Two quick hits since I don’t have much to say about these gems:

300: Rise of an Empire– Eight years between sequels and not much has changed. The story takes place at the same time as 300 and gives insight into Xerxes ascension to power. The visual and audio presentation is the same, very stylized computer animation with copious amounts of slow motion and blood. If you liked the first movie and are down for some more, check it out. Otherwise you aren’t missing anything (except for a really awkward sex scene).

Under the Skin– I’ve heard a lot of good things about Under the Skin and…ugh. This should have been a short film. It runs a good hour too long and if the dead weight was cut out, I think it would leave a really great and interesting 45 minute short.. Scarlett Johansson plays an alien being that seduces men for…some purpose. There’s a lot of mystery about everything. It’s a good concept, it’s made really well (some striking visuals) and Johansson does some great work. The editing is what killed me. There has to be 30 minutes worth of footage of characters driving around. Pointless driving around. I’m leaving out the parts where Johansson talks to men on her quest, so she’s actually doing something. You spend a lot of time in a van in this movie. The rest is a waste of time. There are large chunks of this that I fast forwarded through to get to something interesting. I watched people drive and stand around quickly without missing anything important. There is a lot of “observation” in this movie. The pacing is just brutal, it’s an exercise in patience more than anything. Do not recommend.