Devil of a time

I just previewed Devil's Knot, the latest film to tell the story of the West Memphis Three, earlier today. Now you can see whether it's a film that interests you or not by checking out the trailer below.

2014 Movie Preview: #22 - Devil's Knot

Release date: TBA

Plot summary: Based on the true crime book, "Devil’s Knot: The True Story of the West Memphis Three" by Mara Leveritt, "Devil's Knot" tells the compelling story of three teenagers accused of the brutal 1993 murder of three 8-year old boys in Memphis, Ark. - two of them sentenced to life imprisonment and one to death. The film explores the lives of deeply misunderstood outsiders, their families and communities, and their darkest fantasies. The conviction of the West Memphis Three - Damien Echols, Jesse Misskelley, Jr., and Jason Baldwin - riled the American justice system, shocked a tightly knit religious town and outraged the nation.

My take: There have already been several films, both documentary and adaptations on the story of the West Memphis Three. So what makes this one worth a look? Well mainly the pedigree of those working on it. Its stars - Colin Firth and Reese Witherspoon - are both Oscar winners. The film is also being directed by Atom Egoyan who has made some very powerful dramas in the past. I have no clue as to if this film can be better than any of the previous attempts or if it has anything new to say about this story, but I'm sure interested in seeing if it can.

RBR: This Means War

This is another sad example of when bad movies happen to good actors. I love Reese Witherspoon and Chris Pine and Tom Hardy are both rising stars, yet being in this film did not of them any service. The ridiculous set up involves Pine and Hardy playing CIA agents who are also friends and also just happen to be dating the same girl (Witherspoon). They decide to use all of their available spy tactics in order to be the one that ultimately wins the girl. Their efforts are stalkerish and mean, yet are meant to be played for laughs. Meanwhile, Witherspoon's character doesn't come off well either as she's never upfront to either guy about seeing someone's else. We also have to trudge through several unfunny scenes involving her receiving advice from Chelsea Handler, who's stiff delivery grates on you quickly. About the only funny line in the film comes from Chris Pine who confuses Handler for an old man (How is that there's only a one year age difference between Handler and Witherspoon?) The implausibility of the story may have been tolerated more had it not been coupled with the poor direction of McG. Action scenes are edited at a dizzying pace and every shot in the film apparently required a bright light to be shone in the background. I'm not there will be many people tempted into seeing this because of its cast, but do yourself a favor and skip it. Rating: **