18 March
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THE COURIER Director: Dominic CookeStarring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Rachel Brosnahan, Merab Ninidze, Jessie Buckley The Courier is inspired by the true events surrounding Greville Wynne, played here by Benedict Cumberbatch. It’s the 1960s and the Russians and Americans now have nuclear weapons. Greville Wynne is a husband, father, and a simple businessman trying to provide for his family. That all gets upended when a CIA agent played by Rachel Brosnahan and a team from MI6 approach him to be a spy against the Russians. The plan is for him to work alongside Oleg Penkovsky known as Ironbark to infiltrate the Russian nuclear program. A simple manRead More →

18 February
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THE MAURITANIAN Director: Kevin MacdonaldStarring: Tahar Rahim, Jodie Foster, Shailene Woodley, Benedict Cumberbatch, Zachary Levi Two months after 9/11, Mohamedou Slahi played here by Tahar Rahim, was taken in for questioning as he was thought to be a recruiter for the terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center. We learn that he was taken to Guantanamo Bay where he has been detained since then. It’s now 2005 when Nancy Hollander, a criminal defense lawyer played by Jodie Foster, learns of his story. She along with her associate Teri, played by Shailene Woodley attempt to file a Habeus Corpus to determine if there’s enough evidence againstRead More →

26 December
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1917 Writer/Director: Sam MendesStarring: George MacKay, Dean-Charles Chapman, Andrew Scott, Colin Firth, Benedict Cumberbatch, Richard Madden It’s April 6, 1917 in Northern France, Blake and Scofield are two British soldiers played by George McKay and Dean-Charles Chapman who are tasked with a deadly mission to head into enemy territory to deliver an urgent message to Blake’s brother’s squadron. The hope is to stop a them before they walk into a trap killing hundreds of soldiers.  Oscar winning director Sam Mendes (American Beauty and Skyfall) directed the film and co-wrote it with Krysty Wilson-Cairns. He has dedicated the film to his grandfather Alfred H. Mendes whoRead More →

30 April
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AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR Directors: Anthony and Joe Russo Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Chris Pratt, Mark Ruffalo, Josh Brolin, Chris Evans, Tom Holland, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hiddleston, Benedict Cumberbatch, Chadwick Boseman, Letitia Wright, Danai Gurira, Zoe Saldana, Paul Bettany Marvel fans have spent the last ten years and eighteen movies engrossed in a variety of superheroes and villains duking it in order to save Earth and other galactic empires. Some have proven more successful than others, yet Marvel fatigue never seems to set in even after all these years. They’re coming off one of my favorites and their biggest hit to date, Black Panther,Read More →

04 November
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DOCTOR STRANGE Director: Scott Derrickson Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Rachel McAdams, Tilda Swinton, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Mads Mikkelsen, Michael Stuhlbarg, Benjamin Bratt, Benedict Wong Benedict Cumberbatch is no stranger at playing characters with super egos as that is how he interprets Sherlock Holmes. He brings a similar quality to Doctor Stephen Strange. He’s a neurosurgeon in the top of his field. He’s massively rich, a music savant, and probably smarter than his own good allows. His colleague Dr. Christine Palmer (McAdams) happens to be a former flame, and there is still a spark between them. On a stormy night he cruises along a curvy road headed toRead More →

12 February
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ZOOLANDER 2 Director: Ben Stiller Starring: Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Penélope Cruz, Kristen Wiig, Will Ferrell, Benedict Cumberbatch,Justin Theroux, Christine Taylor, Billy Zane It’s tough being a male model, just ask Derek Zoolander (Stiller). He decides to retire from the industry and become a “hermit crab” after facing tragedy after tragedy. His wife (Taylor) is killed in a freak accident and his son is taken away from him. On a snowy night, Billy Zane shows up at his doorstep and convinces him to come out of hiding in order to go to Rome and get his son back and also appear in a fashion showRead More →

17 September
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BLACK MASS Director: Scott Cooper Starring: Johnny Depp, Joel Edgerton, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jesse Plemons, Kevin Bacon, Peter Sarsgaard, Rory Cochrane, Dakota Johnson, Adam Scott, Corey Stoll Black Mass is the intriguing true story of James “Whitey” Bulger (Depp) who was known as one of the most violent and dangerous gangsters in South Boston. The film spans twenty years from 1975-1995 when Whitey was working as an informant to the FBI. Throughout that time he was working closely with John Connolly (Edgerton), a childhood friend turned FBI agent, in order to bring down the Angiulo family. They were an Italian family of gangsters who were rivalsRead More →

25 December
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THE IMITATION GAME Director: Morten Tyldum Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode, Allen Leech, Rory Kinnear, Charles Dance, Mark Strong You probably have never heard of the name Alan Turing before unless you are a World War II scholar. It’s quite a shame when you think about all of his accomplishments. In 1952, Turing’s (Cumberbatch) apartment has been robbed and the police arrive to investigate. He ends up being arrested for gross indecency and the authorities have no idea about the history of the man they just arrested. At the time, homosexuality was illegal and was grounds for Turing’s arrest. The film cuts backRead More →

05 December
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In Interviews

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER 2014 OSCARS ROUNDTABLE: THE ACTORS               The Hollywood Reporter offers insightful roundtable discussions with some of the best talent working in the business. I love their Oscar Roundtable series every year, and I try to post each one of them. Here are six actors that are getting some buzz for their work. They discuss playing real life characters, the stereotypes behind British actors versus American actors, and Timothy Spall informs the group of a phantom pooper that may be lurking around the National Theater. Enjoy! The Actors Benedict Cumberbatch, The Imitation Game Ethan Hawke, Boyhood MichaelRead More →

29 July
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In Movie Trailers

THE HOBBIT: THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES Director: Peter Jackson Starring: Martin Freeman, Benedict Cumberbatch, Ian McKellen, Lee Pace, Evangeline Lilly, Luke Evans, Richard Armitage, Cate Blanchett Fans have been a bit hesitant when it comes to The Hobbit movies. I can understand the frustration as Peter Jackson and his writing team of Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens took one book and turned it into three movies by adding characters and taking details from the appendices. So far, they are nowhere near as good as The Lord of the Rings trilogy, but I feel like The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug was heading inRead More →