Through his first two films - The Witch and the criminally underrated The Lighthouse - Robert Eggers has already proven himself to be an absolute master at setting mood, atmosphere, and tone. His careful eye for production design, combined with his uncanny ability to draw out the most intense performances possible from his actors, has … Continue reading Valhalla, I Am Coming – The Northman
There's a fine line to walk when doing meta commentary within a movie. Essentially, when you do something so self-reflexive and self-referential, you're catering mostly to an audience that knows the subject with more than just passing familiarity. As such, you open yourself up to more scrutiny whenever you flub something. This manifests a lot … Continue reading Don’t Call it a Comeback! – The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent
Film is a fickle artform sometimes. Every once in a while, no matter how good an idea is, or how earnest the intent, the final product just doesn't work. Even when you look at all the individual elements, there are those rare moments when it all falls flat for one reason or another. And workability … Continue reading Kill Your Self – Dual
When the first Sonic the Hedgehog movie came out just over two years ago, a lot of flaws were forgiven because Paramount as a studio engendered a ton of goodwill by listening to fan reactions to the film's first teasers and delaying its release in order to fix Sonic's nightmare fuel design. The final product … Continue reading Power Bump – Sonic the Hedgehog 2
Normally I try to put out a review within 24-48 hours of seeing a movie. Sometimes my schedule gets in the way, but more often than not, I want to critique something while it's still fresh in my mind. That was not possible in this case. It's not that Everything Everywhere All at Once didn't … Continue reading Embrace the Chaos – Everything Everywhere All at Once
Going over the film trailers for the April edition of TFINYW, one jumped out to me so strongly that I just had to include it as this month's "Redemption Reel." Written and directed by Richard Linklater, Apollo 10 1/2 had that wonderfully odd, imaginative charm that has been at the forefront of Linklater's best films, … Continue reading A Moon Age Daydream – Apollo 10 1/2
Back in February, I named Studio 666, a new film by the vanguards of rock, Foo Fighters, as my "Redemption Reel" for that month's edition of "This Film is Not Yet Watchable." However, between my work and the Oscar Blitz, I wasn't able to get around to actually seeing it during its limited theatrical run. … Continue reading Dave’s Not Here, Man – Studio 666
In 2014, Graham Moore was relatively unknown. A novelist and writer for the short-lived TV spinoff of 10 Things I Hate About You, Moore garnered some attention a couple of years before for writing a screenplay adapted from a biography of Alan Turing, one of the pioneers of computer programming. That script eventually became The … Continue reading Pulling the Thread – The Outfit
Well folks, the last major hurdle of this year's Oscar Blitz is complete. With the viewing of Great Freedom last week, all films to view in and around the ceremony have been seen. I can officially close the book on the 2021 cinematic canon. We've still got two more weeks left of Oscar coverage, of … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – And the Rest… of the Blitz
Earlier this month, I took the rare step of including Pixar's latest movie, Turning Red, in the monthly "This Film is Not Yet Watchable" column. That almost seems like tempting the cinema gods, right? Saying that a trailer for a Pixar project looks bad? Pixar, the studio that's only had maybe three misfires outside of … Continue reading Panda Express Yourself – Turning Red
I Actually Paid To See This 