All posts by Robert Yaniz Jr.

Reviews

Review: ‘Wild’

To a certain generation, Reese Witherspoon may still be best known for her fresh-faced performances in such varied films as Election, Cruel Intentions and Legally Blonde. Her onscreen charisma and ability to imbue wide-eyed innocents with both charm and surprising insight initially led Witherspoon to a career largely as a comedic actress, but in the last decade, she’s made a decisive move towards a more diverse filmography, leading to her Oscar win for Walk the Line in 2006. Wild is not only a continuation of that trajectory but, in fact, may be the actress’s crowning achievement. Continue reading Review: ‘Wild’ →

Features

Why ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ Was the Best Marvel Film of 2014 (Sorry, ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’)

Last year, Crooked Table made the somewhat controversial decision to declare Pacific Rim the summer movie event of 2013. That Guillermo del Toro film, of course, secured enough of a response from fans to warrant development on a sequel, but it was far from the universal slam-dunk that Legendary Pictures was likely hoping for. However, this year has been perhaps best defined by one studio and one studio only: Marvel.

The 2014 release of Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Guardians of the Galaxy has proven to be the biggest one-two punch for Marvel Studios thus far. Both films have earned more than $700 million worldwide and stellar reviews of over 90 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. Guardians has particularly been the big story this year (and we’ve hashed out our thoughts on the film), considering its impressive feat of transforming a relatively obscure title into this generation’s Star Wars, but is The Winter Soldier actually the better film?
Continue reading Why ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ Was the Best Marvel Film of 2014 (Sorry, ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’) →