There is, perhaps, nothing more frustrating for a cinephile than to finish a film wherein the pieces are stronger than the whole. Where you can understand the intent of a project, yet, whether by style, structure, or some other technical… Read More ›
There’s something ubiquitous about adolescence that makes coming-of-age stories. It doesn’t matter what era or culture they derive or take place within, because there’s something universal, even in their specificity: the social awkwardness, the longing for connection, the need to… Read More ›
Apartment hunting is a living nightmare. There’s simply no way around the fact that every facet of moving to a new space is meant to test our mental and physical fortitude as humans, looking to see just how much stress… Read More ›
July 2nd, 1980, a comedy from the minds behind The Kentucky Fried Movie (1977) opened wide and forever took hold within the zeitgeist: Airplane!. Now you’re likely thinking, “Surely, you can’t be serious that it’s been 40 years since Airplane!… Read More ›
Take the brilliant stunt choreography of Indonesian action film The Night Comes for Us (2018), the intrigue of Indonesian thriller The Raid: Berandal (2014), and mix with superhero elements you know from various Marvel and DC storylines and you’ll get… Read More ›
Comic book stories have been on an upswing since, arguably, 1998’s Blade. There were comic book films before it, but many that came after tried to replicate the style and authenticity of Wesley Snipes’s badass vampire hunter. Even as other… Read More ›
If you’re one of those folks who prefers physical media, get excited because one of the first 2020-slated films to hit Premium VOD is finally hitting shelves: WB Pictures’s Scoob!. In this soft-reboot of the beloved series, audiences are invited… Read More ›
Released in 1955, The Righteous Brothers’s classic tune “Unchained Melody” tells the story of one lover’s unending yearning for another. The music is soft, yet insistent, as the lyrics describe the relentless hunger for contact. By the time Jerry Zucker’s… Read More ›
There are a few films which define a generation. The Wizard of Oz speaks to those born 1922 -1945, a group which survived not just the Great Depression, but also World War II. For the Boomers, those born post-World War… Read More ›
The way an audience perceives art is by framing it within their own experience. This can be taken literally, as in someone considers their lifetime experience against what they are engaging in, or it can be taken more figuratively, as… Read More ›
In film criticism, there’s a guiding light that I try to stand by: review the film in front of you, not the film you wish you’d seen. That doesn’t mean that you can’t, don’t, or shouldn’t discuss a film’s failings…. Read More ›
Before digging into the ridiculousness that is Enter the Fat Dragon, a remake of a 1978 martial arts comedy, let us take a moment to marvel at the majesty that is Donnie Yen. This actor and highly trained marital artist… Read More ›
There comes a time in just about everyone’s life where suddenly every day feels the same. Wake up, get dressed, eat, work, eat, work, eat, rest, and start it all over again. Maybe you’re lucky and you get to mix… Read More ›
Both of my grandfathers died before my grandmothers (one of whom, my mother’s mother, is still with us), and what remained following their deaths was a peculiar phenomenon that I had never considered before. As women of the 1940s, they… Read More ›
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 ›
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 ›
“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 ›