TRAVIS BYRAM'S MOVIE REVIEWS

Some films are simply critic proof. That is, no matter the reviews, some films audiences will just see because of the blockbuster urge, the completist sense of "Oh, I've seen these three movies in the franchise, gotta catch this sure to be classic fourth installment," or simply just a loyalty to the franchise (how else would you explain Die Hard 5 making a single cent?) can get these monster movies with uh, poor reviews to say the least, some solid cash. This seems to be the formula for the Transformers films, frequently cheap horror flicks, and, until Fantastic Four erupted into headlines as one of this year's biggest flops, the superhero genre.  That exception aside, some films just seem destined for big bucks, bad reviews or not. Franchises and event movies have eclipsed the modern movie star: except for Tom Cruise. Headlines of controversial behavior have damaged careers of Mel Gibson, Lindsay Lohan, etc. With Cruise's, um, unique religious beliefs and err...

Though this isn't as impressive because most handlers of a Tumblr account have likely achieved this as well, I'm very proud to say I've read nearly all of author John Green's work; I'm missing a short story he did for the compilation book "Let it Snow: Three Holiday Romances." Green's work, like I'm positive his countless YouTube projects, are compulsively enjoyable. He combines awkward teenage realism, highlighting hilarious situations that might be mundane otherwise, but in his hands come out swimmingly, with ultra cool characters the teenagers and other who read his work aspire to be. Maybe it's Hazel Grace Lancaster, brought to beautiful life by Shailene Woodley in last year's ultimate date movie The Fault in Our Stars . (I always sing the title to the tune of Coldplay's "A Sky Full of Stars" for some reason, and now that you've read this maybe you will, too.) Maybe it's the titular Alaska in "Looking for Alas...

I hate to say it but the last time Pixar really delivered the magic to me as they usually do was half a decade ago! With two other friends, fresh out of middle school, I remember being relatively close to the front of the theater for Toy Story 3 . When you're a millennial growing up in daycares, you've knowingly or unknowingly watched the Toy Story franchise alone at least 15 times a year. Maybe I couldn't rattle off the script verbatim like some can, but if you sit me down and ask me to explain the entire plot of the original to you, I think I could. That's how deeply ingrained Pixar and its cavalcade of wonderful films is in my blood, and although their last offering, the prequel Monsters University was cute, it nowhere near held a candle to the charm of the original, and even though this will date me I saw it in theaters when I was five. We all know Cars 2 was clunky, and you either loved, hated or just weren't affected by Brave despite the typically lovely ani...

Movies rarely hit as close to home as Me and Earl and the Dying Girl did for me. This summer alone I'll have written/directed/acted in a movie for the tiny "production company" my friends and I have been building and working on for years. Though we don't put in the almost Pixar-worthy effort characters Greg and Earl seem to, employing stop-motion animation and Star Wars -esque miniatures to get the job done, I certainly relate to the passion they put into their parodies, such as 2:48 Cowboy instead of Midnight Cowboy . Book to film adaptations always get nerds nervous, unless you're Shrek, Lord of the Rings or To Kill a Mockingbird , but that's a short list. It's great when young adult authors can make the jump from page to silver screen themselves, as Stephen Chbosky did, directing/adapting his Perks of Being a Wallflower to huge success three years ago. Jesse Andrews was able to adapt his novel, and it's been reported he and director Alfonso Gomez-...

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...

What a lovely day to be a film buff. In fact, what a lovely year to be a sci-fi nerd of any kind. When there's big fare like George Miller's return to the "Mad Max" franchise in three decades with Fury Road , blockbusters like Age of Ultron and indie side dishes like Ex Machina , a nerd's palate is sure to be quenched. Of course, these are just appetizers until the mother of all science fiction franchises releases its long awaited film near Christmas, Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip . Until that sure to be Oscar winner is released, Fury Road will be a fine placeholder, and a perfect shot of adrenaline for movie buffs familiar with Max or not. I binge-watched the two sequels leading up to this movie, The Road Warrior and  Beyond Thunderdome . Both were enormous servings of adrenaline and creativity, especially the latter, which might've been my favorite until I walked into the theater, anxiously awaiting the start of this film, as EIGHT TRAILERS pass...

If you've stepped outside in the past month, or have consumed a beverage, gone on the internet or have generally been alive in the year of our lord Joss Whedon, then you will know another little robot movie has been getting quite the buzz. While that review is coming out in the next week or so, I'd like to serve up to you a little side dish of cerebral intelligence, a smaller movie that's gotten rave reviews and an expanded release date: Alex Garland's directorial debut Ex Machina. Other movie critics have been very discreet in revealing the plot summary, but...I don't think so. This movie doesn't have a Fight Club type twist, but maybe if you don't think too hard about what the "twist" could be it'll come as a surprise to you. So I'll go ahead and give you the skinny: Domhnall Gleeson's Caleb is an intelligent programmer who works for Oscar Isaac's Blue Book, a Google-esque search engine, wins a lottery and is selected to come vi...