TRAVIS BYRAM'S MOVIE REVIEWS

Being out of school doesn't always mean you're free of homework. When it was announced that the fourth installment of the Jurassic Park franchise was coming out, I knew everybody would be talking about it. And when I realized that America's (current) favorite movie star Chris Pratt would be in the lead, I knew I'd have to see it. I had previously watched the original Spielberg, Oscar-winning classic at the age of 14, unfortunately a little too old to be completely captivated by it, like if I'd have watched it when I was an impressionable 8 or 9. I was still impressed with the astonishing special effects, something the 90s wasn't always known for. But I am no fool, and for five years had heard how the sequels left...well, a little to be desired. In short: The Lost World is overlong with too much Goldblum (I know, but it's possible), story and Julianne Moore talking a mile a minute. JPIII was a very enjoyable, short ride, but its characters were silly and it d...

As a part of my First Year Seminar, I had to watch Steven Spielberg's masterpiece Schindler's List and write an essay of it. I watched and reviewed The Reader as well this year, but looking into the film as the paper required me to, I found it fairly innaccurate of its depiction of the aftermath of the Holocaust. But this is an important film, an essential film every college-age person should see to inform them of the Holocaust. Aside from this, the acting, script, score, direction and cinematography aren't bad either. Without further ado, here's my paper/review of the film: (kind of spoiler alert, but everyone casually familiar with the movie already knows how it ends) "As a movie buff, it is unavoidable in the discussion of great cinema to not talk about Schindler’s List, Steven Spielberg’s film regarding the heroic actions of Oskar Schindler during the Holocaust. Ranked among the finest motion pictures of all time, the movie not only daunted me by its time dur...

Before this review begins, I have to preface it with an embarrassing confession:  Steven Spielberg's last epic, "War Horse," which came out in Christmas time and was nominated for the Best Picture Academy Award...drove me to sleep.  Well...kind of.  It might have been the result of the cool theater, or a long day's exhaustion, but I could be caught struggling to keep consciousness as the main character and the titular war horse were shown literally just plowing a field.  I won the battle of sleep and resumed watching the movie, to be pleasantly surprised by the ending and gradual appreciation of "War Horse."  I've yet to re-watch it, but I might after viewing this historical masterpiece by one of cinema's greatest actors and cinema's greatest directors about the nation's greatest president. Daniel Day-Lewis in the film...I think But praising a film with Spielberg and Daniel Day-Lewis is a given, these are masters at their craft after al...