TRAVIS BYRAM'S MOVIE REVIEWS

Tom Cruise knows how to keep them guessing. Last year he starred in Oblivion , the fairly entertaining sci-fi action flick starring Cruise as someone who's not exactly positive about the situation he's in, and has a kick-butt female counterpart partner. And in here he's....well you know where the joke's going. As reviews have noted, perhaps why this film has garnered the acclaim not because the premise is 100% original, but it works on its premise, has plenty of great special effects, and to be blunt (ba dum tss) the female action hero kicks the pants off of Oblivion 's. Emily Blunt, who has really emerged as the Sigourney Weaver of the present. Turns in films like Looper  have cemented her as the biggest female action star out now, and the critics are unanimous in her elevating the movie to something more than just typical summer science fiction fare. The premise is basically this, and I'm giving a condensed version because it's better not to know the p...

In the movie buzz universe, nothing has been making a bigger splash than superhero news. Constant updates on the Batman vs. Superman vs. Wonder Woman vs. Lex Luthor vs. the World  project are going up, a Justice League movie in development, Ant Man ! Never before has the genre been more powerful or successful, especially with Age of Ultron  heading to theaters next summer. It's a good thing Marvel's most beloved superhero will be in it...oh wait a second... While Spider-Man may still be awaiting on a friend request he sent to the Avengers (I think it's actually just because of stupid studio politics he can't crossover) he gets his sequel to the reboot of a trilogy that had two really great films and one bloated villain sandwich of a third. As a kid, it was always Dr. Octopus, the Joker and the Rhino for my favorite bad guys, and seeing the latter two portrayed so well onscreen gave me hope for both the Rhino and Electro in this film, and to a lesser extent Harry Osb...

Meryl Streep in  Into the Woods Once again it's another round of ridiculously early predictions, this time for the year 2014! Last year I only got two right, The Wolf of Wall Street and Captain Phillips , both ending up on my top favorite movies of the year in 2013! I hope the same will be said about these next ten predictions, which have been getting early buzz. I almost included Wes Anderson's The Grand Budapest Hotel , which has gotten probably the best reviews of any release this year, non-animated. And, since it's way too far a shot to include The Lego Movie as an Up -like Oscar story surprise, here are the films I think that might snag a nod for this year's Oscars! (Take into account I did choose both The Counselor and The Monuments Men  last year, both were critically reviled!) Interstellar (even though The Dark Knight Rises was shut out completely, Nolan's work is regularly recognized by the Academy, and with Matthew McConaughey in the starring role, ...

I've been out of commission for a while now! I saw Frozen and The Winter Soldier , and liked both movies very much so, but along with a busy schedule to keep up with I didn't see the need to review them because I didn't feel like I could say much about those mega hits that people didn't already know/had read in previous reviews. So I figure since over Spring Break I saw a little movie not too many people are talking about yet, I'd review that: Jason Bateman's directorial debut Bad Words . From the trailer alone I knew this was not another Danny DoGood role for Mr. Bateman: no traces of Michael Bluth to be found here. I bought the concept, I bought the ticket and....uggggh. Bateman plays Guy Trilby, a very generic name for this somewhat generic, incredibly mean-spirited movie that I'm surprised appealed to Bateman to begin with. I get shedding your good guy persona, maybe take a more dramatic role...but to still be in a comedy but just as the world's bi...

It's been a busy past few weeks, but I've had time to check out one of my biggest misses from 2013's Oscar season, starring an Oscar in it, and that's the Coen brother's Inside Llewyn Davis . There was critical vocalization against this being snubbed in this month's ceremonies, only getting nods for its cinematography and sound mixing, losing both to that little outer space movie. Well, going inside Inside Llewyn Davis , I can see both sides of this heavily polarized film. First off, it's for sure a Coen brother's movie. It's quirky, has their signature wit, inspired music and John Goodman. All of those things are its strengths. The cinematography is initially infuriating: why have it so dimly lit you sometimes literally can't see what's going on at nighttime on the screen? But then it hit me: it was an intentional choice. The life of Mr. Davis can certainly not be interpreted as a positive one, to himself or to the nearly parasitic relatio...

With the snow that's currently pummeling Virginia, it's a relief to say I was able to sleep in and miss a day of school, giving me an additional day to reflect on last night's Oscars! First and foremost: my predictions were correct! Happy to say that all my major predictions were correct, but on the technical side, I underestimated the power of Gravity ! I'm not sure if I've written this anecdote before on this blog, but when I saw the very first sneak preview trailer of it in theaters, I rolled my eyes at Bullock's constant panting and was sure it'd be ridiculous. Pass the salt because I'm eating my words...$700 million and seven Oscars later,  Gravity has turned into a true phenomenon, and had 12 Years a Slave  been released this year it surely would've taken home it's eighth prize for Picture. Jared Leto and Matthew McConaughey, both sporting an unorthodox white, took the trophies for Dallas Buyers Club , deserved entirely, which also picked...

With the Oscars being tomorrow, there's no better time than to choose and decide which films will take home the gold, and which were unjustly snubbed! I choose the films that SHOULD win a miniature statue, and the ones that WILL, for better or worst, take the trophy. BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: (Blue Jasmine, Nebraska, Dallas Buyers Club, Her, American Hustle)   Should Win: Nebraska. Her has the flashiest concept, and very well written, quirky dialogue coming out of a mousy Amy Adams and a mustachioed Joaquin Phoenix. But everything in Payne's Nebraska felt real to me, and his filmography deserves a third writing Oscar for Bob Nelson's genuinely rural sounding work. Will Win: Her. Spike Jonze is up for three awards; producing this film, writing "The Moon Song" and penning this script. This'll be the one he gets the Academy Award for. BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: (12 Years a Slave, Philomena, The Wolf of Wall Street, Before Midnight, Captain Phillips) Should/W...