Author Archives
Founder: Elements of Madness | Past Bylines at CLTure, Pretty Vacant One, FilmFed, & Mountain Xpress | NC Film Critics Association, Southeastern Film Critics Association, & Critics Choice Association member | Rotten Tomatoes approved individual critic
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Special features in the home release enhance the already uplifting experience of “The High Note.”
Depending on who you talk to, there have either been not enough movies out to see this year or too few. Even without standard theaters being active, there’re still drive-ins, broadcast, and streaming options, many of which the studios have… Read More ›
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Reaction-inducing stunts & kinetic cast chemistry pull up a predictable plot in Netflix’s “The Old Guard.”
The list of films that deserve a theatrical release grows longer the further into 2020 quarantine goes. April brought the kinetic and pulse-pounding Extraction; May offered up the colorful escapism of The High Note and comedic hijinks of The Lovebirds;… Read More ›
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The Cine-Men, Episode 34: Films of Revolution.
When one thinks about Independence Day in the States, absent thoughts of food and fireworks, we think of freedom. Thing is, freedom doesn’t just mean breaking ties with a governing power. Sometimes freedom comes in the form of breaking free… Read More ›
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All your exes may live in Texas, but with the 40th anniversary of “Urban Cowboy,” you can take them anywhere.
Paramount Pictures has been busy these last few months as they’ve dropped new release after new release on their Paramount Presents line. With plenty more of those coming in July and August, Paramount’s taken a break to release a 40th… Read More ›
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Dramedy “Drive Me to the End” asks you to consider how well you listen.
Imagine, for a moment, that you were forced into an extended confinement. Are you lonely or relieved? Now, instead of being on your own, you were given company. Do you feel more comfortable or more anxious? Finally, what if the… Read More ›
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The world must have turned upside down because “Hamilton” is coming home via Disney+.
In case you’re coming to this unclear on what actor/playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton is about, the play follows significant moments of Founding Father Alexander Hamilton’s (Miranda) life from surviving severe illness as a child; coming to American from the Caribbean;… Read More ›
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Fandom Month 2020: Film Week interview with EoM founder Douglas Davidson.
Each summer Poprika Podcast Network founder Darryl Mansel dedicates one week in the month of June to a different fandom. For the 2020 edition of Fandom Month, Darryl scheduled programming spotlighting the areas of Alcohol, Television, Film, and Music. In… Read More ›
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Strong performances and unique direction put you in the thick of the attack on “The Outpost.”
For roughly 12-hours in October 2009, the soldiers deployed to Combat Outpost Keating, located within a valley of the Afghanistan mountains, engaged in a firefight with Taliban fighters. Later called The Battle of Kamdesh, the engagement was deemed the bloodiest… Read More ›
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Commodity, not religion, is played for laughs in satirical comedy “Faith Ba$ed.”
There’s been a strange trend of late where, one after the other, the films reviewed on EoM are trending toward satire. Additionally, each one has or will court some kind of controversy by premise alone and nothing else. A few… Read More ›
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Though you may weep, be not afraid to embark on “Marona’s Fantastic Tale.”
Screened at a variety of global festivals before seeing a limited release in 2020, Anca Damian’s Marona’s Fantastic Tale (L’extraordinaire voyage de Marona) is unlike anything I’ve seen so far this year. The story itself is fairly simple: a dog,… Read More ›
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LEGO & DC connect for another Shazam adventure: “Magic & Monsters.”
Chances are fairly high that, at some point in your life, you’ve either played with or watched a LEGO product. It could one of their thousands of playsets depicting everything from medieval periods or NASA shuttle launches to Gotham crime… Read More ›
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Jon Stewart is back and he is “Irresistible.”
Every day the world becomes more divided than united because of collective forgetfulness. On the one side is the Radical Left seeking free healthcare for everyone, diversity, and pushing toward growth from past mistakes via responsible acknowledgement. On the other… Read More ›
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There is no controversy to be found in “The Hunt.” Only assholes.
“There’s no such thing as bad publicity.” This phrase is commonly attributed to Phineas T. Barnum, the circus owner and renowned asshole. Despite what you’d believe from the wondrous and heartfelt The Greatest Showman, Barnum was more likely to take… Read More ›
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The Cine-Men, Episode 33: Summertime Films
While everyone continues to debate the best time and place to return to theaters, The Cine-Men elect to discuss a different question: what films most make you think of Summer? What films bring about a coolness, a sense of care-free… Read More ›
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Unabashedly forthcoming, documentary “Inmate #1: The Rise of Danny Trejo” contains a story of destruction and perpetual self-healing.
Boxer. Prisoner. Chulo. Geronimo. Navajas. Gilbert. Johnny-23. Razor Eddie. Slim. Luis. Machete. These are just a few of the names of the characters actor Danny Trejo took over his 37-year career as an actor. He’s played everything from a stereotypical… Read More ›
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Get down with an old school, kid-friendly whodunnit with “Hidden Orchard Mysteries: The Case of the Air B&B Robbery.”
When most think of indie films, they think of something like The Peanut Butter Falcon, Room, or Overcomer. They think of One Cut of the Dead or Tigers Are Not Afraid. They think of It Follows or Swiss Army Man…. Read More ›
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Explore silent film era superstar Buster Keaton’s world in the new Criterion release of “The Cameraman.”
Within the comedy section of the Silent Film Era of the 1900s-1920s, there are a few names which standout, escaping from not just the conversations of the educated or cinephile circles but within the zeitgeist. Actors like Charlie Chaplin, Harold… Read More ›
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The Cine-Men, Episode 32: Car Chases
To quote EoM Senior Contributor Hunter Heilman, the 32nd episode of The Cine-Men is all about those “vroom-vroom-crashy-crashy machines.” That’s right, Darryl and Douglas explore their favorite car chases in cinema. We spend a few minutes catching up with our… Read More ›
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Spike Lee’s “Da 5 Bloods” beckons audiences to look deeper.
As a writer/director, Spike Lee is not one to be described as subtle. His works, whether exploring racial tensions in Do The Right Thing (1989), modern day minstrel shows and cultural appropriation in Bamboozled (2000), tackling the cycle of violence… Read More ›
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Don’t let the delays fool you, “Artemis Fowl” is an adventure worth taking.
First slated for August 2019, the adaptation of Eoin Colfer’s young adult novel series Artemis Foul seemed bound for trouble when it was delayed into 2020. Then pushed again. Then COVID-19 hit and all bets were off. Making matters worse,… Read More ›