The International Feature category offers an incredible array of films from a wide variety of artists, but one of the more unique aspects is the political one. Each country that participates and submits a film does so through their own selection process in line with their national laws. As such, there is often controversy when … Continue reading The Tangled Web – Holy Spider
When I named The Estate as this month's "Redemption Reel," I may have oversold things. Reading it over again, in three paragraphs it might seem like I was pre-endorsing the film as one of the great comedies of the year, and if that's how it came off, I apologize. Mostly I was just delighted to … Continue reading Slags to Riches – The Estate
As I mentioned far too many times I'm sure in the last year, the idea of remaking a previous Best Picture winner is essentially blasphemous as far as I'm concerned. In almost every case it either feels like the height of hubris, with a filmmaker basically saying they can do it better despite the older … Continue reading Down in the Trenches – All Quiet on the Western Front
There is one true master when it comes to stop-motion animation filled with delightfully macabre imagery, and that's Henry Selick. Beginning his directorial career with The Nightmare Before Christmas, he's never shied away from giving audiences a dark, funny, and sneakily emotional treat through his work. But it's been a long time since his most … Continue reading Death’s Rich Pageant – Wendell & Wild
The issue of abortion rights is one I'm deeply passionate about, mostly because I grew up in two almost diametrically opposed environments on the subject. On the one hand, I was raised in a household of women (I was the only male amongst my sister, mother, and grandmother until I was 13, and had frequent … Continue reading Life Line – Call Jane
I think we can all agree that racism and bigotry are bad. At least, I wish that was the case, as we see all the time that those horrid ideas are still alive and well in American society (and if you subscribe to them, please leave, as I want nothing to do with you). But … Continue reading Be a Mensch – Armageddon Time
I mentioned in the October edition of TFINYW that the latest DCEU film, Black Adam, looked from the trailer to be a ripoff of just about every superhero movie trope in existence. What I didn't expect was that it would be so much more, in that it would also crib from non-comic properties in its … Continue reading Sham Shazam – Black Adam
As a preface for this review of Martin McDonagh's fourth feature, The Banshees of Inisherin, I'd like to share a brief anecdote from my teenage years. The summer after eighth grade, my family moved from suburban Delaware to rural upstate New York, the starting and ending points being two towns with the same name - … Continue reading Fingering Your Friends – The Banshees of Inisherin
The murder of Emmett Till is one of the most tragic and important moments in American history. Even when I was a kid, it was learning about his lynching that crystallized the idea of racism in my mind. I had been taught about things like slavery and the Civil Rights Movement, and how great people … Continue reading August 1955 and Everything After – Till
Before I get started, a brief programming note. I've been playing catch-up for the past couple of weeks after catching a cold that turned into COVID. Thankfully I had no serious symptoms and the virus is already out of my system, but it definitely had the unwanted effect of fucking with my schedule for a … Continue reading Open Your Eyes – Decision to Leave
I Actually Paid To See This 