‘Creed III’ Wins a Split Decision, But Jonathan Majors Delivers a Knockout (Review)
If the only thing you knew about Creed III is that it’s a boxing movie, if you went in otherwise completely blind—no trailer, no prior knowledge of the franchise or the Rocky franchise that it’s spun off of—you know by the time the title card pops up that the film will build towards a big […]
The Whale Delivers a Heavy Dose of Brendan Fraser at His Best (Review)
The Whale is a high gravity movie that asks a lot of its audience and demands even more from its actors. Darren Aronofsky (Requiem for a Dream) offers a film version of Samuel D. Hunter’s 2012 stage drama of the same name while making a clear commitment to theatricality. The film’s cramped set very closely […]
M. Night Shayamalan Wants You to Make a Choice in “Knock at the Cabin” (Review)
Knock at the Cabin (2023) is a quintessential M. Knight Shyamalan movie but with a biblical twist. It has a dramatic plot, an A-list anchor, and (SPOILER ALERT) a gratuitous cameo by the man himself. It’s a dyed-in-the-wool formula that M. Knight Shyamalan has successfully employed for 30 years. That said, his overall body of […]
“The First Step” Is the Hardest (Review)
The First Step, is a documentary film about Van Jones’ difficult challenge working to pass The First Step Act; a landmark criminal justice reform law, while working with a hostile Presidential administration. But as we see repeatedly throughout the film, Van’s greatest struggle was not working with the Trump administration, but convincing progressive activists and […]
With ‘Irreversible: Straight Cut’, Gaspar Noé Makes a Brutal Film Even More Depressing (Review)
Gaspar Noé doesn’t only not shy away from the grotesque, the disturbing, the shocking, he seems to revel in it. You can uncharitably view some of his work as mere excuses to show you things you never thought you’d see on a movie screen. A more fair way to look at it is that we […]
Strong actors attempt to elevate budget filmmaking in “The Locksmith” (Review)
The Locksmith has all the makings of an independent film, right down to its rookie director Nicolas Harvard, budget cinema writer Joe Russo (not that Joe Russo), and non-traditional setting (it was filmed in New Mexico). But it also boasts some big names like Ryan Phillippe (Shooter), Kate Bosworth (Superman Returns), and Ving Rhames (Mission […]
Andrea Riseborough Gives a Loud, Oscar-y Performance in Emotional Drama ‘To Leslie’ (Review)
When I was in middle school, a classmate’s family won the lottery. I don’t remember the exact amount, but my increasingly hazy memory is telling me it was in the tens of millions. I have no idea what that infusion of money did for the family that won it, or what ultimately became of them. […]
Shortcomings: Randall Park Shows Directorial Talent (Sundance Review)
Someday, Randall Park is going to make a great movie. You can feel his smarts clearly as you watch Shortcomings, his directorial debut which premiered in the US Dramatic Competition at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Alas, today is not that day. It’s a film that feels fueled by good ideas and noble intentions […]
“Sometimes I Think About Dying” Finds Connection in the Mundane (Sundance Review)
Sometimes I Think About Dying premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. An expansion of the short film of the same name which premiered at Sundance 2019, the film tells the story of a young woman struggling with the ennui brought about by an apparently meaningless office existence. Fran is the sort of woman […]
Vengeance: BJ Novak’s Magnum Opus (Review)
When I was a teenager I once remarked to my older brother, who for as long as I can remember has shaped the way I think about subjects ranging from sports to serious world issues, that I thought it was incredible that Weezer came out of the gate with their fantastic self-titled debut album (known […]
Honor Society: When Subverting Expectations Goes Right (Review)
Honor (Angourie Rice, Spider-Man: Far From Home) has it all figured out: high school friendships are superficial, her parents’ relationship is loveless and merely bound together by her existence, and anyone still in her small town is stuck there because of their own shortcomings. Honor does not want to be another statistic, so from her […]
DC League of Super-Pets: A Fun Family Friendly Adventure (Review)
Existential Crises happen at the funniest times. As I, one of four people in the movie theater on this particular Friday afternoon, sat in my assigned leather recliner chair patiently waiting for DC League of Super-Pets, a thought crossed my mind; “have we gone too far?” I have already paid to see my fair share […]