New movie reviews in brief: Demolition, Hardcore Henry, Sleeping Giant

Demolition

Director Jean-MarcValledoes it again in this full-blooded tale about man who decides to deconstruct his life after an accident. JakeGyllenhaalis funny andsoulful as widower Davis, pouringout his heart in letters to a vending machine company.

The key is this collaboration betweena director and an actorboth looking to explore andpush themselves to emotional extremes.Gyllenhaalcrackleswith charisma as the man confronting his hollow life. NaomiWatts nicely underplays the role of the flakyKaren, the employeewhoanswers Davis' letters.JudahLewis, as Karen's son,is a revelation: a young man lost, in his own way. Together, these two dudes make a wonderful mess.

RATING: 5out of 5 stars

Sleeping Giant

Though set against Northern Ontario's looming cliffs and open water, the real landscape of director AndrewCividino'sfirst feature is the inner terrain of the teenage male. Sleeping Giantrevolves around the fitful friendship of Adam, Riley andNatebored kids looking for trouble andwho find it in this slow-release story.

Unspoken assumptions and secrets threaten to spill overin this artful debut. A lush, percussive score and the quietly expressive Jackson Martin as the shy Adam help make Giant worth watching

RATING: 4out of 5 stars

Hardcore Henry

A story of acyborgon the run,HardcoreHenryis billed asthe first feature-length film shot in the style of a First Person Shooter video game(imagineCall of Dutyset inMoscow'sunderworld).

Made by Russian directorIlyaNaishullerand a rotating cast ofstuntmenwithGoPro camerasstrapped to their heads, HardcoreHenryis seenthrough the eyes of a man who wakes up onthe operating table by a woman who claimsto be his wife.

Soon Henry is skydiving, scalingbuildingsparkour-styleand getting in touch with his inner cowboy. While sometimesdifficult to watch (Note: don't sitcloseto the screenif you're prone to nausea), the execution isfearless.Ricocheting from a highway motorcycle chase to a brothel brawl, the movie canfeellike a series of video game levels at times and Henry's unstoppable nature makes the mayhem monotonous.

Fortunately, the recurringpresence ofSharltoCopley asthecyborg'sinventor adds a much-needed sense of zaniness to the unrelenting violence.Though the storytelling is about as flimsy as the walls the herosmashes through,HardcoreHenryoffers viewers a thrill ride that will leave their fingers twitching for the pause button.

RATING: 3.5out of 5 stars