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UTD's student-run newspaper since 1980

The UTD Mercury

UTD's student-run newspaper since 1980

The UTD Mercury

UTD's student-run newspaper since 1980

The UTD Mercury

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Journalist Michael Finkel (Jonah Hill) interviews Christian Longo (James Franco) in a scene of  “True Story.” Directed by Rubert Goold, the film is based on Finkel’s 2005 memoir of the same name.

Drama wastes interesting premise

April 27, 2015

“True Story,” based on Michael Finkel’s memoir of the same name, fails to be as interesting as the true story. Finkel’s stories were on multiple covers of The New York Times until it was revealed...

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New ‘Furious’ film resorts to same formula

April 13, 2015

“Furious 7” has a nonsensical plot and dull dialogue, but it speeds past these road bumps that might otherwise sideline any other film with a familiar mix of levity and the care it shows for its fallen...

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“The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” is about a group of British expats living the ends of their lives in an Indian Hotel.

‘Marigold’ sequel delightfully simple

March 9, 2015

Film underwhelmingly mixes talented cast with stuffy plot As the title suggests, “The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” doesn’t portray anything new or particularly interesting, but the film’s...

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Director Michael Mann’s hacker action flick starring Chris Hemsworth is hardly worth a glance.

Weak cyber crime action movie features lackluster performance

January 26, 2015

“Blackhat” fails to make hacking watchable for audiences “Blackhat,” starring Chris Hemsworth, is a plodding crime drama about hacking, with clumsy dialogue and boring characters. Michael Mann’s...

Legendary Pictures|Courtesy
Jack O’Connell’s performance as a bombardier in World War II is the highlight of “Unbroken,” which suffers from a script that overglorifies the protagonist and leaves secondary characters underdeveloped.

Dull script weakens WWII story

January 12, 2015

“Unbroken” tells the unbelievable true story of Louis Zamperini, an Olympic long distance runner who was captured by Japanese troops during World War II after his plane was shot down, in a surprisingly...

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Jim Carrey reprises his role as Lloyd Christmas in the sequel to the 1994 cult classic “Dumb and Dumber” with costar Jeff Daniels.

‘Dumb’ doesn’t live up to original lowbrow classic

November 17, 2014

The sequel to the Farrelly brothers’ classic comedy “Dumb and Dumber” is an almost carbon copy of the original film. However, “Dumb and Dumber To” isn’t as iconic, and the jokes haven’t aged...

‘Ouija’ underwhelms with unoriginality

November 3, 2014

With uninspired scares and lackluster directing by Stiles White, “Ouija” is a completely forgettable foray into the horror-film genre. Hasbro is taking a similar approach to 2012’s “Battleship”...

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Perdita Weeks and Ben Feldman as Scarlett and George in “As Above/So Below,” a 2014 release that pans a treasure hunter’s quest for the philosopher’s stone that will grant her immortality. The lackluster script mitigates the energetic pace of the horror flick.

Found-footage ploy ruins film

September 8, 2014

Horror film features one-note characters trekking through Parisian catacombs  While it’s a good commercial for the Paris catacombs, “As Above/So Below” is ultimately another unimpressive foray in...

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Elizabeth Moss and Mark Duplass display variety and character in the romantic dramedy.

Creative twists engage viewers

August 25, 2014

Moss, Duplass keep “The One I Love” real A romantic comedy disguised as a dramatic indie film in science fiction wrapping, the genre-crossing Sundance hit, “The One I Love” is a well executed...

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Chadwick Boseman delivers in his performance as James Brown in “Get on Up.” Named after the Brown song of the same name, the film explores the highs and lows of the star’s often wild and unpredictable career as a soul musician.

Star performance keeps James Brown biopic afloat

August 4, 2014

James Brown, the godfather of soul, gets the biopic treatment in “Get On Up.” It won’t disappoint. The film goes against the classic biopic structure by hopscotching around Brown’s life. For example,...

The Mercury's Summer Wrap-up

The Mercury’s Summer Wrap-up

August 4, 2014

MALAYSIAN FLIGHT MH17 CRASHES On July 17, Malaysian Airlines flight MH17, flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was shot down over Ukrainian air space, killing 298 passengers and crew. As investigators...

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‘Lucy’ underwhelms with predictable plot, unimpressive action

July 28, 2014

SPOILER ALERT Scarlett Johansson escapes from the Marvel universe and gets to play her own superhero in "Lucy." Unfortunately, the result is unintentionally cheesy and dumb. Directed by Luc Besson, "Lucy"...

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Shyam Vedantam