There are a lot of reasons why The Martian was one of my favorite films of 2015, and why it ranks in my top five for the entire decade of the 2010s. It's smart, funny, visually spellbinding, and in one of the greatest miracles in cinema history, it made math actually seem cool. When Matt … Continue reading Yo Adrian! – Project Hail Mary
What's the opposite of a perfect storm? Whatever it is, I think that's what describes the circumstances surrounding the final two films from 2025 that I have yet to review, at least in this space. Usually I try to review something pretty much as soon as I see it, within 48 hours if I can … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – Womp Womp
We're a week away from the Oscars, and starting tomorrow, the Blitz enters the home stretch. Even though I published my first new review of the year yesterday, I still have five more films from 2025 left to cover. Two of them I'll hold until Saturday, as they kind of fit into their own separate … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – So Much Blitzing, Part 4
I will fully admit, I did not have high hopes for Pixar's latest feature, Hoppers. It was coming out in early March, which is a very iffy statement for the studio's confidence in the quality. The trailers were not encouraging, at times making the film seem like an updated version of the unwatchable G-Force, and … Continue reading Nice Beaver! – Hoppers
An odd thought occurred to me today. We're fully two months into 2026, and I still haven't seen a "new" movie yet this year. Sure, I've taken in a bunch as part of the Blitz, but nothing for the official 2026 canon yet. And I'm still working my way through the review backlog, with nine … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – So Much Blitzing, Part 3
As we get closer and closer to Oscar Night, there are moments when we take stock of the year that was in cinema as a whole. So much is ignored when it comes to Awards Season, so it's often difficult to remember and recognize the quality - or lack thereof - when truly assessing the … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – So Much Blitzing, Part 2
I do my best each year to see as many movies as possible, with a particular igniting of the proverbial afterburners as we get closer to Oscar season. I know I'll never have full feature completion by the time nominations come out and the Blitz begins, but most of the time I come within a … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – So Much Blitzing, Part 1
In less than 48 hours, I'll begin the Oscar Blitz, and run a gauntlet for five weeks breaking down every category and nominee, as I've done every year that I've kept this blog up. As I write this, I still have 11 films from 2025 on my review backlog, not counting the nine I had … Continue reading DownStream – For Your Consolidation, Part 3: Narrative
Every year, no matter how many films I see, there will always be a few that slip through the cracks during their theatrical runs, and inevitably some of them will be nominated for Oscars, including in high-profile categories like Best Picture. I've never had feature completion before nominations come out, though I've gotten close a … Continue reading DownStream – The Pre-Blitz Catch-Up
I've harped a lot on my annual quixotic ambition to clear the Animated Feature list, even though I've never been able to accomplish the goal. What I do make a normal habit of is dusting off the shortlists for International Feature and Documentary Feature. This is oftentimes a very difficult mission, as strictly speaking, the … Continue reading DownStream – For Your Consolidation, Part 2: Documentary
I Actually Paid To See This 