Bradley Cooper

Director John Wells’ redemptive tale about a burned-out chef isn’t particularly noteworthy, but the pacing and performances keep things humming along nicely

After American Sniper was the biggest box office draw of 2014, it seems anyone will pay to see Bradley Cooper in uniform again. Deadline reports Cooper is set to produce Ghost Army, a World War II story about an agency tasked with feeding the Nazis fake intelligence about the actual number of American troops, with the …

  Fresh off its Supergirl pickup on Wednesday and ahead of its upfronts presentation next week, CBS announced orders for six new series, some of which have familiar titles. On the drama front, CBS greenlit TV adaptations of the films Limitless and Rush Hour and picked up the Criminal Minds spinoff Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders. …

Based on a bestselling novel by Ron Rash, Serena, as brought to the screen by director Susanne Bier and screenwriter Christopher Kyle, feels like a husk of an adaptation even to one completely unfamiliar with the source material. It’s the sort of film that, at least in the form prepped for theatrical release, makes one inclined to believe its makers have completely lost the ability to tell a story. And it’s not like that ever seems like a deliberate stylistic choice, with Bier actually focusing on some thematic flourish off on the sidelines. Serena is always focused on its plot. Its perpetually rushed, choppily told, borderline confusing plot.

Could the Queen B be teaming up with the current king of the box office? Deadline reported Tuesday that Bradley Cooper is in talks to make his directorial debut with a remake of the classic showbiz drama and romance A Star is Born, and that Beyonce will be approached to star alongside Cooper in the film. …

One week removed from the Oscar nominations, we’re still recovering from #OscarsSoWhite-gate, and the consensus seems to be that if only the Legos were white instead of yellow they would’ve been nominated after all. But really the conversation has started to move toward Hollywood rather than the Oscars, and how as a whole institution we …

After unsuccessful forays into musicals and political biopics with Jersey Boys and J. Edgar, Clint Eastwood returns to more traditionally masculine material usually associated with his filmmaker persona. With American Sniper, he tackles the drama and real-life accounts of Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle, but as compelling as the on-the-ground combat is, the real story worth telling is largely ignored for the pyrotechnics.

In the same day that the first images for the film are released, the initial trailer for Clint Eastwood’s American Sniper has been released, showcasing Bradley Cooper as Chris Kyle, the most lethal sniper in US Military history. Kyle recorded 160 kills during his campaign before writing his best selling memoir of the same name. …

Of course, Guardians isn’t perfect, as it struggles to find a consistent tone. Sometimes it wants to be more adult, with bawdier language and sexual innuendo. For instance, Quill’s rumination that “If I had a black light, this place would look like a Jackson Pollock painting!” is pretty sophisticated for mainstream PG-13 fare. Other times, it feels as though the filmmakers are pandering to a much younger audience. You can almost visualize a ‘Dancing Groot’ doll gyrating in your kid’s Happy Meal.

For every good sequence, there’s one that’s muddled with bad camerawork and editing. Like a lot of blockbuster action, it’s barely legible; you have to work to keep up with it, and that work interferes with the enjoyment. The story also sags in the middle, as it seems to exist mainly to fill out the run-time. The protagonists take the MacGuffin to a dude they wish to sell it to, but the only real function of the section is to exposit what it is. It turns a big chunk of the plot into a shrug.

American Hustle Written by Eric Warren Singer and David O. Russell Directed by David O. Russell USA, 2013 Watching American Hustle puts one in mind of the old anecdote relayed by the late Roger Ebert. He wrote of a child prodigy, invited to play an impossibly difficult piece of music on piano for one of …

The Place Beyond the Pines, so called for the English translation of the Mohawk word “Schenectady,” is close to a carousel in structure, one that would not be out of place at that traveling carnival where we first meet Luke in an extended tracking shot. Round and round it goes, taking the audience on an exacting, circular up-and-down ride. Cianfrance, along with co-writers Ben Coccio and Darius Marder, lets the film linger in moments, allowing it a hypnotic, novelistic pacing.

[quote by=”Synopsis”] A mysterious and mythical motorcycle racer, Luke (Ryan Gosling), drives out of a traveling carnival globe of death and whizzes through the backstreets of Schenectady, New York, desperately trying to connect with a former lover, Romina, (Eva Mendes) who recently and secretly gave birth to the stunt rider’s son. In an attempt to …

Today’s film is the 2011 short Kaylien. The film is the first directorial effort of actress Zoe Saldana, and stars Malin Akerman and Bradley Cooper. Cooper has had a meteoric rise in success in recent years, with 2009’s The Hangover establishing him as a successful leading man following years of supporting roles in movies and television. …

Earlier in the week, we brought you the first part of a Special Oscar edition of Between Two Ferns, the offbeat interview show hosted by comedian Zach Galifianakis. Today we bring you part two, which sees Galifianakis interview Jessica Chastain, Sally Field, “Daniel Day-Lewis”, and Bradley Cooper. **** (Source: Funny Or Die)

Now that we are nearing the big awards of the season, it is time to revisit the nominations and predictions for the 2013 BAFTAs.  Part 2 will cover the following categories: (see part one here) Best Film Best British Film Leading Actor Leading Actress Best Supporting Actor Best Supporting Actress Best Director The EE BAFTA …

Silver Linings Playbook Directed by David O. Russell Written by David O. Russell USA, 2012 Sometimes, it’s OK if you know the destination as long as the journey is plenty of fun. That’s the basic underlying principle of Silver Linings Playbook, a massively enjoyable crowd-pleaser that presents an off-kilter brand of romantic comedy, where most …

Silver Linings Playbook Directed By David O. Russell Written by David O. Russell, based on Matthew Quick’s novel U.S.A., 2012 It must take a lot of bravery and intelligence to not merely make a film in which characters suffer from various mental illnesses, but to have that film observe and develop those individuals in pertinent, …

The Words Directed by Brian Klugman and Lee Sternthal Written by Brian Klugman and Lee Sternthal USA, 2012 The effect of watching The Words is akin to hearing someone read a book report that’s based off the CliffsNotes of the CliffNotes of a popular book. The sheer laziness on display in this would-be character study/thriller …

The Words Directed by Brian Klugman and Lee Sternthal Written by Brian Klugman and Lee Sternthal U.S.A., 2012 ‘The story’ is arguably the greatest artistic achievement mankind has ever accomplished. Historically, the stories found in books have oftentimes communicated so much more and in far easier fashion than the spoken word can ever aspire to, …

Hit and Run Direct byed Dax Shepard and David Palmer Written by Dax Shepard U.S.A., 2012 There is a saying that comes up seemingly every year at around this time during the summer season, something along the lines of people going through the ‘dog days of summer.’ It is late August; school shall be back …

Hit & Run Directed by David Palmer and Dax Shepard Written by Dax Shepard USA, 2012 Twenty years after his breakout hit, Reservoir Dogs, Quentin Tarantino’s influence is being felt in mainstream cinema. His penchant for hyper-literate, self-conscious characters and dialogue mixed with sudden bursts of violence has become almost commonplace in 21st-century filmmaking, but …

Limitless Directed by Neil Burger Written by Leslie Dixon USA, 2011 In the abject cinematic wasteland of the early calendar months, a surplus of ideas is almost always preferable to a deficit. Neil Burger’s Limitless might be in desperate need of a script doctor, but its lack of strict adherence to genre conventions, its neverending …