Interstellar

Tali: I don't know if I can sum this up in one sentence like I normally do, but here we go: Interstellar is, in essence, about how space travel is just as mind expanding, powerful and important as deep, eternal love (there, I said it). What can I say? This fim was JAM PACKED - from start to finish I barely exhaled. A truly thrilling and exhillerating ride, Interstellar tells many stories and has many different philosophies and and ideas. Though it certainly has its faults, Interstellar is a movie that is hard to forget. With all that being said, there is just something about it that it misses, and for that reason (and without giving you any spoilers), I can sense that it won't be a huge award season contender. 85/100.

Leo: After finally getting out to see this movie, all I can say is that I'm glad. Christopher Nolan has this way with movies that he almost always makes you think in a spectacularly entertaining way. This movie had so many, almost too many, interesting-but-dangerous topics to delve into. The one obviously crazy topic is the science. I appreciate that Nolan did the best he could to make it plausible and when he couldn't make it plausible, he at least made it cool. I also thought it was smart of him to sort of "glaze over" those details of the science that made you suspend disbelief (no spoilers required - you know what I'm talking about). There was no dwelling on those scenes. The real science on the other hand is really cool. If you're unfamiliar with dimensions and shit, here's a cool video on imagining 10 dimensions (no spoilers or anything to the film). The time-relativity and age-gaps are always going to make heart wrenching scenes between family and friends who aged differently due to space. I will say, I do understand how some people would not totally love this movie because it's intellectual reach is immensely high and it sort of cops out before it gets there. That being said, if you're interested in the science, that thought probably won't even be on your mind. Not quite as good as Inception, but still one of Nolan's great movies. Leometer: 87/100.

P.S. I stopped reading that list of faults at #1 since it implies the only way to have beer is with wheat. What kind of sad life does the person who wrote that list live if they've only heard of wheat beer??
P.S.S. I lied, #20 is legit.

Birdman

Tali: Birdman tells the story of Riggan Thomson, a washed up Hollywood actor who tries to reinvent himself as a serious Broadway artist. Though the film is about 'fame' and 'reinvention/reincarnation', there is something much more universal at stake here. In addition to being an incredible feat of cinematography genius, Birdman somehow manages to be a movie about the peoples deepest insecurities and fears. There is something about this movie that just makes you say YES, even though I can't quite put my finger on it. Emma Stone and even Edward Norton are great in this. An overall delight to watch and definately a contender at this upcoming awards season. 89/100

Leo: This was one of the best movies I've seen in a long time. I knew I was going to like it when the first line of the movie had the word "balls" in it (spoiler alert?). The stylistic direction of Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (yea I googled how to spell that) acted as a canvas for Michael Keaton as the brush. Keaton showed his ability to become one of many characters, such as a superhero, struggling manager, actor, and depressed father / husband. However, when considering his experience as an actor so far, it's not so surprising that he was able to pull it off so well. Maybe he was going through a struggle represented by this movie as wanting to shake the image of Batman? Probably not, but whatever.  When actors act as actors in a film, there may be certain imperfections required and that was definitely shown in this movie by Keaton as well Ed Norton. And spoiler alert, but Keaton does whip out his Batman voice and I appreciated that. Emma Stone played a convincing character that was definitely far-removed from her comfort zone of "generic likeable girl" to somewhat of a fuck-up. I am definitely rooting for this movie so far, and at the very least Michael Keaton deserves some recognition for it. Leometer: 96/100.