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Mud, Jeff Nichols follow up to the criminally under-seen Take Shelter, is a strange mix between a coming of age story and and escaped con thriller. Set in a Arkansas town that's about as redneck-y as redneck gets, Mud focuses on a couple of boys in their early teens, Ellis (Tye Sheridan) and Neckbone (Jacob Lofland). The duo comes across a boat lodged in a tree thats occupied by a bum named Mud (Matthew McConaughey). Mud seems amiable to the boys, trading food for a guarantee that the boat will be theirs once he goes on his merry way to reacquaint himself with the love of his life, Juniper (Reese Witherspoon). However, once it becomes clear that Mud is being hunted by the police and a pack of bounty hunters due to a past crime, the boys strike a deal with their homeless friend: they'll get the tree-stranded boat up and running in exchange for the pistol Mud used to commit the crime he is being pursued for.

First and foremost, lets make something explicitly clear: Mud is just about as cheesy as you get. The movie never misses a chance to take emotional cheap shots at the audience, and many of the plot lines (one regarding marital troubles between Ellis's folks in particular) feel ripped straight out of Lifetime movies. However, for each overwrought groaner that misses the mark, there is a genuine moment of tenderness between characters that hits the emotional bullseye.

There are plenty of moments when Nichols should have pulled back, should have avoided the schmaltz, but they don't ruin the scenes that get the relationships between characters right on. Especially effective are the scenes between Ellis and Mud, with Ellis's admiration of gruff and mysterious Mud never being overdone. The same cannot be said for the relationship between Ellis and his feuding parents, which more often then not amps the drama up to 11 when what it needed more than anything was restraint.

Mud also overstays its welcome due to an excessively leisurely pace that includes one too many subplots. Mud has plenty of fat to be cut, from the standard teen infatuation story of a young boy dropping the "L" word after a single date to a subplot revolving around a scuba diver (played by the always awesome but tragically unnecessary Micheal Shannon) which only pays off in the oddest and least fulfilling way. Had 20ish minutes been cut, I can't help but feel it would have made for a more effective final act, but as it stands the numerous bland asides from the main story drag the film down, especially in the final act.

Despite these flaws, Mud succeeds where it really counts. The relationship between the two boys, and their interactions with Mud, are a pleasure to watch. This is largely due to the easygoing chemistry between the actors, making the strange idea of a 14 year old befriending a middle aged hobo somewhat more believable. The acting in general is great all around, McConaughey stealing the show with his detached Mud. The only week link is Witherspoon as Mud's fickle love, who seems to be sleepwalking through scenes that needed a more emotional push.

As a final note, the last half hour or so of the movie goes a little crazy. Following the lamest forced-emotion scene in the film (something that was telegraphed excessively earlier in the film), the film completely switches genres for its climactic scene. Without going into detail, the ending was more than a little jarring and felt out of place in a slow drama.

As a fan of Chan-Wook Park's Korean films, particular his gross twist on a vampire story in 2009's Thirst, I was incredibly excited to see his first English language offering. Stoker, the first film made stateside by CWP, defiantly doesn't disappoint. This is largely due to the director staying with what he knows, telling a story that has all the dark hallmarks from his Korean works. However, Stoker is also less extreme then one would expect from Chan-Wook Park, as many moments of violence and depravity that could have been much more over the top are toned down.

Stoker focuses on the titular family of India, Evelyn, and Richard Stoker (Mia Wasikowska, Nicole Kidman, and Dermot Mulroney). When Richard dies in a mysterious car crash, his oddball daughter India begins to further distance herself from her estranged mother, Evelyn. After burying their patriarch, the family is visited by India's Uncle, Charlie. Charlie seems a little out there, and begins to form a sketchy relationship with India that suggests Uncle Charlie may desire more than family bonding.

To elaborate any more would spoil the film, but needless to say it's an interesting premise. The story unfolds very slowly, with few dramatic developments until the second half of the film, which contains much more wizz-bang than the somber and meticulously paced beginning. This isn't a bad thing, largely because the characters are so fascinating from the get-go that accompanying them while they go about their day to day lives is a pleasure. Even when the movie seems to be resting on its laurels early on, the performances are great all around (in particular Wasikowska's performance as distant and on-edge India). Except for a few odd holes, the script stays strong throughout, providing plenty of great dialogue courtesy of Wentworth Miller (you read that right,the dude from Resident Evil: Afterlife. Who saw that coming?).

Of course, the strongest link in the chain is Chan-wook Park. From the opening scene of fragmented shots with computer generated transitions that occur throughout the movie, his mark is clearly laid on the film. Stoker never has an ugly moment, and each shot oozes with that distinctive Chan-wook flair. My personal favorite is an early scene in a basement involving a swinging light fixture (think Once upon a time in the West). The only thing that feels absent compared to CWP's other efforts is a slew of neasea-indusing scenes whose only purpose is to shock the audience. Although Stoker has a few jarring moments (think showers), for the most part its very restrained compared to Chan-wook's other works. This is fine up until the last act, when the nature of the story demanded for a more powerful and shocking denouement then what was given. So despite not quite sticking the landing, Stoker is effectively creepy, well acted, and an enjoyable beginning to what I hope will be a long English language career for Chan-wook Park.

Saying that Wrong, the new film by French director and lover of all things non-sequitur Quentin Dupieux, is strange does the film somewhat of an injustice. Not because the movie surpasses the limits of strange (although, to be fair, it does), but because strange implies something nonsensical, content that defies explanation or logic. Wrong is a film that, despite being so bizarre, manages to come around full circle and make sense at the end. All its surreal imagery has purpose at the end, and the film is at its strongest at the last moments where one can step back and appreciate it as a whole.

Wrong begins with Dolph Springer, a man who inhabits a slightly off- kilter universe in which trees "make sense" based on their own unique place and offices shower their seemingly unaware employees with torrential rain. He is a simple man: he goes to work every day and enjoys the company of his gardener Victor, a man who seems to be forcing an unneeded French accent. Dolph wakes up one morning to find his dog has gone missing, and embarks on a journey to rescue his pooch from whatever peril it seems to have run across. To summarize the movie any more would be a disservice, as the best part of the film is the pleasant little surprises that come along the way.

What I can tell you is that the film is absolutely absurd. From William Fichtner's restrained but subtly outrageous performance as this world's version of a zen master to a strange sequence that refuses to define itself as reality or dream, there is enough outlandish content to fill any surrealists imagination. Although these elements are certainly bizarre, it still feels like they deliver a message. They contribute to a feeling that there is something deeper being said, and by the end one walks out with a feeling that Dupieux subtly and ever so brilliantly schooled the audience.

That being said, the movie has problems. For large chunks of the film, especially during a tour of a small animals digestive tract (don't ask), it feels like the director is treading water. In fact, I would go as far as to say that a good quarter of the movie loses its surreal edge, and becomes more than a little monotonous. These scenes clog the movie, and get more than a little frustrating as it holds back an otherwise breezy and enjoyably silly movie.

It's a shame I can't go deeper into the movie, to explain the emotions that built inside me by the end or the flaws that made the movie shy of greatness. It's a movie that works better the less you know about it, plain and simple.

I sincerely want to love Troll Hunter, the latest in a batch of Scandinavian horror movies that have been shipped stateside. I want to love it for its tense cat and mouse moments, I want to love it for its impressive ideas towards shaky cam cinematography, and most of all I want to love it for the trolls themselves, massive behemoths scouring the Norwegian countryside for a stray sheep or unsuspecting college student. Unfortunately, Troll Hunter is a mixed bag that brings down the good with an abundance of the bad. The film starts out with a group of doe-eyed college students who have been sent to investigate a recent influx of bear poaching, perpetrated by a mysterious man with an initial aversion to cameras and a camper full of bizarre equipment. It doesn't take long for this shady character to reveal his mission to the students: he is in fact a "Trolljegeren", a government hired Troll Hunter who ensures the illusive creatures existence is kept unknown by tracking down and killing any trolls that stray from their territorial boundaries. The students take this shocking revelation quite well, and agree to follow the hunter as he tries to decipher the new found aggressiveness of trolls in the area.

The plot is simple, and passes up time that could be spent trying to establish logical character motivation in favor of lightly comic scenes and exposition regarding the biology and history of the trolls. This is not entirely a bad thing for most of the movie, as director André Øvredal keeps things going smoothly, pushing the audience from one impressive set piece to another. Many of the troll encounters are tense and breathtaking at the same time, and one cannot help but marvel at the sight of a troll chasing our hapless heroes. This is largely due to the impressive low budget CGI used throughout the film and surprisingly smooth camera-work, ditching the tiresome technique of flinging the camera left and right (as one would most likely do in real life, to be fair) in favor of steady shots that allows the audience to marvel at the beasts without sacrificing the tension gained through shaky cam cinematography. The trolls themselves look amazing, by far some of the most imaginative and well rendered budget movie magic I have seen in a long time, especially coupled with the beautiful Norwegian scenery.

Sadly, despite all the praise I have heaped upon Troll Hunter, the movie isn't without its flaws. The film falls flat on its face several times, whether it is caused by overly bland exposition or painfully unfunny comedy that pops up throughout the film. These lulls aren't so bad in the first half, but become incredibly agitating in the second as the viewer waits for a payoff that refuses to rear its ugly head. Also to note is the films general sloppiness in the final act, in which multiple characters are introduced without purpose, are never given an exit, and don't fit at all within the story. Finally, the film arrives at a conclusion that is incredibly odd, as characters are dismissed without any closure to their arcs and events begin to happen that are head- scratchingly misplaced. Although many of these gripes cripple what could have been one of the best sci-fi movies of the New Year, Troll Hunter is still a fun but flawed ride with enjoyable scenes and some great visuals.

He's a guardian angel walking the streets, a vicious protector of the weak and innocent. He is the hobo with a shotgun. He is Rutger Hauer. Hobo with a Shotgun is the story of... well, the title pretty much says it all. Bad guys led by a enjoyably psychotic gang lord named Drake dominate the unnamed city that is the setting of the movie. Drake and his two equally messed up offspring, Slick and Ivan, terrorize the people of this tortured city uncontested until the arrival of Hauer's Hobo, intent on using his saved nickels and dimes to buy a rusty old lawnmower that will surly start him on a honest, rewarding career. Sadly for Mr. Hobo, destiny has other plans, and our hero uses his mower money to purchase a old pump action shotgun with the intent of cleaning up the city. Along the way he is aided by a prostitute named Abby (a stunningly beautiful Molly Dunsworth) who has an affinity for destruction.

This films greatest strength is its oddball tone and freakishly beautiful bursts of violence that occur periodically through the movie. The chunks of the movie that involve crazy old Rutger Hauer blasting through waves of baddies in brutal fashion and the bizarre acts of violence perpetrated by the films antagonists are easily the highlights, and they never fail to delight with their brilliant, twisted gore effects. Director Jason Eisener is a master of cinematic displays of blood and guts, and god bless him for it because it takes the film to a whole other level. I would love to provide an example for your reading pleasure, but tragically spoiling any part of this movie is a crime to heinous to contemplate committing. Just know you will leave the theater feeling like a changed man after the brutal displays of carnage presented.

Unfortunately, the film is ultimately brought down by some poor scenes that stretched on for agonizing lengths. Many of these involve our homeless protagonist ranting senselessly to his lovely caretaker Abby, others involve the already hyperbolically inflated villains plotting the death of the Hobo. Perhaps what is most tragic is that Hauer, with the exception several brilliant lines in the films third act, never gets a chance to truly shine as the shotgun wielding hero, a huge disappointment considering the potential he possessed. Regardless of these flaws, the film is still an incredible experience based solely on the incredible displays of creative gore.

Summary: If you are like me, one of the greatest days of your life was the day you discovered "The Winnebago Man", a compilation of outtakes from a promotional video gone horribly awry. The reason for the brilliance of the video is a man named Jack Rebney, a man who forgot his lines, mercilessly harassed the crew, and commented on the idiotic nature of his own dialogue. After recovering from the epidemic of laughter that swept through the land, America was left with just one question: Who is Jack Rebney? Ben Steinbauer, a documentarian with nobility in his heart and courage in his mind, decided to step up to the plate and take the daunting task of tracking down Mr. Rebney. After multiple Google searches and a visit to a private detective, Steinbauer finally finds the true Jack Rebney, although the results are initially disappointing. A sweet, well spoken old man who lives a life of monk-like solitude in a remote cabin expresses remorse at his coarse language and attitude he adhered to in the past. Steinbauer, seemingly defeated, retreats back home, only to be contacted by Rebney a few weeks later with a startling confession: the innocent Jack Rebney Ben had met before was a charade, and the real Jack was dying to get out. From this point, we begin to see Jack Rebney as he truly is: a bitter, cantankerous, but somehow lovable old man who has an affinity for cursing.

Review: Over the next hour, we begin to see a genuine relationship grow between Ben and Jack, and this relationship is easily the strongpoint of the movie. Ben's patience and gentle nature acts as a perfect antithesis to Jack's short-fused attitude and explosive personality. As the two begin to bond, the audience takes a trip through Rebney's mind, finding potential clues as to why The Winnebago Man is the disgruntled, frustrated shell of a man he is now. Although the movie never probes as deep into Rebney's psyche as it ought to, leaving many questions posed at the beginning unanswered, it still provides a fascinating look at a terminally angry man. Although this journey through the mind could end up being dark and depressing due to the somewhat tragic nature of its subject, Rebney throws in enough absurdist quips throughout the movie to keep things light and entertaining, creating the perfect mix of comedy and drama. And yes, the movie is quite funny at certain points (a live appearance by Rebney at a comedy club left me in stitches.) Overall, Winnebago man fails on some level by sidestepping some of the darker elements of Rebney's character, but it more than makes up for it with a great dynamic between the two leads and some genuinely funny moments.

Plot Summary: In Danny Boyle's127 Hours, Aron Ralston (James Franco) is stuck in the penultimate "between a rock and a hard place" scenario: his arm, after an ill fated tumble down a slot canyon, has been trapped between a boulder and the canyon wall. With no means of communicating with the outside world and no hope of rescue (his decision to avoid discussing his travel planes with friends and family wasn't a brilliant move), Aron must find a way to escape his predicament while contemplating the events in his life that lead him to this point.

Review: 127 Hours is a rare movie that grabs you by the balls in the first ten seconds and keeps squeezing until the tension is unbearable. Considering the confined corridor the film takes place in, along with the limited cast of characters, this seems like a near Herculean task. But, with Danny Boyle's wiz bang direction and James Franco giving the most entertaining performance of the year, the film moves with a grace unmatched by most modern filmmakers. The cinematography is great, everything from a "Holy crap this is insane!" mountain biking montage through beautiful Canyonlands park to the sheer number of different shots used to highlight Aron's predicament while trapped in the canyon. Although spending an hour in a canyon sounds like it would be boring beyond belief, Boyle keeps it interesting through flashbacks that show the experiences that led Aron to become trapped, as well as premonitions of his future should he escape his natural prison. Also punctuated throughout the film are Aron's attempts to escape, ranging from a brutish attempt to dislodge the rock with force to a gradual attempt to erode the rock by picking at it with a knife that pales in comparison to anything the Swiss army would use. These attempts, although ultimately useless, are exhilarating to watch and build nicely to a nerve shattering climax.

Of course, all of this would be useless without a lead that could carry the story. Fortunately, Franco is more than up to the task. Jumping between moments of comedy and charisma to soul crushing scenes of defeat and agony, Mr. Franco never misses a beat in a performance that is worthy of all praise being bestowed upon it. Unfortunately, the film isn't without its problems. While some flashback scenes work towards creating a personality for Aron while giving perspective on his past, a large number of them revolving around a past relationship are underdeveloped and do little to deepen the character or put Aron's current situation into some form of context. There are also some poor visual effects in the form of CG ants that torment Aron and a few shots of the trapped arm that accentuate some of its faker features.

Despite these minor gripes, 127 Hours is one hell of a ride. Franco's performance is a roller-coaster in and of itself, the movie stays taunt and entertaining throughout, and the jaw dropping cinematography more than makes up for the price of Admission.