2020’s been one series of surprises after another. You’d run out of fingers trying to list all of the unexpected events and I’m here to present you with another: Trolls World Tour is a near-perfect exploration of cultural appropriation and… Read More ›
For a population currently living through a viral pandemic that is wreaking havoc on the world, zombie films feel almost a little too on the nose at this point. Take into account how it’s now clear that a good portion… Read More ›
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 ›
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 ›
“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 ›
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 ›
In the middle of shooting a zombie film, the cast and crew find themselves fighting off an actual zombie attack. This is the premise for the 2017 release One Cut of the Dead from director Shin’ichirô Ueda adapted from the… Read More ›
Director Dorthy Arzner’s Dance, Girl, Dance is joining the ranks of other Criterion Collection releases in May 2020 alongside The Great Escape (1963), a collection of five of Martin Scorsese’s short films titled Scorsese Shorts, Wildelife (2018), Husbands (1970), and… Read More ›
Released on VOD and digital April 2020, horror-comedy We Summon the Darkness is making its way to home video and is coming straight for your living rooms. Directed by Marc Meyers (My Friend Dahmer) from a script by Alan Trezza… Read More ›
When the words “remake” or “reboot” get thrown out, the reaction online is often filled with a great deal of righteous indignation. Along these cries of “you’re destroying my childhood!” often comes a strange forgetfulness that a new version doesn’t… Read More ›
The 2017 supernatural-horror-drama Tigers Are Not Afraid (Vuelven) from writer/director Issa López (Casi divas) is truly an extraordinary cinematic experience. It pulls you in, charms you, enthralls you, rips you to shreds, and mends back the pieces. Thanks in part… Read More ›
Newly married daughter and her husband murdered. No prints, no evidence of any sort. An NYC detective left with nothing but his wits as he tries to track down the murderer. This is the basic premise of thriller The Postcard… Read More ›
There are some films which, upon even the briefest of beginnings, you realize are something special. Such is the case with director Autumn de Wilde’s first feature film EMMA., an adaption of the Jane Austen novel from writer Eleanor Catton… Read More ›
Most of the world is familiar with the Dalai Lama as a Tibetan spiritual leader who has won the Nobel Peace Prize for his nonviolent approaches during times of adversity. What many do not know is that, along with his… Read More ›
If you were alive in the late ‘80s, you’d be hard-pressed to meet someone who didn’t know Tom Cruise. He’d made some waves as greaser Steve Randle in the adaptation of S. E. Hinton’s The Outsiders (1983), entertained as entrepreneurial… Read More ›
There’s an authenticity that radiates outward from every frame of writer/director Stella Meghie’s The Photograph. One thing that keeps being repeated in each of the three brief featurettes included with the home release of The Photograph is the simplicity of… Read More ›
Described as “a lively action flick with a samurai twist,” latest Well Go USA release Samurai Marathon meets that description with a unique vigor. Directed by Bernard Rose (Candyman) and adapted from the novel “The Marathon Samurai: Five Tales of… Read More ›
As I left the theater in early February, I knew instantly that director Cathy Yan’s Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) was not for me. The post-fight margaritas, the bullet-proof bustier, the severity of Black… Read More ›
Trigger Warning for discussion of bullying, suicide, sexual assault, and violence. In a conversation between an older and younger cop early into the 135-minute Better Days, one says to the other something to the effect that either you were the… Read More ›
When you do something for the first time, you don’t expect a grand slam, even out of a big swing. You might hope, you might dream, but you’re more likely to keep expectations close. For author John Brandon, this meant… Read More ›