When I read a book, I feel accomplished. When I read a book based on a film, I feel elitist. When I read a book based on a film before its release, I feel completely untouchable. I know I shouldn’t,… Read More ›
Netflix
Sci-fi crime thriller “Project Power” asks what you’re willing to give up to become something more.
Superhero stories are in vogue right now between the mass popularity of big screen films from Marvel and DC and the programs, primarily DC properties, which are all over television and the fact that many of the showrunners, producers, and… Read More ›
Reaction-inducing stunts & kinetic cast chemistry pull up a predictable plot in Netflix’s “The Old Guard.”
The list of films that deserve a theatrical release grows longer the further into 2020 quarantine goes. April brought the kinetic and pulse-pounding Extraction; May offered up the colorful escapism of The High Note and comedic hijinks of The Lovebirds;… Read More ›
Spike Lee’s “Da 5 Bloods” beckons audiences to look deeper.
As a writer/director, Spike Lee is not one to be described as subtle. His works, whether exploring racial tensions in Do The Right Thing (1989), modern day minstrel shows and cultural appropriation in Bamboozled (2000), tackling the cycle of violence… Read More ›
The Cine-Men, Episode 31: The Films of Tom Cruise
Top Gun: Maverick may not been hitting theaters this summer, but that won’t stop Douglas and Darryl from digging into the entire Tom Cruise catalog to identify out favorite films. Considering he’s been making movies since 1981, narrowing the field… Read More ›
Breezy comedy “The Lovebirds” takes a light approach to a dark premise.
Despite things being as they are in 2020, actors Kumail Nanjiani and Issa Rae are having a really solid year. Rae’s The Photograph is an engrossing story focused on a mature love, while her HBO program, Insecure, is all over… Read More ›
Netflix Original “Extraction” is a theater-quality adventure that deserves a big screen.
The names Joe and Anthony Russo have become synonymous with big blockbuster comic book films thanks to their work with Marvel Studios directing Captain America: The Winter Solider, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame. However you… Read More ›
The Cine-Men, Episode 27: Films To Get Lost In
Not ones to let a pandemic keep them down, The Cine-Men return through the magic of Zoom*! In this brief minisode, hosts Darryl Mansel and Douglas Davidson do a little catch-up since its been a minute since they’ve been able… Read More ›
A Conversation with actor Laura Dern.
Golden Globe winner and Oscar nominee Laura Dern shares thoughts about the Netflix Original Marriage Story
Crime thriller “The Irishman” is Martin Scorsese at his most self-assured.
In his recent years, and more specifically in recent months, Martin Scorsese has really stepped away from the spotlight…oh my god, could you imagine if I was serious with that? The argument has been made that Scorsese made the controversial… Read More ›
If you want a Prestige Picture, look elsewhere. If you’re in the mood for some fun, then it’s hail to “The King.” [Film Fest 919]
The idea of another prestige period drama is almost physically exhausting to my body at this point. Hell, The King isn’t even the first prestige period drama for Netflix in the last year, with David Mackenzie’s admirable, but not heavy-hitting,… Read More ›
Craig Brewer’s “Dolemite is My Name” is an absolute joy from beginning to end. [Film Fest 919]
Everyone loves a good comeback story. Everyone cheered when Rudy made that touchdown at the end of Rudy, everyone loves Robert Downey Jr.’s comeback in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and today, we get to celebrate not only one, but two,… Read More ›
Fernando Meirelles’s “The Two Popes” explores the push-pull involved in church reformation via the conversation of two old men. [Film Fest 919]
In another life, I swear I’d be Catholic. Of course, I’m too much of a dirty sodomite to get away with it in this life, but something about the sheer pageantry of it all feels more like drag than RuPaul’s… Read More ›
Through nuance, “Marriage Story” blooms into full emotional devastation. [Film Fest 919]
Soulmates are bullshit and you know it. The idea that there is a single person for you in the entire world only for you is laughable at the very least. There are dozens of people in your town who you… Read More ›
Netflix Original “Point Blank” is a remake both familiar and unique.
In the battle for consumer attention, there are few who can proclaim the sheer amount of content Netflix offers on a daily basis. As one of the original disruptors of consumed content (first as a disc-only service before shifting to… Read More ›
“Unicorn Store” ponders the eternal question: does growing old mean growing up?
Was is it about adulthood that makes people seemingly accept growing cynical and world-weary? Who created the rules which say that doing things one way, and only that way, is the right way? That once you reach a certain age,… Read More ›
Actor Chiwetel Ejiofor’s “The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind” makes a strong impression for a directorial debut.
Oscar-nominated actor Chiwetel Ejiofor makes his screenwriting and directorial debut with The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, based on the autobiographical book from William Kamkwamba. Detailing the remarkable story of a young man in an extremely poverty-stricken region of Malawi… Read More ›
Alfonso Cuarón’s “Roma” is perfectly personal, effortlessly ephemeral, and absolutely devastating.
When Gravity came out in 2013, it physically changed me as a person, as I have not breathed the same since. I saw the film five times throughout its theatrical run, all five times in IMAX 3D, taking a different… Read More ›
It’s the details which keep “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs” on key.
Marking their 18th feature, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs feels like the epitome of the Coen Brothers. It’s as if someone might want to introduce the Coens’ work to someone who’d never seen a single one of their films before… Read More ›
Brutal & harrowing, “22 July” explores the violence perpetrated within a single afternoon. [Film Fest 919 Review]
Representing EoM as press, contributor Hunter Heilman attended the first annual Film Fest 919 in Raleigh, NC, to review several films that are either in limited release now or are yet to be released. This review of 22 July is merely… Read More ›