For the last 15 years, LAIKA Studios has amused, entertained, amazed, and, in some cases, downright terrified audiences with their stop-motion animation tales that continually place children at the center, offering a chance for audiences old and young to see… Read More ›
based on a book
Shout! Factory’s LAIKA Studios Edition Examination, Part 1: “Coraline.”
For the last 15 years, LAIKA Studios has amused, entertained, amazed, and, in some cases, downright terrified audiences with their stop-motion animation tales that continually place children at the center, offering a chance for audiences old and young to see… Read More ›
“Yakuza Princess” offers a breakout performance from lead MASUMI. [Fantasia International Film Festival]
The list of Yakuza-centric films runs the gamut from dramas like Lost Girls & Love Hotels (2020) to martial arts films like Chocolate (2008) to science-fiction horror like Versus (2000) to straight up thrillers like Black Rain (1989). What the… Read More ›
Relying too much on melodrama results in “Little Q” being a ruff watch.
Following up his martial arts fantasy actioner Iceman (2014), director Law Wing Cheong moves in the opposite direction with the based-on-a-true-story animal drama Little Q. The story follows a dog, named Little Q, from puppyhood to old age as it… Read More ›
Action thriller “Those Who Wish Me Dead” is the odd whiff from an otherwise great mixture of talent.
On paper, the adaptation of Michael Koryta’s 2014 novel Those Who Wish Me Dead sounds like an absolute cinematic slam dunk. It has Hell or High Water writer Taylor Sheridan as one of the screenwriters on the adaption, as well… Read More ›
Open Dialogue with “The Mosquito Coast” actor Melissa George.
Melissa George has worked with the likes of David Lynch and Steven Soderbergh; she’s been on TV series like Friends, Alias, and Grey’s Anatomy. This Australian talent has taken on roles throughout the years that offer opportunities to explore challenges… Read More ›
Fistful of Features dives into Shout! Factory’s restoration of David Cronenberg’s “The Dead Zone.”
Welcome to Fistful of Features, a celebration of film preservation through physical media and the discussion of cinematic treasures to maintain their relevance in the cultural lexicon. Today we’ll be discussing David Cronenberg’s film adaptation of Stephen King’s The Dead… Read More ›
M. Night Shyamalan’s graphic novel adaptation explores evocatively dark themes, yet falls prey to the same pitfalls of “Old.”
According to the myth, before Oedipus could enter the city of Thebes, he had to answer a question from the mythical creature known as the Sphinx. Answer properly and he could continue on his journey. Answer wrong and he would… Read More ›
“Fear Street Part 3: 1666” sticks the landing as it ends the trilogy where the core narrative began.
“I get knocked down, but I get up again. You are never gonna keep me down” – Chumbawumba The first installment in the Fear Street trilogy of Netflix films was a loving, if not sometimes heavy-handed homage to the resurgence… Read More ›
“Fear Street Part 1: 1994” may be a YA adaptation at its core, but that doesn’t stop it from getting buckwild.
There are some things that just work better on Netflix. For as much as some films like The Old Guard and The Midnight Sky practically beg to be seen on a big screen, the streaming giant does offer films and… Read More ›
“The Unholy” is a painful, sacrilegious experience.
Saint Maud is one of my favorite films I’ve seen this year, and I think it’s a damn shame how A24 treated it by hocking it to EPIX, of all streamers, for its tiny release. It represents the best that… Read More ›
Beware the traps laid within Arrow Video’s restoration of “Irezumi” as the path made lead to your peril.
In the opening moments of Yasuzô Masumura’s Irezumi (1966), we witness a man drug a woman, then design and ink a spider tattoo on her back. As he works on the floor, bent over her, her only reaction is to… Read More ›
Celebrate 50 years of Wonka goodness with “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory” on 4K UHD.
Joining the long list of films receiving 4K UHD restorations is the Mel Stuart classic Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory as it celebrates its 50th anniversary. Of all author Roald Dahl’s books to receive adaptations, this is the one… Read More ›
“Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory” 4K UHD Blu-ray Giveaway
The candyman isn’t the only one capable of bringing you treats. Thanks to Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, EoM can offer you a most dazzling, charming, and, yes, even horrifying adventure via the 4K UHD restoration of Willy Wonka & the… Read More ›
Enjoy the summer blockbuster feeling at home with director Antoine Fuqua’s “Infinite” on Paramount+.
In 2009, author D. Eric Maikranz self-published his book, The Reincarnationist Papers, with a message inside, a “request for help,” offering an agent’s commission (roughly $10K) if someone in his readerships could help get the book noticed by a Hollywood… Read More ›
Open Dialogue with “The Dry” writer/producer/director Robert Connolly and actor Genevieve O’Reilly.
Today on Open Dialogue, Noel T. Manning II interviews The Dry writer, producer, director Robert Connolly and acting talent Genevieve O’Reilly (Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, Rogue One, and Rebels, The Matrix, Tin Star, The Glitch, Tolkien). Starring Eric… Read More ›
What are you, on dope? Snag “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” from Criterion now.
Welcome to Fistful of Features, a celebration of film preservation through physical media and the discussion of cinematic treasures to maintain their relevance in the cultural lexicon. This time we’ll be taking a look at a pop culture milestone coming… Read More ›
Director Dorothy Arzner’s second Criterion release “Merrily We Go To Hell” is a prime example of the impact of politics on art.
In her 21-year career, director Dorothy Arzner directed 16 films, with three others uncredited, and one in which she served as a sequence director. In the history of filmmaking, a career like Arzner’s is largely forgotten between the capitalist and… Read More ›
Open Dialogue with “The Mauritanian” director Kevin Macdonald.
Kevin Macdonald is a documentarian, a feature filmmaker, and a master storyteller. Known for projects like The Last King of Scotland, State of Play, and documentaries on Mick Jagger, Bob Marley and Whitney Houston – Macdonald appreciates all aspects of… Read More ›
Though magnetic and fascinating, “Things Heard & Seen” is ultimately a harmless a slow-burn haunted house tale.
Horror films are like snowflakes. Some may look incredibly similar to each other, but at their heart, each one has something unique and new to bring to the table different than anything before (unless you’re Gus Van Sant remaking Psycho…that… Read More ›