Nightstream returns in its second year with a lineup of films from all around the world, each vying for a different part of your imagination. Whether they titillate or terrify has more to do with the audience than the material… Read More ›
film festival
Strange and bittersweet, Alex Piperno’s “Window Boy Would Also Like to Have a Submarine” ponders humanity’s need for connection. [Nashville Film Festival]
Writer/director Alex Piperno’s first feature-length film, Window Boy Would Also Like to Have a Submarine, debuted in 2020 and is now screening during the 52nd Nashville Film Festival. Piperno’s tale is one of the most unique cinematic experiences I’ve had… Read More ›
Documentary “The Neutral Ground” balances truth and humor on a razor’s edge. [Nashville Film Festival]
In 2015, the New Orleans City Council passed a proposal by then-mayor Mitch Landrieu to remove five monuments around the city dedicated to Confederate soldiers. It took several years for these five to be removed due to legal action attempting… Read More ›
“a-ha: The Movie” makes it clear that it’s no better to be safe than sorry. [Nashville Film Festival]
Music is absolutely a paradox when it comes to its tether to time. It’s at once a product of when it was made, but it can feel entirely free of that period, being discovered or rediscovered over and over again…. Read More ›
Midnight movie “The Murder Podcast” may require a specific frame of mind to appreciate fully. [Nashville Film Festival]
Podcasting is older than most think. With the birth of digital audio playback technology in the late 1990s and early 2000s, most think of podcasts as coming up with those devices, but they really started well before that in the… Read More ›
One-woman show “Faye” finds hope in the horror. [Nashville Film Festival]
It’s confounding the lengths people will go to denigrate or dismiss the horror genre in favor of more populist genres like action, drama, or comedy. For generations, horror stories have been used as social warnings, explorations of loss, and even… Read More ›
Writer/director Jean Luc Herbulot’s “Saloum” will make you believe in legends. [Fantastic Fest]
The premise is a simple one: three hired guns extract and protect a druglord but find themselves seeking shelter in a remote village in Saloum, Senegal, when their transport malfunctions, landing them in a situation they could never predict. With… Read More ›
Enjoy some wholesome tokusatsu fun in Eric McEver’s “Iké Boys.” [Fantastic Fest]
Tell me if you’ve heard this one before: a group of outcasts finds themselves at the center of a prophecy that holds the fate of the world in its hands. In brief, that’s the summary for Eric McEver’s (A Utopia)… Read More ›
“Baby Assassins” is a bubbly action crime comedy that’s not afraid to kick a lot of ass. [Fantastic Fest]
If you’ve ever sat absorbing something for the first time — a song, a book, a play, a movie — and thought to yourself, “I can’t wait to revisit this,” then you’ll have some sense of what will await you… Read More ›
If you can get on its frequency, Bertrand Mandico’s fantasy western “After Blue (Dirty Paradise)” is a surreal ride. [Fantastic Fest]
Thanks to the recent release of James Wan’s Malignant (2021), there’s been a lot of talk within certain circles about the desire to see big swings in cinema that create vigorous division over something good but safe. Having not seen… Read More ›
A riveting thriller from start to finish comes down to “The Execution.” [Fantastic Fest]
Between 1978 – 1990, a series of brutal murders were committed by Russian serial killer Andrei Chikatilo, totaling more than 50 women and children before he was captured, convicted, and executed via firing-squad. This absolute horror serves as the narrative… Read More ›
“Holidays At All Cost (Vacances á Tout Prix)” has enough unique flourishes to make a well-worn journey worth the travel. [Dances With Films Festival]
Vacations are meant to be an enjoyable time of rest, relaxation, and quality time with one’s family. Of course, when you get to a certain age, odds are that you will find yourself having gone through your fair share of… Read More ›
In the style of teen classics like “The Breakfast Club” and “Dead Poets Society,” Daigo Matsui’s “Remain in Twilight” appeals to our restless youthful spirits with wit and sincerity. [Fantasia International Film Festival]
It’s not every day we get the chance to chat with a loved one who has passed on. Skeptics would say that we never get that opportunity. If you’ve lost someone important to you, you’ve probably at least imagined having… Read More ›
Discover new life in “All the Moons (Todas las Lunas),” an enchanting and bittersweet vampire fantasy. [Fantasia International Film Festival]
No country’s literature or filmography is short of romance stories. If a writer tells you they’re working on a piece about love, you’ll probably assume they’re talking about romantic love. We live in a culture that prioritizes romance and marriage,… Read More ›
Russian comedy “Sweetie, You Won’t Believe It” is a road trip horror comedy you’ve just gotta see. [Fantasia International Film Festival]
Everyone has a thing that they look for before deciding if they want to engage with a piece of art. It could be the cover of an album that lures them in, the style of brush strokes crafting a painting,… Read More ›
“The 12 Day Tale of the Monster that Died in 8 (8日で死んだ怪獣の12日の物語)” is a carefully produced, lovingly crafted COVID-related tale. [Fantasia International Film Festival]
I don’t mess with COVID-related content. I’ve lived it for the past 18 months and, when I watch a movie, I absolutely do not want to be reminded of it in any way. Locked Down? I refuse to watch it…. Read More ›
“Baby, Don’t Cry” is a coming-of-age fable for those who don’t fit in. [Fantasia International Film Festival]
When most people hear the term “coming of age” to describe a film, they might jump to something like The Breakfast Club (1985), Sixteen Candles (1984), Weird Science (1985) or some other John Hughes film. They’re often films of self-exploration… Read More ›
Zom-com “Brain Freeze” has its heart in the right place, yet still arrives DOA. [Fantasia International Film Festival]
Fine, let’s just get it out of the way: I am not a very big fan of zombie films on the base level. There are many other things that can make a zombie film good, that I can identify with… Read More ›
Undeniable cast chemistry shines bright against the dark forces at play in “When I Consume You.” [Fantasia International Film Festival]
Do your worst childhood fears ever come back to haunt you? Does it feel like the monsters in your closet never left? Most of us outgrow our fear of shadows, monsters, and the dark, and we can now keep the… 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 ›