If there’s one thing that’s been an improvement for movie fans since the start of the pandemic, it’s been the increased access to new films. With the theaters all but shut down, films whose releases weren’t moved over and over… Read More ›
based on a book
Animated action caper “The Bad Guys” asks what makes a good being a good being.
July 15th, 2015, saw the release of Aaron Blabey’s kids book “The Bad Guys: Episode 1.” It introduced the world to Mr. Wolf, Mr. Piranha, Mr. Snake, and Mr. Shark and their quest to shift how the world sees them… Read More ›
Director Vittorio De Sica’s fantastical dramedy “Miracle in Milan (Miracolo a Milano)” is the latest release to join the Criterion Collection.
“You have to keep me in shoes.” Of all the stories my late grandmother Naomi Pearl Russin Royal told, the one involving my late grandfather’s proposal and her response always amused me. As she told it, she had larger feet… Read More ›
“Death on the Nile” and in your home, thanks to the home release.
Continuing their reimaging of Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot detective stories, Oscar-winning actor/director Kenneth Branagh (Belfast) and screenwriter Michael Green (Murder on the Orient Express) re-team for Death on the Nile. This star-studded crime drama not only offers thrills, chills, and… Read More ›
Paramount commemorates 15 years for Antoine Fuqua’s “Shooter” with a first-time 4K UHD limited-edition steelbook.
It’s fair to say that by 2007 Mark Wahlberg had established himself beyond the musician that captivated audiences with his good vibrations. He’d terrified us as obsessive boyfriend David McCall (Fear), dazzled us as a big bright shining star as… Read More ›
Even newbies will get into dark fantasy manga adaptation “Jujutsu Kaisen 0.”
Started by creator Gege Akutami in March 2018, Weekly Shōnen Jump series Jujutsu Kaisen is a supernatural horror/comedy action series involving sorcerers who protect the world’s population by destroying or controlling curses (primarily sentient monster-like creatures) that come to being… Read More ›
Explore the mysteries of Guillermo del Toro’s “Nightmare Alley” via three home release special features.
Few directors can have a small body of work and yet feel so pervasive, so integral, so inspiring as writer/director Guillermo del Toro. When he’s not writing or directing one of his own projects, he’s producing or raving about someone… Read More ›
Every element of Damien Power’s “No Exit” works together to create an engaging adult thriller.
Remember adult thrillers? Remember when major studios actually made them? James Mangold’s Identity at Columbia, Tarsem Singh’s The Cell at New Line Cinema, or even Nimrod Antal’s criminally underrated Vacancy at Screen Gems. It doesn’t really matter if films like… Read More ›
If you’re going to walk the “The Green Mile,” the 4K UHD remaster makes the bittersweet prison drama a visual treat.
Prison movies come in a variety of flavors. There’re comedies like the various incarnations of The Longest Yard, science fiction horror like 1992’s Alien³, action like 2013’s Escape Plan, and dramas like 2001’s The Last Castle. If I had to… Read More ›
Why commit to misery when “The Sky is Everywhere?”
There’s an old saying, “Time heals all wounds,” which implies that one becomes whole again after a period of restoration. This isn’t the case, though, really. As was reminded to me recently, wounds heal, you’re just not as you once… Read More ›
Vietnamese childrens’ story “Maika” doesn’t tread any path you haven’t trod, but that doesn’t make it any less fun or emotional. [Sundance Film Festival]
A young boy struggling with loss. An outsider who brings the opportunity for healing. A journey that mixes the fantastic with the real. This describes any number of child-centered stories from cinematic classics like E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) and The… Read More ›
The bonus features accompanying Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune: Part One” delight longtime fans while enriching the experience of the novice.
There are some works of science fiction that never seem to let go once they get their grasp on society. William Gibson’s Neuromancer was published in 1984, but it still felt just as vital and prescient when I read it… Read More ›
Director Ridley Scott’s debate-worthy “The Last Duel” makes plain the fallacy of male superiority.
Trigger Warning: The film The Last Duel is centered on a rape. As such, the content of the film may be difficult to discuss without bringing up specifics that may be triggering to some individuals. More and more it seems… Read More ›
Uneven in tone and narrative at times, “Schemes in Antiques” isn’t the con romp you expect, but it’s a ride worth taking.
Chinese adventure hybrid Schemes in Antiques from director Derek Kwok (Immortal Demon Slayer) may feel, to American audiences, like a mash-up between National Treasure (2004) and Ocean’s Eleven (2001). It’s at times silly, serious, delicate, and violent, all while using… Read More ›
Noir “Nightmare Alley” boasts a packed cast and stunning visuals.
“Is he man or beast?” barks Willem Dafoe’s Clem, the man who runs the oddities exhibit at a carnival, enticing people to look down upon an enclosure where a figure is hidden. These people have come to see something horrendous… Read More ›
The fantastic spectacle of animated adventure “The Monkey King: Reborn” almost makes up for the thin script.
Cultural legends and myths have been fodder for storytelling (books, music, video games, movies) since the birth of each of them. Why not take something that audiences are already familiar with and either retell or reform it in a way… Read More ›
Paul Verhoeven’s “Benedetta” weaves luridity in with heavy, impenetrable narratives to create something with a surprising amount of emotional heft.
This is absolutely a safe space to admit that Paul Verhoeven is one of the most well-rounded, self-aware filmmakers to ever live. We’re all thinking it, so someone might as well say it. His filmography can sometimes read like a… Read More ›
Don’t blink. Don’t move. Writer/director Jane Campion’s western thriller “The Power of the Dog” compels you to heel.
Director Jane Campion’s (The Piano) latest project is an adaptation of author Thomas Savage’s 1967 novel The Power of the Dog. Her film, a taunt western-drama, chronicles the intersecting lives of two families across several months in Montana 1925. Each… Read More ›
Large in scope but small in focus, “My Hero Academia: World Heroes’ Mission” is everything and nothing like you’d expect from the long-running series.
Just after season five of popular anime My Hero Academia ends its run in the U.S. and before the sadness of no new episodes can set in, fans of Class 1-A may rejoice in a new adventure featuring their favorite… Read More ›
Despite being smart and compelling on its own merits, there’s little original within “No One Gets Out Alive.”
As a writer, you have to have some insane measure of confidence to title a horror novel No One Gets Out Alive and still purport to have something up your sleeve as a storyteller. Adam Nevill’s 2014 novel seemingly did… Read More ›