When it was announced that contemporary cinema’s most interesting enfant, Ari Aster, was developing a COVID-19 western, it did more than turn a few heads. Tackling one of the most uncertain and anxious times in recent memory seemed like an… Read More ›
Pedro Pascal
“Materialists” struggles to reconcile its themes leading to an unsatisfyingly stereotypical plot.
As someone who once lived in The Big Apple, I know a thing or two about dating within its whimsical-yet-chaotic parameters. From trying to have smooches on the subway to debating your dinner on the busy sidewalks of St. Mark’s,… Read More ›
Hungry Fantastic Four fans can satisfy themselves with “First Steps” on home video.
November 1st, 1961: Artist Jack Kirby and writer Stan Lee release the first issue of their new series, The Fantastic Four, introducing the world to Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic, Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Johnny Storm/Human Torch, and Ben Grimm/The Thing. Later dubbed… Read More ›
“Materialists” Blu-ray Giveaway
Writer/director Celine Song broke our hearts in 2023 with Past Lives and returned to theaters this year with another romantic drama, Materialists, possibly to do the same. If watching Dakota Johnson, Chris Evans, and Pedro Pascal in a love triangle sounds like… Read More ›
Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s “Freaky Tales” mythologizes the Oakland Bay area through a punk rock & hip-hop infused anthology.
Anthologies have a long history in storytelling as they gather seemingly disparate narratives into a singular collection. In cinema, the connection between the parts can remain thematic, leaving the stories individual (The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018)); may be through… Read More ›
Strength and Honor: “Gladiator II” comes home on physical formats.
By 2000, actor Russell Crowe had made a name for himself in the U.S. through work in The Quick and the Dead (1994), Virtuosity (1995), L.A. Confidential (1997), and The Insider (1999). It would be his turn as Maximus Decimus… Read More ›
Meet Me at the Movies: Swords, Sandals & Sequels – Noel & Thomas Manning Review “Gladiator II.”
Noel and Thomas Manning sharpen their swords and dust off their sandals to tackle Gladiator II, Ridley Scott’s long-awaited return to the coliseum! This legacy sequel from Paramount Pictures features an all-star cast, including Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal,… Read More ›
“The Wild Robot” continues writer/director Chris Sanders’s run on delivering animated magic for all-ages.
The landscape of animated movies has been ever-changing. Over the years, animation has managed to pack a punch with audiences. Film franchises like The Lego Movie, Inside Out, and How to Train Your Dragon have emotionally stirred viewers to their… Read More ›
Nick Cage is BACK (not that he went anywhere) in the home release of “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.”
We should all be so lucky to have as wild and varied a career in whatever we do as actor Nicolas Cage does in his. He’s been in comedies (Valley Girl; Raising Arizona), romances (Moonstruck; Honeymoon in Vegas), action films… Read More ›
Open Dialogue with “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent” composer Mark Isham.
Nicholas Cage stars as Nick Cage in the crazily undefinable The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. Award-winning composer Mark Isham was tasked with bringing atmospheric life through music to this project. He did so by paying homage to composers of… Read More ›
Life is good. But it could be better with “Wonder Woman 1984” out on home video.
Kicking off Warner Bros. Pictures’s new simultaneous release policy with HBO Max, Wonder Woman 1984 debuted in select theaters and on the burgeoning streaming service on December 25th, 2020. For 31 days, audiences could elect to either head to theaters… Read More ›
Packed inside the superhero excess of “Wonder Woman 1984” is a compelling story of greed versus virtue.
As a follow-up to 2017’s Wonder Woman, director Patty Jenkin’s Wonder Woman 1984 is undeniably ambitious. It seeks to expand the mythos of Themyscria, the home of the Amazons; continue the story of Diana Prince as a continuation of her… Read More ›
‘Kingsman: The Golden Circle’ brings the crazy action we love and little else.
2014’s Kingsman: The Secret Service took audiences by surprise when the spry spy satire proved to have more going on under the hood. As much as it made fun of the outlandish nature recent spy films – even acknowledging the… Read More ›
Zhang Yimou’s ‘THE GREAT WALL’ offers pretty, but hollow fun.
This review was originally published for CLTure on their site on February 18th, 2017. Famed director Zhang Yimou (Hero/House of Flying Daggers) brings the flourish and beauty of Chinese cinema stateside with The Great Wall, a tight action-packed fantasy adventure starring Matt Damon, Tian Jing,… Read More ›