Paramount Archives - From | The | Balcony

Downsizing (2017)

Bill Clark — Thu, 21 Dec 2017 22:42:23 +0000

Movies as crushingly misguided and poorly-executed as Downsizing make me want to paraphrase Roger Ebert’s legendary review of 1994’s North. “I hated this movie. Hated hated hated hated hated this movie. Hated it.” “I have no idea why [Alexander Payne], or anyone else, wanted to make this story into a… Continue reading

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13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (2016)

Bill Clark — Thu, 14 Jan 2016 21:16:49 +0000

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi embodies about what you’d expect out of a marriage between the political firestorm that is Benghazi and Michael Bay, the action director everyone seems to love to hate, despite the fact his films make hundreds of millions of dollars. What will surprise most… Continue reading

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Anomalisa (2015)

Bill Clark — Wed, 30 Dec 2015 13:49:47 +0000

No one adapts the minutiae of human interaction better than writer/director Charlie Kaufman. The mundane and feelings of alienation have been constant themes in all of his films, and they once again take center stage in his latest, Anomalisa. Shot completely using stop-motion animation, set in about three locations, and spending… Continue reading

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The Big Short (2015)

Bill Clark — Mon, 21 Dec 2015 14:42:51 +0000

As evidenced by recent releases such as Margin Call, The Wolf of Wall Street, and even this year’s 99 Homes, movies about the financial market can be risky, complicated beasts. There’s always a scene that boils down to metaphors or “explain this to me like I’m a child.” The Big… Continue reading

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Selma (2014)

Bill Clark — Fri, 09 Jan 2015 13:52:19 +0000

Selma is one of the great emotional experiences of recent years; a fiercely powerful look at one of the Civil Rights Movement’s most triumphant victories. Perhaps even more interestingly, it peels back the layers of an icon and portrays Martin Luther King Jr. in a very human and, at times, fragile… Continue reading

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Interstellar (2014)

Bill Clark — Wed, 05 Nov 2014 14:00:52 +0000

Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar is a movie about love. It may travel through black holes, light years, and galaxies, but the basic fact that we, as humans, yearn to take care of and love the ones closest to us is the overarching theme. The film is Nolan’s most ambitious yet and is destined to… Continue reading

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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014)

Bill Clark — Thu, 07 Aug 2014 19:59:26 +0000

Bringing the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to the big screen has been one of the more interesting cinematic case studies of the past twenty-plus years. Whether live action, animation, or, in this case, motion-capture combined with live action, it’s pretty much impossible for the turtles not to be some combination of… Continue reading

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Days of Thunder (1990) – “Victory Lane” By Hans Zimmer

Bill Clark — Wed, 21 May 2014 14:24:28 +0000

Released in June of 1990 to the tune of $82 million at the box office, Days of Thunder is another high-octane action film from the unstoppable Simpson/Bruckheimer production team that dominated the 80’s and 90’s. Roger Ebert would call it the quintessential example of the “Tom Cruise Picture,” and he’s… Continue reading

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Breakdown (1997) – “Main Titles” By Basil Poledouris

Bill Clark — Wed, 07 May 2014 18:33:00 +0000

Released in May of 1997, Breakdown is an old-school suspense/thriller from director Jonathan Mostow and starring Kurt Russell. It won its opening weekend and finished its theatrical run with a respectable $50 million haul, but it has since vanished into the realm of the underrated and under-appreciated – not to… Continue reading

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Face Off (1997) – “Ready For The Big Ride, Bubba” By John Powell

Bill Clark — Thu, 17 Apr 2014 17:21:34 +0000

If you’re in the hunt for beautiful, touching, and emotional movie music, 1997’s Face Off original score would seem an unlikely starting point. Known primarily for director John Woo’s signature ballets of violence and an over-acting clinic by stars John Travolta and Nicolas Cage, Face Off did moderately well at the box… Continue reading

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