The Double Feature Weekly Wrap-Up, 8/26/12

Welcome to this week's edition of  the Double Feature Weekly Wrap-up! Very interesting movie week with some hard pairings - hope I did a good job! Here are my self-imposed rules taken from my first edition:

1. No pairing of sequels. Obviously Watching Iron Man 2 with Iron Man would  be a good double feature, but that's so obvious I don't think it should count. Same with pairing it with another film in the Avengers series.
2. No pairing remakes with originals. Yes, it's tempting to pair the new Arthur with the original, but again that's too obvious.
3. No pairings with the same director or lead actor unless a REALLY persuasive case can be made.

So, without further ado, here's my double-feature pairings for the week:

• Lockout - I'm almost ashamed to admit that I really liked this film. It was fun, well acted, compelling, and well directed... and really, what more can you ask from a popcorn action film? Pair this with Death Race, another popcorn action flick that was just dead fun to watch, regardless of how silly it was.
• Virginia - Jennifer Connelly was excellent in this drama but I kept feeling the film should be taking itself more seriously. The subject matter was compelling, as was the character of Virginia, and I felt making it too light stole the shine from what could have been a very impactful film. This reminded me of Jolene, which was Jessica Chastain's first major role. The trailers for Jolene were light but the film itself was quite heavy and dark at times and really brought the reality of the situations at hand home. Virginia could have learned from this handling I think.
• Silent House - Usually movies like this scare me to death, but Silent House was an empty promise. Elizabeth Olsen was utterly amazing (as usual) but she was given nothing to work with. Simply put, the viewer is given no reason to join in Olsen's fear and thus the movie fails. Pair this with Jim Carrey's wonderful performance in The Number 23, a taut thriller that really had me... .up until the last 10 minutes that is. The Number 23 does what Silent House tried to do but failed - it takes the improbable and makes you afraid of it.
• Bernie - Throw away everything you know about Jack Black because he will just blow you away in this black comedy. I like Jack Black and I was just astounded at his performance in this - totally different than anything he's done before. The whole format of this was fun and well-designed - it reminded me across the board of To Die For , the Nicole Kidman film from a few years back that had a similar format and feel to it, even a similar type of plot.
• Perfect Sense - This sci-fi thriller was nothing I expected - hell, I didn't even know it wass a sci-fi thriller! However, it was everything I wanted - taut, well-paced, wonderfully acted and really intense. Really well done across the board. Pair this with Another Earth , another sci-fi film set in an ordinary world that will get you thinking about things in a different way.
• Hot Coffee - This documentary about tort reform was interesting and persuasive, but I found it a little preachy at times. Pair this with Food Inc., another social interest documentary that gives good information but at times tips a little much into preaching territory.

That's it for this week - happy movie watching!