Movie Review: The Purge: Anarchy (2014)

by Tony Dayoub

Let's talk about Frank Grillo. For years, Grillo has been toiling at the edges of the screen in many noteworthy movies. In the first movie I remember seeing him in, Warrior, he was That Guy Who Trains the Boxer Brother. So natural was he in the part that I thought this was some MMA fighter making the jump to movies. In The Grey he was That Guy Who Keeps Mouthing Off. And in Captain America: The Winter Soldier he was That Paramilitary Thug Who Betrays the Good Guys. Apparently, Grillo's been acting for years, gradually coming to the foreground. Yeah, he's still kind of That Guy Who _______, but with The Purge: Anarchy Grillo gets his best opportunity yet to show he's up to carrying a major motion picture.

Star's Soulfulness Lends Some Weight to LUV

by Tony Dayoub

Opening tomorrow in a limited number of theaters is LUV, an indie crime thriller that far outpaces the studio release I reviewed yesterday. Like with Broken City, a powerhouse cast led by Common (Smokin' Aces) and Dennis Haysbert (Heat) bring a soulfulness and gravitas to what otherwise might have been your average urban noir. But despite some minor flaws in its structure, LUV is able to transcend its modest budget to become something greater. Without ever falling into empty preachiness, LUV seems to possess a social consciousness that eludes the other film.