On the whole I have not been a fan of the DC Extended Universe, mostly because Zack Snyder is a hack. Over the last year, however, things have noticeably improved, thanks to lighthearted affairs like Shazam, which - like the Marvel Cinematic Universe - leans more into the comedic and human aspects of its characters rather … Continue reading A Raptor-ous Good Time – Birds of Prey
I see as many movies as I can over the course of a calendar year, but it's an all but impossible task to see everything that might be considered for the Academy Awards. This was especially true for 2019, as I had to track down two International Feature nominees that hadn't been released stateside by … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – Digging for Oscar Gold
What? You didn't think I'd stop going to new movies just because we're in the middle of the Oscar Blitz, did you? While January is unquestionably a wasteland for the worst new movies to quickly premiere and die, I'm still going to take my opportunities to see new stuff as often as I can. The … Continue reading There’s Fuckery Afoot – The Gentlemen
Let me paint you a picture. It's New Year's Eve, literally the last day of 2019, and I've got nothing to do before my roommates host a party that night. Every movie I planned on seeing was in the books, so what was I going to do? There was only one new movie left, and … Continue reading Even My Allergies Said Stay Away – Cats
Oscar nominations are just over a day away, and when they come down on Monday morning, five filmmakers are going to get the thrill of a lifetime, as their movie will be up for the Documentary Feature prize. Late last month, the Academy narrowed over 190 submissions down to a lucky 15, which were then … Continue reading Back Row Thoughts – The 2019 Doc Feature Shortlist
I'll be right upfront with you guys. I don't like Terrence Malick movies. With the exception of The Thin Red Line, every film of his I've seen can basically be reduced to two bullet points: Beautifully shot, but unbelievably pretentious. A decade ago, baffling praise was heaped upon him for The Tree of Life, which I … Continue reading Snail Mail at a Snail’s Pace – A Hidden Life
The late Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia, a staunch proponent of capital punishment, once famously said that there had not been, "a single case—not one—in which it is clear that a person was executed for a crime he did not commit." That firebrand assertion implies that if it were ever proven that an innocent man … Continue reading Forgive, Don’t Forget – Clemency
It's amazing how something plain and simple can expand into something beyond belief or control. It happens every day. A rumor spreads fast and loose, ballooning into an outright scandal. A traffic accident at the wrong time and place can escalate into a humongous multi-car pileup. A moment of levity from a mother and a … Continue reading The March of War! – 1917
The Oscar nominations are right around the corner, and I've still got a pretty sizable backlog of movies to review. Thankfully, I can give you two for the price of one (or a billion, it's all free) with one more edition of "DownStream." While not nearly as aggressive as Netflix, Amazon Prime has put out … Continue reading DownStream – Prime Viewing
In my review of Richard Jewell, I mentioned that the Atlanta Journal-Constitution demanded the film contain a disclaimer that the events and characters within were mostly imagined for dramatic purposes, due to the film's harsh, sexist, ill-conceived, and almost certainly fabricated depiction of Kathy Scruggs, who's been dead nearly 20 years and has no way of … Continue reading The Existence of a Villain Does Not Make Heroes – Bombshell
