Lights Camera Jackson

Movie Reviews, Entertainment News and Views from Lights Camera Jackson

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‘Inside Llewyn Davis’ Review

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Joel & Ethan Coen are known for their off-beat and ambitious films which often mix comedy and crime, and feature colorful characters. “Raising Arizona”, “Fargo”, and “The Big Lebowski” certainly fall into that category. The Coens have also gotten gritty, beginning with 1984’s “Blood Simple” and highlighted by 2007’s Oscar-winning “No Country For Old Men” […]
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‘Out of the Furnace’ Review

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“Out of the Furnace” is an unconventional, gritty drama from director Scott Cooper (“Crazy Heart”). Christian Bale is very good as Russell, a steel mill worker in rural Braddock, Pennsylvania whose brother Rodney (played by Casey Affleck) is about to serve his fourth tour of duty in Iraq. A fatal DWI accident sends Russell to […]
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‘Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom’ Review

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Four years ago Morgan Freeman received a Best Actor Oscar nomination for playing legendary South African activist Nelson Mandela in the rugby-based film, “Invictus”. Now, Idris Elba takes-on the task of playing the iconic figure in “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom”, which is based on Mandela’s autobiography. This is a full-on life story. The movie […]
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‘Nebraska’ Review

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When I was younger, I used to go through my grandmother’s mail with her. Every once in a while we would come across one of those contest entries claiming that she could win a large cash prize, when all they really wanted was to sell magazines or get her personal, private information. Sometimes we’d play […]
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‘Philomena’ Review

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“Philomena” is based on the true story of one woman’s quest to find the son who was taken from her when she was a young, unwed mother. Dame Judi Dench, best known for her Oscar winning eight minutes in “Shakespeare in Love” and as 007’s assistant, M, in the last seven Bond movies, shines in […]
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‘Black Nativity’ Review

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“Black Nativity” is based on the popular, 50-year-old off-Broadway play written by Langston Hughes. The screen version has been modernized and energized with the help of spiritual songs by some of the music world’s brightest stars. Troubled teenager Langston (played by Jacob Latimore) lives with his mother Naima (Grammy and Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson) in […]
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‘Frozen’ Review

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I can sum-up “Frozen” in just one word: Spectacular! This is Disney’s best animated musical since 1991’s “Beauty and the Beast”, which just happens to be my all-time favorite film. Less than a minute into “Frozen” it becomes clear that we’re about to experience something special, and that this production is destined for the stage. […]
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‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’ Review

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2012’s blockbuster film, adapted from the blockbuster book, “The Hunger Games”, grossed over $400 million and ignited the career of star Jennifer Lawrence. Now an Oscar winner (and a nominee again this year for her performance in David O. Russell’s period crime drama “American Hustle”), Lawrence is “on fire” in Hollywood right now. And she’s […]
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‘The Wind Rises’ Review

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Director Hayao Miyazaki’s latest addition to his wonderful resume of animated films, which he claims are for children but are loved by fans of all ages, deserves to be remembered for a lot of reasons. But, sadly, “The Wind Rises”, will likely best be remembered as Miyazaki’s 11th and final film. At 72, he says […]
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‘The Book Thief’ Review

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I did not expect, in the first minute of “The Book Thief”, that I would be reminded, rather heavy-handedly, of the fact that we all are going to die. This cheerful beginning is just the first of a series of drops from the voiceover narrator, aka: “Death” throughout the film. And all of them are […]
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