Movies for March 2015: Nightcrawler and Kingsman: The Secret Service

We will meet at 7:30, March 4 at Dean's home and review these films:

Nightcrawler (2014)

When Lou Bloom, a driven man desperate for work, muscles into the world of L.A. crime journalism, he blurs the line between observer and participant to become the star of his own story. Aiding him in his effort is Nina, a TV-news veteran.

Director: Dan Gilroy
Writer: Dan Gilroy
Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rene Russo, Bill Paxton

Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)

A spy organization recruits an unrefined, but promising street kid into the agency's ultra-competitive training program just as a global threat emerges from a twisted tech genius.

Director: Matthew Vaughn
Writers: Jane Goldman (screenplay), Matthew Vaughn(screenplay), 2 more credits »
Stars: Colin Firth, Taron Egerton, Samuel L. Jackson

Reserve the Date! 2015 Academy Awards Ceremony

Sunday February 22, 4pm

See event details, including new voting format, on our Special Events page.

Movies for February 2015: The Imitation Game, American Sniper

NOTE CHANGE OF PLAN
We will meet at Joe's house on February 4. We will review the following films:

The Imitation Game (2014)

During World War II, mathematician Alan Turing tries to crack the enigma code with help from fellow mathematicians.

Director: Morten Tyldum
Writers: Andrew Hodges (book), Graham Moore (screenplay)
Stars: Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode

American Sniper (2014)

Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle's pinpoint accuracy saves countless lives on the battlefield and turns him into a legend. Back home to his wife and kids after four tours of duty, however, Chris finds that it is the war he can't leave behind.

Director: Clint Eastwood
Writers: Jason Hall, Chris Kyle (book), 2 more credits »
Stars: Bradley Cooper, Sienna Miller, Kyle Gallner

Movies for January 2015: Unbroken, Wild

We will meet at Bill G's house on January 7 to review the following films:

Unbroken (2014) 

A chronicle of the life of Louis Zamperini, an Olympic runner who was taken prisoner by Japanese forces during World War II.

Director: Angelina Jolie
Writers: Joel Coen (screenplay), Ethan Coen (screenplay)
Stars: Jack O'Connell, Domhnall Gleeson, Jai Courtney

Wild (2014)

A chronicle of one woman's 1,100-mile solo hike undertaken as a way to recover from a recent catastrophe.

Director: Jean-Marc Vallée
Writers: Nick Hornby, Cheryl Strayed (memoir: "Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail")
Stars: Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern, Gaby Hoffmann

Movies for December 2014: Birdman, Interstellar

Ted will host the meeting at his place on December 3; his address is 592 Andover Place (map here).

The movies we'll review are both in theaters now--no DVDs/Netflix available--and are described below:

Birdman (2014)

A washed-up actor who once played an iconic superhero must overcome his ego and family trouble as he mounts a Broadway play in a bid to reclaim his past glory.

Director: Alejandro González Iñárritu
Writers: Alejandro González Iñárritu (screenplay), Nicolás Giacobone (screenplay), 2 more credits »
Stars: Michael Keaton, Zach Galifianakis, Edward Norton

Interstellar (2014)

A team of explorers travel through a wormhole in an attempt to find a potentially habitable planet that will sustain humanity.

Director: Christopher Nolan
Writers: Jonathan Nolan, Christopher Nolan
Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain

Movies for November 2014 meeting: Moolaadé, Bamako

Steve C. is hosting on November 4. The movies to see are:

Moolaadé (2004)

When a woman shelters a group of girls from suffering female genital mutilation, she starts a conflict that tears her village apart.

Director: Ousmane Sembene
Writer: Ousmane Sembene
Stars: Fatoumata Coulibaly, Maimouna Hélène Diarra, Salimata Traoré

Netflix: here (DVD only)

Bamako (2006)

Melé is a bar singer, her husband Chaka is out of work and the couple is on the verge of breaking up. In the courtyard of the house they share with other families, a trial court has been set up. African civil society spokesmen have taken proceedings against the World Bank and the IMF whom they blame for Africa's woes. Amidst the pleas and the testimonies, life goes on in the courtyard.

Director: Abderrahmane Sissako
Writer: Abderrahmane Sissako
Stars: Aïssa Maïga, Tiécoura Traoré, Maimouna Hélène Diarra

Netflix: here (DVD and streaming)

Movies for October 2014: Good Will Hunting, Dead Poets Society

Good Will Hunting (1997)
Will Hunting, a janitor at M.I.T., has a gift for mathematics, but needs help from a psychologist to find direction in his life.

Director: Gus Van Sant
Writers: Matt Damon, Ben Affleck
Stars: Robin Williams, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck

Dead Poets Society (1989)  

English teacher John Keating inspires his students to a love of poetry and to seize the day.

Director: Peter Weir
Writer: Tom Schulman
Stars: Robin Williams, Robert Sean Leonard, Ethan Hawke