RonenRecommends | All posts published by author 'Ronen Divon'

Ronen's Rating System:

*****	A must watch
****	Worth seeing
***	If you must watch a movie and there is nothing else out there
**	Don’t bother
*	It’s so bad its almost good... not... These are films I walked out on, or just fell asleep
(K: stars)	Rating by my children. As they are easy to please, would typically be higher than mine...

Eye in the Sky (2015, UK) *****

Posted on 4/11/2016 10:31 PM By Ronen Divon

Eye in the Sky is a British military-political thriller, directed by Gavin Hood to a screenplay by Guy Hibbert. The film presents some very timely ethical issues related to drone warfare, as well as terrorists using civilian populated neighborhoods as a base of operation.

Hail, Caesar! (2016) ****

Posted on 2/13/2016 8:49 PM By Ronen Divon

Was Jesus the first real Commie? (or at least the first socialist?) Hail, Caesar! is the Coen brothers amusing tribute to Hollywood's Golden Age; an homage that both honors the grandiose scale of 1950s Hollywood, while, at the same time, ridicules the actors, directors, screenwriters and producers behind the well-oiled film-producing machine. How is that possible? Leave that to the Coen brothers to manage...

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) ***

Posted on 1/16/2016 9:58 PM By Ronen Divon

There is nothing really wrong with The Force Awakens. It is skillfully written, perfectly directed and masterfully executed. It is entertaining and, for the most part, quite engaging. The filmmakers strove for and were successful in obtaining a balance between the familiar and the new. Yet there is also something quite tiring about this film; an element that feels a little too contrived.

Spotlight (2015) ****

Posted on 12/13/2015 10:51 PM By Ronen Divon

Directed by Thomas McCarthy to a screenplay by McCarthy and Josh Singer, the critically acclaimed Spotlight is as much about journalism as it is about the scandal that stands at the heart of the story. Based on true events – the Boston Archdiocese’s cover-up of sexual abuse by Roman Catholic priests in Massachusetts, a story that was exposed via a series of articles that earned The Globe the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service, Spotlight is like a volcano taking its time erupt.

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2 (2015) ***

Posted on 11/29/2015 6:32 PM By Ronen Divon

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay II is the second part of the third installment in the dystopian book trilogy written by Suzanne Collins. If you have seen the earlier parts, I presume skipping the final installment is not an option. And, again, this is not a bad film. It is quite loyal to the novel. Still, something did get lost in translation.

Bridge of Spies (2015) ****

Posted on 11/22/2015 7:30 PM By Ronen Divon

Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks collaborate again with Bridge of Spies, a historical spy-thriller. Bridge of Spies is based on real events that took place during the height of the Cold War. It involved the 1960's U-2 Incident in which attorney James B. Donovan (Hanks), unofficially representing the US government, negotiated the release of captured U-2 spy pilot Francis Gary Powers in exchange for Rudolf Abel, a Soviet KGB operator who was arrested and convicted for spying in the USA a few years earlier.