Lights Camera Jackson

Movie Reviews, Entertainment News and Views from Lights Camera Jackson

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‘We Are Your Friends’ Review

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“We Are Your Friends” star Zac Efron has called his latest film the “Saturday Night Fever” of this generation. But instead of a white jumpsuit and disco, Efron sports headphones and blares techno music as a DJ looking to make it big. Efron’s Cole Carter is part of a four friend posse. They live in […]
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‘No Escape’ Review

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“No Escape” sounds like the title of a direct-to-DVD (or, these days, direct-to-VOD) movie. But The Weinstein Company thought they could make a little bit of money at the end of an action-packed Summer by releasing it in theaters. But there’s “no escaping” the fact that this thriller belongs in a discount bin at Walmart […]
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‘The End of the Tour’ Review

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“The End of the Tour” is an immersive true-story drama starring two actors who give two of the year’s finest performances. For five days back in 1996, Rolling Stone writer David Lipsky (played by Oscar-nominee Jesse Eisenberg) travelled with and interviewed prolific, 34-year-old author David Foster Wallace (played by potential Oscar-nominee Jason Segel) as he […]
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‘Hitman: Agent 47’ Review

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“Hitman: Agent 47” is a reboot (of sorts) in a film franchise that started, and should’ve ended, with 2007’s bomb “Hitman” starring Timothy Olyphant. Both of these movies are based on the popular video game series that’s been around for 15 years. While video games, especially the shoot-em-up variety, are typically have extremely thin storylines, […]
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‘American Ultra’ Review

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“American Ultra” is the latest in a long line of movies which suffers from the “Pulp Fiction” syndrome: the attempt to mix quirky characters, sarcastic comedy and very graphic violence into one wild, cinematic experience. No one’s been able to successfully pull it off since Tarantino over 20-years ago (including Tarantino himself). The result this […]
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‘Straight Outta Compton’ Review

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“Straight Outta Compton” is a biopic that chronicles the highs and lows in the careers of rappers Dr. Dre, Eazy-E and Ice Cube, who together formed the legendary ghetto rap group N.W.A. back in the late 80s. And while I can’t write what N.W.A. stands for, I can state that this is a solid and […]
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‘The Gift’ Review

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Australian actor Joel Edgerton is best known to American audiences as the star of the MMA drama “Warrior” and as Tom Buchanan in Baz Luhrman’s version of “The Great Gatsby”. “The Gift” is Edgerton’s feature film directorial debut. It’s a tense and genuinely suspenseful thriller which he also wrote, co-produced and co-stars in, alongside the […]
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‘Vacation’ Review

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As the son of loving husband and father Clark W. Griswold (who, in the previous “Vacation” movies, may have looked like he did everything wrong, but actually did everything right), Ed Helms is the grown-up version of Rusty in this modern version of “Vacation”, which is just as zany and uneven as the original. Jonathan […]
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‘Southpaw’ Review

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“Southpaw” is about a down-on-his-luck boxer trying to make a comeback. Sound familiar? There are a few unique elements to this story, but ultimately, “Southpaw” relies on its knockout performances to carry you through a solid, but predictable, two-hour melodrama. Jake Gyllenhaal continues his winning streak, following excellent work in “Prisoners” and “Nightcrawler”. Here he […]
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‘Irrational Man’ Review

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Woody Allen continues to prove that he may just be the most prolific director working today. Every year, without fail, we get a new Allen creation. His 2015 offering is “Irrational Man”, and it’s one of the most engrossing movies of the year. About a half-hour into the film, after Allen establishes his standard, complicated […]
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