Author Archives
My escape has been a movie theatre for as long as I can quite frankly remember. My dad swears by the fact that I saw Aladdin in theatres (despite it being in theatres 13 months before I was born, but hey movie magic I guess?). Growing up I was incredibly fortunate to have a projector room in my childhood home with surround sound where I would spend my formative years, watching absolutely anything I could get my eyes on. There was never a movie that I didn't at least try to watch, as being young only certain things captured my attention. I would get lost in that room for hours, sometimes even days. As well I lived down the street from my local multiplex so anytime a new movie would come out whether it be the newest superhero movie, James Bond movie, Scary Movie or anything that captured my interest I was there Friday at 5pm seeing the newest thing and if it was good, most likely revisiting with friends that weekend. I grew up in front of the silver screen, graduated University from the film studies program, and have been writing for numerous publications for the past decade. I look forward to continuing to write, explore new films, and indulge in all the offerings the movies have to bring to us. As Vin Diesel said in the welcome back advertisement, "For more than a hundred years there's one place where we all came together to be entertained, to escape, to escape, to go somewhere new -- the movies"
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Creature feature “Arcadian” has a fever and the only prescription is more Cage. [The Overlook Film Festival]
In the most Abed Nadir voice possible — “Nicolas Cage maaaaaaaaan” — and that alone should either have an audience immediately ready to dive into what absolute madness whether good, bad, or Cage, they’re about to get into. While the… Read More ›
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Aquatic possession film “Night Swim” arrives on land via home video.
When movies come out in January, there is an inherent idea about the quality of the movie, unless it’s a late release of an Oscar title. These are sometimes unfair assumptions, especially when it comes to horror movies — horror… Read More ›
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“Red Rooms” takes audiences on a frightfully intense rollercoaster of court proceedings. [The Overlook Film Festival]
There are movies that focus on courtroom procedurals and the drama that comes from the hearing itself that either are so effective they’re traumatizing or so dull they entirely lose the audience. Pascal Plante’s Red Rooms (Les chambres rouges) thankfully… Read More ›
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“Infested” grants audiences a parting gift of a life-long phobia. [The Overlook Film Festival]
Horror movies usually tend to fixate on fears to engage their audience or do something truly horrifying and disturbing. The latter are typically easier to digest since they’re easier to shake off as they’re not exploiting something the audience may… Read More ›
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Filmmakers Clark and Weir show potential in their debut film “Birdeater.” [The Overlook Film Festival]
There are so many ways that a film can get under an audience’s skin, whether that be intentional or not, but beating the proverbial dead horse with a children’s bat is certainly not the way to get things going in… Read More ›
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Fresh out of the oven, “Riddle of Fire” serves up a unique, grand adventure.
There is something inherently special about writing and directing your first feature film, I would have to assume. Having never crossed that bridge myself, but consuming a plethora of films throughout my life, there is always something special, at least… Read More ›
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Arrow Video releases Japanese horror “Dark Water” in 4K with special features.
Sometimes there are movies that just entirely escape your radar. Then you realize a boutique label is giving the film the treatment it arguably deserves and you decide to take the plunge and watch it for the first time. Before… Read More ›
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Chill out with some of your Saturday morning favs in 1080p with “Hanna-Barbera’s Superstar 10 Collection” from Warner Archive.
When collections get released, the age-old question for collectors comes down to whether you get the box set or go for singular individual releases? This beautiful collection from Warner Archive brings forth some of the best of the best from… Read More ›
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Illumination film “Migration” continues to deliver on an all-ages experience with numerous bonus features.
Making a movie that is geared to children but still appeases the parents and the adults who are curious about the film is always a dangerous balance to achieve with the high risk of becoming too adult that it’s no… Read More ›
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“Ordinary Angels” embodies a heartfelt story through powerful performances and a nuanced script.
The purpose of a movie trailer is to get an audience intrigued in seeing the movie, however, when the trailer paints the movie as something it absolutely is not, it does a disservice to the movie itself and sets up… Read More ›
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“Conan the Destroyer” battles on in glorious 4K UHD via Arrow Video.
Two years after Conan the Barbarian was released on the world, there was a change in guard on the creative side and director Richard Fleischer (Soylent Green) took over the director’s chair, returning with lead actor Arnold Schwarzenegger (The Terminator;… Read More ›
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What is best in life is the 4K UHD edition of “Conan the Barbarian” from Arrow Video.
The year is 1982 and the most impressively-formed human being finally gets his big Hollywood break — Arnold Schwarzenegger in John Milius’s Conan the Barbarian. While watching the movie today in 2024, it is evident that Conan is certainly a… Read More ›
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“Wanted Man” delivers on B-movie action.
If you were from the ‘80s, a big bulking dude who made a career of questionable quality action films, and then decided to write and direct equally questionable content, then audiences should know exactly what they’re getting themselves in to…. Read More ›
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“Which Brings Me to You” breathes some fresh air into rom-coms.
There are so many romantic comedies that come out every year, and so many of them follow the same formula that they become exhaustingly repetitive, just uninspired, and, regardless from how attractive the leads, nothing can save these movies from… Read More ›
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“Aliens” never looked better than in 4K!
Multigrain, harvest grain, 12 grain, whole grain, there’s a whole lot of grain for everyone. Now, if this irritates you to your core, then you’re probably happy about the reports that the James Cameron restorations look like Madame Tussauds, however,… Read More ›
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“Satanic Hispanics” on Blu-ray falls short as an anthology.
No one who is involved in making movies goes out of their way to make anything less than spectacular. This does not mean every movie is going to be gold, nor does it mean every movie is going to be… Read More ›
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“Pet Sematary: Bloodlines” is ready to come home in digital and physical formats.
It’s been said time and time again, and I believe I’ve even made the exact sentiment in another review prior but it deserves to be said again, if you love physical media then you, we, I, have to do everything… Read More ›
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“The Iron Claw” is built on career-defining performances from its leads.
Then. Now. Forever. If those three words trigger a response out of you, then you’re a wrestling fan. If the image of a panda smashing a chair over another panda with the letters WWF presented around it evokes a smile… Read More ›
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Second serving of “Chicken Run” misses some of the magic of the first.
There is something inherently interesting about movies that decide to make a come back after a significantly long break between entries. Sometimes this is because the story needs the time to breath, or the characters need the break to grow… Read More ›
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Yo, Johnny! I see you in 4K as Studio! Studios releases “Point Break” in first-time 4K UHD.
There are movies which, whether you’ve seen them or not, no matter where your cinematic knowledge or pleasures come from, you have knowledge of and the understanding that the film is generally received well. Some of these movies are regarded… Read More ›