration of gravitational singularity theorems. While his resulting PHD theory is considered brilliant, the movie is mostly about the relationship he has with Jane (Felicity Jones), a French and Spanish Major. There's an immediate attraction between Hawking and Jane despite their disagreements on religion. After he is diagnosed and only given two more years to live he struggles with depression. But Jane steadfastly keeps him going and decides to marry him. They are romantically happy, having babies, and Hawking continues with his work which over the years brings him much acclaim.

ALS may damage his body, but his brain remains active and engaged. Jane has put off her own field of study to care for the increasing demands on her husband's care and that of her children. But she battles on, until her mother suggests joining the choir at the church. It gives her time away from the stress at home and also introduces her to the handsome choir director Jonathan Hellyer Jones (Charlie Cox). Hawking realizes that his wife needs help and they agree to have Jonathan become part of their family. Although Hawking and Jane's parents can see the writing on the wall, the introduction of the new nurse Elaine (Maxine Peake), and the demand for Hawking's lecture tours, the long suffering couple inevitably decide to part.

The passage of time is told through the changes in fashion, the costume design is really highlighted in this movie going from the 1960's until the 1990's. As well as Hawking's gradual physical deterioration from stumbling, to having to use a wheelchair, to losing the ability to communicate. Redmayne's portrayal of Hawking through these stages will draw comparison's to Daniel Day-Lewis in My Left Foot. The slurred speech patterns and physical contortions he had to endure brings the Stephen Hawking to life. Felicity Jones, while not as showy as Remayne, gives a strong performance as the ever suffering wife who stands by her man. Wish there was more science involved, but this is basically a love story and a story of human endurance of a brilliant mind.
(Review by reesa)


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Beyond the Lights





Director/writer Gina Prince-Bythewood who also did The Secret Life of Bees and Love & Basketball is back with another satisfying story which premiered at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival. The story about the relationship of a young singer, her manager mother and an unlikely lover, also exposes the objectification of women in the music industry. While talent will help one get to the top, it's more of how much you are willing to sell as dictated by the men in charge of the record labels who promote the artist as a product.

Noni (Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who was brilliant in Belle) plays a Brixton English young woman who once sang a Nina Simone song as a kid for a local talent contest. Her mother Macy Jean (Minnie Driver) makes her give up her 1rst place trophy that she won because it wasn't good enough. Now grown up Noni is promoting her single she did with rap star Kid Culprit (Richard Colson Baker) at the Billboard Awards show. In the music video she is dressed in barely there costumes, singing suggestible lyrics, and tasteless tramp dancing. She is being pimped to become the next big thing. Noni has a moment of crisis after the performance and when she returns to her police guarded hotel room, her mother and Kaz (Nate Parker) the guard find her sitting at the edge of the balcony in a state of distress. Using his police skills, Kaz tries to talk her from the edge, and ends up saving her life when she makes a leap. Her suicide attempt is hushed up by her record label who wants to delay her record release until the scandal has blown over. Her mother insists that everything is OK, that Noni was just a little drunk and had an accident. They try to pay off Kaz to make sure that he doesn't tell the truth. Tabloids try to buy the truth from Kaz as their exclusive.

Kaz's father Captain Nicol (Danny Glover) advises his son to keep up the charade. Kaz is being touted the hero and they want to use this moment in the spotlight to promote Kaz's introduction into politics. But Kaz is a decent thoughtful young man, and the lie is hard for him to justify. He's worried that Noni is not getting the help she needs. So he talks to her again and thus begins their attraction to each other. Is Noni being nice to him to keep his mouth shut? Is Kaz using her to boost his career goals? Macy and Captain Nicol think their budding relationship is not good for either of them. Noni's image would not sit well for and up and coming councilman.

Gugu Mbatha-Raw is beautiful and vulnerable as the singer who has lost her way by doing everything for everyone and nothing for her self. Kaz is frustrated by her celebrity lifestyle especially when he's able to see the talented and sensitive young woman underneath the weaves and makeup. The movie follows Noni's journey to discover and accept her real self. Kaz is also being manipulated by others to fit a certain image of politics. While it's a touching love story about two improbable love birds, it's also a commentary on the sexualization of women in music and the struggle to win artistic independence.
(Review by reesa)



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Sunday, November 9, 2014

Movies Scheduled 11/9-11/15

When we send you info on movies make sure to read the rules. You may think they won't know if I log into my other email and double my chances. Well you would be wrong. They know when you do that! Then your chances go from good to no chance of getting the pass. I know we all want to get that pass but make sure to keep your chances good on getting it.

I don't know if you noticed that GOFOBO has changed. I personally don't like it, but it will take a little to get use to.

As always you can email me with any and all questions at damitdaina@hotmail.com

Sunday Nov. 9th


Monday Nov. 10th

Hellsing Ultimate 9 & 10 7:30 p.m. Alamo Drafthouse


Tuesday Nov. 11th

Rosewater 7:30 p.m. AMC Northpakr
Horrible Bosses 2 7:30 p.m. TBA
The Theory of Everything 7:30 p.m. AMC Northpark


Wednesday Nov. 12th

Dumb and Dumber To 7:30 p.m. Cinemark 17
Dumb and Dumber To 7:30 p.m. TBA
Beyond The Light 7:30 p.m. AMC Northpark

Thursday Nov. 13th


Friday Nov. 14th


Saturday Nov. 15th




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Thursday, November 6, 2014

The Great Invisible




One thing that I always have to question when going into a documentary is will this make me uncomfortable. If it does, well then I am impressed by the presentation. “The Great Invisible” started in a very mellow matter and then started to just shock with a story of a father’s death on the Deep Water Horizon oil rig. The explosions that start to come into the screen are just blatantly horrific. The issue being investigated by the documentary revolves around the after effects of the now famous 2010 BP oil spill. The stories of each person interviewed in this film deal with how the spill affected their businesses and lives. Some of these people were actually on the oil rig when the explosion happened and the things they say just make somebody almost weep. There are stories of crawling to a life boat out of a room on fire coming from these dedicated workers who were involved in a life and death situation. One of the leaders of the crew says in the film that he went from a six figure salary to less than $1000 a month after the accident.

What really made me furious was that multiple specific inadequacies with the rig were quoted as to have been notified to BP before the accident. This film made by Margaret Brown, who definitely looks like an advocate, shunned big companies such as BP for their greed and lack of compassion. The oil spill was such a huge issue and still is today. It was committed by a company with such power and resulted in the deaths of several workers. Businesses in the Gulf suffered to the point of people going to food pantries. I think Ms. Brown covers so many emotions from anger to extreme sadness from people. She very well showed the shock that was still in the workers of the Deep Water Horizon.

The documentary revealed a man’s side of kindness to the people of the Bayou in the way that he tries to spread the word out to people about resources. Ms. Brown shot workers who were down in work hours and were wondering how they were going to survive. She made me personally connect with the uncertainty of what was going to happen to the mass of people involved. I felt that seeing the movie was a hugely significant investment of my time. The gallons upon gallons of oil shown gaping out of an underwater pipe means a whole lot more to me now than it did 4 years ago.
(Review by Wyatt Head)



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Big Hero 6




Considering that Marvel Comics's parent company was acquired by The Walt Disney Company it's a small leap to expect some of their superhero's would be made into an animated adventure. Based on the comic of the same name, directors Don Hall, and Chris Williams worked from a script by Robert L. Baird, Dan Gerson and Jordon Roberts. The new features differs from the Disney-verse of homogenized worlds by offering Asian characters that are actually voiced by Asian/American actors.

Set in the San Francisco, but now called San Fransokyo with the Asian themed architecture on the red towers of the SF Bridge, 13 year old Hiro (voiced by Ryan Potter) dreams of being a “bot fighter”. People illegally bet on small robots fighting each other for money and prestige in dark allies of the city. Hiro wins but has to escape the retribution of the loser with the help of his older brother Tadashi (Daniel Henny). Tadashi would like Hiro to use his big brain and apply to his highly rated technical university. He takes his brother to meet his friends in his department who are working on some amazing new inventions. He even impresses Hiro with his own creation, Baymax (Scott Adsit), a doughboy/Micheline Tire Man shaped “care bot”. The robot with the inflatable body comes to life when someone needs medical care. He's programed to assist and when a person says they are satisfied with their care he goes back to his traveling case and deflate for storage. Hiro is impressed with his brothers friends and their work and enters a showcase to win a placement at the school. He's created some microbots that can be manipulated by brain waves. He impresses Professor Robert Callaghan (James Cromwell) and multi-millionaire Alistair Krei (Alan Tudyk) who wants to buy Hiro's new tech much to Callaghan's displeasure. Aunt Cass (Maya Rudolph) who has raised the boys for the past ten years is thrilled that Hiro is going to college when he wins the showcase.

At the end of the event, the building mysteriously catches fire and Tadashi runs into the burning building to save the professor when the building explodes. The pain of losing his brother, Baymax is activated to help Hiro who diagnoses him with “puberty”. He callas in Tadashi's classmates to support Hiro. Gogo (Jamie Chung), Fred (T.J. Miller), Wasabi (Damon Wayans Jr.), and Honey Lemon (Genesis Rodriguez) join forces with Hiro when he and Baymax discover a warehouse full of his previously thought destroyed microbots being manufactured and controlled by a Kabuki masked villain. Believing it was Krei who was upset that Hiro didn't want to give him the tech, they make a plan to unmask the bad guy. The six wanna be crime fighters including Baymax who has been programed (like in the Matrix) to fight in armor created by a 3D printer go after the Kabuki who seems to want to destroy Krie's building. The action moves quickly, there is even a portal to another dimension.

The movie is sure to enchant the young ones with it's cuddly major character of Baymax. He's calm, reassuring, and eager to help. When his battery runs down, Baymax acts like it's drunk and calls Cass's fat cat a furry baby. There are some lessons to be learned, of living up to potentials, the healing of friendship, the sacrifice of doing the right thing and being a nerd is something to aspire. The Manga type of artwork makes it easy on the eyes. The heroics opens up a franchise for future adventures, and that's a not a bad thing either.

The movie is also preceded by a wonderful little short animation called “Feast” that is worth the price of admission all on it's own.
(Review by reesa)




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Laggies



Lynn Shelton the indie director/writer of such gems as Your Sister's Sister and Humpday is traversing into a more commercial enterprise working from a script by Andrea Seigel. The cast of Keira Knightley, Sam Rockwell and Chloë Grace Moretz are more than competent and amusing. Unfortunately it lacks the quirky everyday unknown as Shelton's previous films and borders on a unbelievable scenario that while entertaining to watch, keeps one from embracing the final product.

Knightley rocking an American accent plays Megan, a woman that is unfocused, drifting and can't seem to figure out what's she's doing in life. She's been living with her boyfriend Anthony (Mark Weber) from high school and working as a “sign girl” for her dad's (Jeff Garlin) tax business. In her circle of friends from school she remains unmarried, childless, and no career. Despite as her mother reminds her that she has an advanced degree. One of her friends, Allison (Ellie Kemper) an uptight Bridzilla is frustrated with her friend's inability to take things seriously. During the wedding, her long time boyfriend decides to propose to her on the dance floor, and Megan is saved from answering when Allison sends her on an errand. On the way out, she sees her beloved father making out with someone not his wife. Freaked and confused she ends up at the liquor store where teenage Annika (Moretz) asks her to buy her some beer. Megan, Annika and her friends end up drinking and hanging out. Anthony, not wanting to pressure her on the proposal is happy to hear that Megan agrees to marry and has decided to take a week at a self improvement seminar so she can finally get a job and her life together. Instead she calls Annika and asks if she can crash there for a week. Annika's father, Craig (Sam Rockwell), discovers the visitor and the expected breaks out.

The situation makes for some chuckle out loud moments, but it's hard to imagine a grown woman with a series case of arrested development to want escape to a world of teenage angst to work out her own problems. The teens see her as “cool” which probably makes living in their world inviting. Craig seems to enable Megan by allowing her to stay, and even feel attracted to her. Eventually Megan will have to face her boyfriend, her father, her besties, and figure out just what the heck she is doing. Knightley with her wide engaging smile is funny and endearing, but that greasy hair and shabby clothes is a bit distracting. Interesting, but wish that Shelton wrote it instead.
(Review by reesa)


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Sunday, November 2, 2014

Movies Scheduled 11/2-11/8

Wow the year has really gone by. Can hardly believe it is November. I hope everyone set their clocks back a hour.

Make sure when you send stuff out to the group you add Want/Need or Trade in the headline. Then if you are responding don't hit reply since that just replies to the whole group. Down at the bottom of the email will have the senders email and just copy it and put it in the to line.

As always you can email me if you have questions at damitdaina@hotmail.com

Sunday Nov. 2nd


Monday Nov. 3rd


Tuesday Nov. 4th

Big Hero 6 7:00 p.m. AMC Northpark


Wednesday Nov. 5th

Virtuosity 7:30 p.m. Bass Performance Hall
Dumb and Dumber To 7:30 p.m. Hollywood Theaters MacArthur Irving
Beyond The Lights 7:30 p.m. SMG Royal


Thursday Nov. 6th

Theory of Everything 7:30 p.m. Cinemark West


Friday Nov. 7th


Saturday Nov. 8th

Ferris Bueller's Day Off Sundown Alamo Drafthouse Lamar








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