Finally watched Spotlight (imdb | rotten tomatoes) last night. Totally gripping…didn’t feel like a 2+ hour procedural at all. I actually love that this won the Oscar. The performances were all very good (especially Michael Keaton and Mark Ruffalo) but not over the top in the kind of suffer-tastic role the Oscars love to reward. It didn’t get saccharine or exploitative, but didn’t gloss over much either. It was, itself, a measured piece of reporting for those of us who didn’t get to read the Spotlight work firsthand. Highly recommended.

That reminds me: I watched a bunch of movies on the way to/from Costa Rica. In short:

• I liked Coriolanus‘ modern take on Shakespeare, especially Ralph Fiennes’ ferocity, but it needed someone stronger than Gerard Butler in the secondary role.
• Adult Beginners wasn’t exactly a novel idea (brother screws up, moves in with sibling, awkward growth ensues for all) but was still worthwhile on the strength and charm of the three main actors: Nick Kroll, Rose Byrne, and Bobby Cannavale.
• Nellie was enthralled with Burnt on the flight down (not surprising: it’s Bradley Cooper cooking and speaking French) so I watched it on the way back. Good distraction for a few hours, but not a very good movie. More like food porn.
• Sin City: A Dame To Kill For was rubbish. Even gratuitous Eva Green nudity couldn’t save this movie.

.:.

Cover photo by JD Lasica, used under Creative Commons license