Andrew Schwartz/Screen Gems
MOVIE REVIEW
Deliver Us From Evil (2014)
“Inspired by the actual accounts of an N.Y.P.D. sergeant,” “Deliver Us From Evil” draws from the book “Beware the Night” by Ralph Sarchie, here played by Eric Bana. Three Iraq war veterans — driven by horrific impulses apparently unrelated to post-traumatic stress disorder — perpetrate some bizarre crimes in the Bronx.
MOVIE REVIEW
Funny People (2009)
Tracy Bennett/Universal Studios
“Funny People” is an apt title for Judd Apatow’s latest, which clearly stands as his most personal movie yet. From its opening images — of home-video recordings of a young Adam Sandler sent into hysterics while making prank phone calls — to its last, the film unfolds in a world indelibly familiar to the filmmaker and his ensemble of frequent collaborators. Centering the action on the Hollywood stand-up comedy circuit, the picture adopts a multitude of perspectives to explore the joys and heartbreaks of trying to be funny for a living and the collateral damage caused by the accruement of too much fame too quickly.
MOVIE REVIEW
Star Trek (2009)
Industrial Light & Magic/Paramount Pictures
Few cinematic ventures could be more fraught with peril than a revamping of the “Star Trek” franchise. No single pop phenomenon of the last half of the 20th century has amassed a more expansive, devoted following, and most ardent Trekkies tend to react to any changes to the canon as one might respond to the murder of a family member. Couple that with the fact that the most recent movies and TV spinoffs suffered a precipitous drop in quality and director J. J. Abrams can truly be said to have had his work cut out for him.
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MOVIE REVIEW
Love the Beast (2009)
Michael Klein/Tribeca Film Festival
Many people chase stardom, but the vast majority don’t make it far beyond auditioning by day and waiting tables by night. Ironically, the relative few who do make it often have other unrealized aspirations. Some actors prefer playing in a rock band, while others would rather be making shoes. Eric Bana wishes he could be a racecar driver. He dedicates his directorial debut, the documentary “Love the Beast,” to his lifelong obsession with a 1974 Ford XB Falcon Coupe. It’s his first car, one that he and his mates have spent endless hours fixing up while hanging out in his parents’ garage. But it’s also because of his unexpected brush with fame, that Mr. Bana has managed to perfect his ride and enter the Targa Tasmania, an imposing five-day rally and race in Australia.