"Free Birds" gobbled by critics

Free Birds

For my show The Screening Room this week I had to review the new animated film "Free Birds" which tells the strange tale of Reggie, voiced by Owen Wilson, an unusually smart turkey who attempts to get the other birds of his flock to realize their farmer master is fattening them up for Thanksgiving dinner. The graphics are not that impressive, but the storyline is amusing. There are not a lot of Thanksgiving themed films, besides of course the classic "Charlie Brown's Thanksgiving", so this one was intriguing and well timed. It has a great cast of Owen Wilson, Amy Poehler and the hilarious Woody Harrelson. Critics have been gobbling this movie to shreds, as they say it is"Technically proficient yet creatively moribund, Free Birds begs unfortunate comparisons with the dim-witted fowl that inspired it." Rotten Tomatoes gave this movie a 19%. Enough said. 

Yikes. Sorry folks if you were looking for an entertaining turkey movie! The only thing this movie ignites in the audience is hunger. Yum, turkey. This movie is also featured in 3-D which I literally don't understand. Why would this movie about striking turkeys need to be featured in 3-D? I personally don't like the whole effect in general but they are just going overboard.Overall, "Free Birds" should have never been set free to the public. It has all the right components but it just doesn't pull through. And Owen Wilson needs to stop being animated characters. 

Here's the trailer:

"Gravity" is out of this world

"Gravity" has no limits

Gravity is a 3-D space drama film starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney as surviving astronauts from a damaged space shuttle. Bio-medical engineer Dr. Ryan Stone, played by Bullock, is a Mission Specialist on her first space shuttle mission, accompanied by veteran astronaut Matt Kowalski played by George Clooney, who is commanding his final expedition. 

Gravity had its world premiere at the 70th Venice International Film Festival on August 28, where it received universal acclaim from critics and audiences, praising the acting, direction, screenplay, cinematography, visual effects, production design, the use of 3D, and Steven Price's musical score.

It is very interesting how they filmed this movie because it is so focused/centered around special effects. When I saw commercials for this film it did not intrigue my interest, however, it has been receiving great reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 98% and viewers loved the 3-D aspect. 

The film was directed by five time Oscar nominee Alfonso Cuaron and cinematography was done by Emmanuel Lubezki. The two worked well together and produced a film that is extremely hard to make. 

The film uses long, uninterrupted shots that create suspense and drama. The acting in this film is also incredibly hard, as they acted in front of a green screen and had to create the atmosphere mentally. This is a well done film and pushes the limits of the film world.