THE COBBLER Review AKA The Interesting Case of Adam Sandler's Career

The case of Adam Sandler is a continuing saga of fascination for me. It is hard to pinpoint what exactly his motivations are whether they be in the realm of making movies because he genuinely loves movies or simply in making money. Unfortunately, at this point in his career many wouldn't even consider his movies to be comedies anymore as it's apparent his domination over his little part of the box office has been slightly waning as he's continued to repeat himself as the same guy in Grown Ups (10%), Just Go With It (19%), Jack & Jill (a mere 3%, which only slightly better than the 0% Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star scored which Sandler helped write and produce), That's My Boy (his only deviation in character and highest ranking tomatometer score at 20%) Grown Ups 2 (7%) and last years Blended (14%). That, in his mainstream films, Sandler has had to resort to sequels and a third reunion with Drew Barrymore let us know he's running on fumes to preserve the lifestyle he and his family have grown accustomed to. Jack & Jill was the turning point that shifted the atmosphere around his movies from always being dismissed by critics yet typically having a strong enough following of fans who showed up to watch him do his thing to an all-around frustration. It became evident the ever-reliant audience was shrinking and might one day be no more and so Sandler has turned both to the ever-profitable family film market in the form of two Hotel Transylvania films and this summers Pixels as well as trying to return to more subtle, dramatic work that might not only reaffirm to all of his haters that he can actually do good work, but that he actually cares about the craft and art of making movies. The bad news is that in his effort to subvert public expectations he has delved into two independent, inherently more artistic pictures that have consequently been ravaged by critics. On paper both Men, Women & Children and The Cobbler should be home runs in terms of critical darlings: credible directors, one relevant to todays issues and one with a rather interesting premise, both with stellar supporting casts and yet it still seems the Sand Man can do no right.

FRUITVALE STATION Review

Fruitvale Station is a difficult movie to deal with. It is a very moving picture that doesn't attempt to manipulate its audience or contrary to what you may believe going in, have an agenda more than telling the basic story of what happened on those fateful early hours of New Years Day 2009. Since its premiere at this years Cannes Film Festival there has been nothing but positive buzz swirling around the film and typically I'm speculative of these films that seem to garner unanimous praise based simply on the idea that if I look too much into the critical reception I will expect too much from the film rather than being able to take it in for what it is and what it was meant to be. I mention this because despite the fact I tried to avoid chatter around the film it is pretty impossible if you follow any film site, but also because none of that hindered my viewing experience. There is something very pure about the journey this film takes you on despite its content highlighting the downfalls and tragedy of a young black man in suburban America. Director Ryan Coogler makes his feature film debut with this simplistic, no frills approach to a story that needs nothing extra to make it as emotionally charged as the simple facts of the story leave us feeling. I go to the movies to see interesting stories, meet interesting characters and if I'm lucky become emotionally invested in the conflicts these characters come into contact with. We root for our protagonists and we hope they can conquer the challenges the antagonists present them with whether that be a supernatural force, an opposing government, or something more personal like a mental illness. What makes Fruitvale Station the exception to the rule is not that it is "based on a true story" but that it doesn't follow the conventional arc of a movie in that we know what we're getting, we know there is no happy ending, and that even though we can't escape the heartbreak of the events this movie sheds light on there is a profound meaning to come from the way Koogler and his cast convey a story that might never be known to those outside the community it's documenting. There are no excuses for how wrong things ended for Oscar Grant, but if its any testament to his legacy this film will serve to both make people aware and inspire others looking to make a change.