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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The Farrelly Brothers take a swing and a miss at a holiday classic in “Dear Santa.”
The Farrelly brothers have brought us a range of works including There’s Something About Mary (1998), Osmosis Jones (2001), Shallow Hal (2001), Fever Pitch (2005), Dumb and Dumber (1994), and more. Their newest outing starring Jack Black (Shallow Hal; Kung… Read More ›
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A strong cast cannot lift “The Last Showgirl” above its mundane tropes. [TIFF]
Movies are like baseball, three strikes and you’re out. Every artist has a bad outing or something that gets lost along the way, not communicated as intended to their audience, so benefit of the doubt has to be instilled. However,… Read More ›
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Candy-gram! “Blazing Saddles” arrives on 4K UHD for its 50th anniversary.
Blazing Saddles (1974) is something so outstandingly outlandish and bold and still something that is wholly expected because it’s Mel Brooks. It is one of the most outlandish, hilarious, brilliant comedies of the 20th century and for it to be… Read More ›
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Classic Hitchcock film “North by Northwest” gets its first 4K release for its 65th anniversary.
There is nothing more magical in the entire world than being able to see a film, regardless of quality, on a 35 mm/70 mm print. Nothing comes close to seeing that celluloid run at 24 fps in a magical setting…. Read More ›
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Sean Wang’s teen coming of age dramedy “Dìdi (弟弟)” receives an unceremoniously released home edition.
When done right and a movie captures the time period in which it’s set pitch-perfectly, it is a reflection of its audience and resonates so much deeper and more personally with those of that era. Some movies that come to… Read More ›
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“A Real Pain” emotionally ensnares the audience due to sharpened talent in front of and behind the camera.
While his first directing/writing feature, When You Finish Saving the World (2022) met with some very mixed reception, Jesse Eisenberg’s latest, A Real Pain, is a hilarious, heartfelt, soul-touching 90 minutes exploring grief (past and present). It’s indicative of a… Read More ›
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Irish hip hop underdog story “Kneecap” stays on-brand with a DVD-R home release.
If you haven’t heard of Rich Peppiatt’s newest feature, Kneecap, it’s because it flew so under the radar for everyone and its theatrical window was relatively short. However, it has now hit home release on DVD only, but don’t be… Read More ›
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WB’s U.S. 4K release of “The Hitcher” goes hard on visuals but lacks much else.
After some turmoil about who was releasing it, where it was being released, and what editions there would be, we finally have the 1986 movie The Hitcher on a magnificent looking 4K UHD restoration in the United States and the… Read More ›
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“Frankie Freako” has come to party at your place in Shout! Studios’s home release.
Frankie Freako and his freaks are ready to dominate your television sets, so don’t adjust the motion smoothing (actually turn it right off), kick your feet up and get ready to get lost in this absolute maddening blast-from-the-past nostalgia kick… Read More ›
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The digital release of the 4K UHD version of Alexander Payne’s “Sideways” leaves audiences asking why.
Here is a very weird take for someone who loves physical media: not everything needs an upgrade. And, certainly, some things are more deserving (or better served) than others. I love everything I’ve seen of Alexander Payne (there are some… Read More ›
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“Trick ‘r Treat” is chock full of eye and ear candy in Arrow’s 4K release.
I’ll be the first to admit, I wasn’t really into horror until my partner and I got together. I had seen some of the classics (the first Nightmare on Elm (1984), first Friday (1980), first Halloween (1978), etc.), but there… Read More ›
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Dramedy “Goodrich” further affirms Michael Keaton’s return to cinematic stardom.
Hallie Meyers-Shyer hasn’t written or directed a feature (or anything) since 2017’s Home Again, which was a very schmaltzy movie with Reese Witherspoon (Sing 2). So, when her new movie cast Michael Keaton (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance))… Read More ›
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David Cronenberg’s “The Shrouds” is an ambitious personal project from a master of body horror that crumples under confusing messaging. [TIFF]
When we think of directors who are famous for what they’ve done in a specific genre, it’s weird to see a movie from them that is so enriched by their personal life and feels like an incredibly personable film. That… Read More ›
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“The Shadow Strays” delivers on all aspects anticipated in filmmaker Timo Tjahjanto’s latest bloody crime action thriller. [TIFF]
If you’ve never heard of the name Timo Tjahjanto (The Night Comes for Us; The Big 4) then there is something you need to fix, immediately. One of the most exciting directors to exist today, he never misses and continues… Read More ›
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Garfield and Pugh elevate “We Live in Time” to romantic drama classic status. [TIFF]
Romantic films are easy to find. There are entire network television channels dedicated to them, but finding one rom-com that is so brilliant yet mediocre is a magical feat. And that isn’t necessarily a back-handed compliment but more commentary on… Read More ›
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Who needs Whammies when you’re “The Luckiest Man in America”? [TIFF]
The Luckiest Man in America is both the title of Samir Oliveros’s second feature and also could be used to identify the star of the movie, someone who exploded onto the scene a few years back and continues to shine… Read More ›
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It’s no shared delusion that “Joker: Folie à Deux” may be one of the best recent DC properties.
As a huge fan of Batman, I can confirm and say confidently I thought Todd Phillip’s Joker was good, but that’s about it. It certainly was not the Clown Prince of Darkness we’ve come to see on screen or really… Read More ›


