Isaac's Film Reviews

Neither here nor there Film review by Isaac Handelman The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies tries simultaneously to be the culmination of The Hobbit trilogy, the missing link to the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and the “defining chapter” of Peter Jackson’s epic “Middle-earth saga." The result is a film that struggles to live up to its lofty ambitions. That’s more than can be said for perpetually ignored protagonist Bilbo Baggins, who has few ambitions at all during this final chapter. This time around, the titular hobbit does very little over the course of the film’s two-and-a-half-hour duration. Martin Freeman again does quite well with the material he’s given, showcasing his stellar deadpan comic delivery and ensuring that Bilbo is, far and away, the most relatable of The Hobbit ’s huge ensemble of characters. But as far as the events of the main narrative go, Bilbo is much more an observer than an active participant. The film’s scope is more confined than has

A delectable witch's brew Film review by Isaac Handelman Disney’s Into the Woods is just the sort of eclectic, devilishly clever film that’s tailor-made for a Christmas Day release. This adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’s beloved Broadway hit draws inspiration from a multitude of classic fairy-tale sources to craft a spectacularly entertaining final product greater than the sum of its disparate parts. Weaving together the tales of Cinderella (Anna Kendrick), Little Red Riding Hood (Lila Crawford), Jack (Daniel Huttlestone) and the Beanstalk and more, Woods finds a focal point in the form of the unnamed Baker (James Corden) and his wife (Emily Blunt). The childless couple is approached by a delightfully deranged witch (Meryl Streep), who promises them fertility in exchange for the ingredients necessary to restore her youth. And so, the couple sets off into the woods to mount their search; luckily, several fairytale characters have also ventured forth, each bearing an ingr

Above it all? Film review by Isaac Handelman Do you think that Hollywood has been diluted by a constant stream of mindless, action-heavy blockbuster releases? Then you’ll probably be a big fan of Alejandro Inarritu’s Birdman , because it thinks so, too, and it makes no attempt to mask its bias. Birdman may not succeed entirely in delivering this argument with subtle grace, but it still serves as a wickedly funny, emotionally profound character study that’ll keep you thinking long after you leave the theater. Michael Keaton stars as Riggan Thompson, a once-famous actor renowned -- and now rejected -- for his starring role in the fictional “Birdman” superhero film series. Obsessed with rekindling the respect he once garnered, Riggan has written a more mature play for production on Broadway. Birdman calls Riggan's reality into question. What Riggan will undoubtedly succeed at is earning an Oscar nomination for Keaton, who portrays the gradual fraying of Thomson’s p