Welcome to the Blog!

Hey folks,
Welcome to my blog. I’ve been doing movie reviews in print, television and radio for years. But when you’re deciding what to see at the movies- or what you want to rent or download- having a review at your fingertips is awfully handy. Check out the reviews and feel free to make comments! (Please use netiquette)

I love films and movie-making: they tell stories that entertain us and challenge us. The best and worst of the human spirit and the human condition can be found through the art of movie-making. And yes even the worst films have their positives (just don’t count on me to sing the praises of one decent scene in an otherwise terrible production). So stay tuned for my reviews and other useful, timely, and important links! I’ll see you at the movies and on Twitter!

Best,
Chuck

A little more about me:

Though he had his first critical thoughts about film when he was 8 years old, Chuck Koplinski had to wait 20 years before putting his opinions in print. Having established himself with various independent newspapers in Central Illinois, Chuck joined the Illinois Times in Springfield, where he has been writing since 1998. Branching out into other media, he has been delivering weekly film reviews for the CBS affiliate WCIA-TV and FM radio station MIX 94.5 (WLRW-FM) since 2005. Additionally he has been writing for the News-Gazette in Champaign, IL, since 2007.

‘Scorch Trials’ a long, slow trek

Though dystopia fatigue may have had something to do with it, I couldn’t help but come away from “The Scorch Trials,” the adaptation of the second novel in the “Maze Runner” series, feeling weary. Sure, I knew that a sense of “Been-There, Done-That” would hang over it what with “The Hunger Games” and “Divergent” already occupying most of the brain space I’ve allotted for derivative YA fiction (it was all I could do to remind myself I was not in Panem, a ravaged version of Chicago or the Australian outback). Yet, director Wes Ball was able to help me push these concerns aside last year with “The Maze Runner,” a well made and at times exciting film that dangled just enough tantalizing, unanswered questions to keep me engaged throughout.

Nothing new under the apocalyptic sun here and the tedium’s made worse by one artificially contrived diversion after another. There’s two too many zombie attacks, three too many stops at faux civilizations and I lost count of the times horribly filmed gun battles broke out. Had a key character or two died along the way or a major plot twist ensued, I might have been able to forgive the film’s wheel-spinning nature. Unfortunately, by the time “Scorch’s” inevitable ending finally arrived, I felt as though I had been with Thomas every step of the way. I don’t think this was the sort of vicarious experience Ball and his crew had in mind. The fact that I am now dreading the final chapter of the “Maze Runner” saga is an unfortunate side-effect of this piece of misguided filmmaking.

For a full review, go to: http://www.news-gazette.com/arts-entertainment/local/2015-09-24/chuck-koplinski-grandma-excels.html

‘Everest’ likely to leaves viewers cold.

Perhaps the most surprising thing about Baltasar Kormakur’s “Everest” is that I watched it with a sense of fascination rather than emotional engagement. This account of an ill-fated expedition in 1996 to climb the world’s highest peak isn’t short on drama and the stakes couldn’t be higher as every character contends with life-and-death situations throughout. Yet, I was strangely detached from their plight, more taken by the film’s locale and the way it was rendered on screen. Filmed in the Italian Alps and Iceland and presented in IMAX 3-D, Kormakur succeeds in recreating the danger of the characters’ journey as the large screen format and depth of field technology get viewers as close to the mountain as possible without actually being there. To be sure, this is quite a selling point where the movie is concerned; however, it also proves to be a distraction from what should have been a compelling screen adventure.

For a full review, go to: http://www.news-gazette.com/arts-entertainment/local/2015-09-24/chuck-koplinski-grandma-excels.html

 

“Grandma” Revels in its Honesty

You have to give Elle Reid credit. She’s lived her life on her terms and made no apologies about it. However, now that she’s pushing 70 and her much-younger girlfriend has broken up with her, Elle’s starting to realize that there’s a cost for going your own way. To be sure, being part of the status quo requires a great deal of personal compromise and the cost of having your soul slowly die, day-by-day, is incalculable. So there’s something a bit noble in the way Elle’s eschewed a 9-to-5 job and followed the beat of her own drummer. But society doesn’t like what it doesn’t understand and there’s a price to paid for living out loud and being brutally honest with anyone who crosses your path, and that day of reckoning arrives for Elle at the most inopportune of times.

Paul Weitz’s “Grandma” is a physically modest film but one of grand emotional scope. Propelled by Lily Tomlin’s powerhouse performance as Elle, the movie is refreshingly honest in the way it deals with familial injuries that fester, relationships that are strained to the breaking point and damage that can never truly heal. Credit Weitz and his strong cast for rendering this material in a sincere manner, never once taking a maudlin approach or opting for a feel-good solution.

For a full review, go to: http://www.news-gazette.com/arts-entertainment/local/2015-09-24/chuck-koplinski-grandma-excels.html

 

“Perfect Guy” laid low by predictable script

To say that “The Perfect Guy” is a rote exercise is no big surprise; many movies today are. But what makes this effort subpar is the way it so closely resembles other movies that have covered the same narrative territory, albeit with much more style and energy. Director David Rosenthal and writer Tyger Williams make no effort to put a distinctive stamp on this standard stalker-thriller, content to follow lockstep in the path blazed by “Cape Fear,” “Play Misty for Me” and “Fatal Attraction,” among others. While these films primarily tell the same story, they were executed with flair and intelligence, qualities that are sorely lacking here.

The one good thing on display here is the cast, composed of veterans who surely knew they were fighting a losing battle, yet soldiered on to bring some life to the stereotypes they’ve been saddled with. Lathan is always good and her transformation from victim to hunter is thoroughly convincing. And while Ealy has a thankless part, he brings more than a bit of creepiness to it, making Carter a genuine threat. However, the creaky plot, as well as the spastic editing by Joan Sobel, who makes simple conversations hard to follow with her rapid cutting, makes this “Guy” seem like a movie we’ve met before and never want to encounter again.

For a full review, go to: http://www.news-gazette.com/arts-entertainment/local/2015-09-17/chuck-koplinski-true-depth-depp.html

Depp digs deep in “Black Mass”

 

Scott Cooper’s “Black Mass,” a gripping, entertaining film from first frame to last, chronicles the criminal’s rise to power, told by those who knew him best — his colleagues, his enemies and those he manipulated like so many toys at his disposal. Based on the book by Dick Lehr and Gerard O’Neill, the film has a familiar narrative arc. What makes it stand out in a sea of gangster epics are the brilliant performances from the veteran cast that’s been assembled, especially the two leads — Johnny Depp and Joel Edgerton — who bring life to a pair of men who were more alike than appearances would indicate.

“Black Mass” proves to be an engrossing examination of the corrupting influence of not only power but of personality as Bulger’s aura was such that he was able to tempt weaker men with the promise of the sort of life he had, all the while making it seem glamorous and justifiable. What those such as Connolly failed to realize was that in order to succeed as Bulger did, they had to be void of conscience, a quality that thankfully few men truly possess.

For a full review, go to: http://www.news-gazette.com/arts-entertainment/local/2015-09-17/chuck-koplinski-true-depth-depp.html

Redford and Nolte make for a pleasant “Walk.”

Much like its two main characters, “A Walk in the Woods” is a film that’s comfortable and familiar.

There are no surprises to be had while watching it; we’ve heard the platitudes it espouses ad nauseum; and the events that take place are predictable but pleasant in being so. This is the cinematic equivalent of a big plate of meatloaf and mashed potatoes — it’s good enough, it’s filling and it’s forgotten as soon as the next meal/movie comes along.

Based on the memoir by Bill Bryson, the film takes a lighthearted look at his midlife crisis as well as the radical act he takes to cure his malaise. Much to his wife’s chagrin, he decides to hike the Appalachian Trail, a mere 2,118-mile journey — or as one of his more encouraging friends puts it — 5 million steps taken over the course of five months. This radical plan is brought on when he realizes that much of the successful pieces of travel writing, upon which he has built a fruitful career, were written long ago, as well as the fact that friends and acquaintances, who were once hale and hearty, are now sick and dying.

For a full review, go to: http://www.news-gazette.com/arts-entertainment/local/2015-09-10/chuck-koplinski-visit-modern-fairy-tale-grimm-est-sort.html

 

“Best of Enemies” a riveting look at a TV revolution.

In 1968, ABC News offered viewers a piece of alternative programming that was born out of financial necessity, yet ultimately changed the face of television as we know it.

At least that’s the contention of directors Robert Gordon and Morgan Neville in their new documentary “Best of Enemies,” a fascinating look at two men who couldn’t have been more different and willingly took to the airwaves to defend their inalienable right to pursue their own version of life, liberty and happiness.

 

For a full review, go to: http://www.news-gazette.com/arts-entertainment/local/2015-09-10/chuck-koplinski-visit-modern-fairy-tale-grimm-est-sort.html

“Visit” a Modern Fairy Tale of the Grimm-est Sort

 

With “The Visit,” a spare feature made for $5 million, director M. Night Shyamalan returns to form with a horrific modern fairy tale, while managing to find some life left in the found-footage approach in the process. The film follows the misadventures of a brother and sister who go to visit Grandma’s (and Grandpa’s) house and find, much like Red Riding Hood herself, that appearances can be deceiving.

From out of the blue, our single mom heroine (Kathryn Hahn) gets a call from her estranged parents. Having left their home under a dark cloud at the age of 19, she’s stunned to hear from them some 15 years later and even more surprised when they ask if their grandchildren, whom they’ve never met, can come visit them.

Hoping this is the first step toward some sort of reconciliation, Mom agrees, and soon Becca (Olivia DeJonge), an aspiring artist who is filming the trip for a documentary, and Tyler (Ed Oxenbould), a wannabe rapper, are off for a weeklong visit to their grandparents’ farm.

Things get off to a good start, but the kids soon notice strange sounds can be heard right outside their bedroom door each night, and they’re told that they shouldn’t go in the basement, as it’s overrun with mold. Suspicious goings-on around the farm’s well and a rundown shed pique their curiosity as well.

For a full review, go to:http://www.news-gazette.com/arts-entertainment/local/2015-09-10/chuck-koplinski-visit-modern-fairy-tale-grimm-est-sort.html

 

“America” Delusional in its Intent

 Eventually, we all come to realize that people aren’t always as they seem; it just takes some longer to learn this lesson. Take Tracy (Lola Kirke), for example. She’s just come to New York City to attend Barnard College and doesn’t know a soul. However, her mother, who’s about to be married, gives her the phone number of her fiance’s daughter in the hopes they can connect. One quick call later and Tracy meets up with Brooke, making a grand entrance down a long flight of stairs in midtown Manhattan, the picture of success and healthy self-esteem. Five minutes into their conversation and Tracy’s convinced her new acquaintance is the bee’s knees (then again, she could be the cat’s pajamas … not quite sure) and if anyone can show her how to conquer the Big Apple, obviously it’s Brooke.

In the end, while Baumbach and Gerwig would have us believe Brooke is a proactive woman whose efforts at independence are constantly undone by bad luck, the fact is she’s delusional and adrift, incapable of truly assessing her strengths or her faults so that she might embark on a journey of self-actualization. No wonder she gets so upset when she finds out that Tracy is using her as the main character in a story she’s writing and the portrayal is less than complimentary. The harsh commentary she reads bursts her bubble of self-delusion, as her Judas accurately points out that she thinks she’s something she’s not.

For a full review, go to: http://www.news-gazette.com/arts-entertainment/local/2015-09-03/chuck-koplinski-surprising-turn-phoenix.html

Past and Present Collide in Haunting “Phoenix”

Nelly Lenz (Nina Hoss) is given what most of us would love to have — a second chance. Having survived life in a concentration camp as well as a bullet wound to her face, she’s undergone facial reconstructive surgery, and though she insists that she wants to look just as she did before the war, the surgeons can only do so much. She looks somewhat like her old self, but little touches here and there are just … a … bit … off.

Ignoring her friend Lene’s (Nina Kuzendorf) advice, Nelly sets out to find her husband Johnny (Ronald Zehrfeld), as the thought of being reunited with him was all that kept her going in the camps. Though things in postwar Berlin are in horrible disarray, she manages to track him down. However, the magical reunion she imagined isn’t to be when Johnny fails to recognize his wife, a devastating turn for Nelly but one she ultimately uses to her advantage when she uncovers a secret of Johnny’s and he finds himself attracted to her.

For a Full Review, go to: http://www.news-gazette.com/arts-entertainment/local/2015-09-03/chuck-koplinski-surprising-turn-phoenix.html