In one of the sadder examples of where the entertainment industry is going these days, CBS Films has been absorbed back into its parent company, and from here on out will only be producing content for CBS All Access, yet another streaming site that isn't worth buying unless you really, really, really want to watch new Star Trek. … Continue reading My Smartphone Ex-Girlfriend – Jexi
Korean filmmaker Bong Joon-ho has, in his relatively short career, established an international reputation as a man who can bend genre to his whim. His highly successful output thus far has blended sci-fi, fantasy, horror, and suspense - oftentimes within the same piece of work - but he always grounds his films in the reality … Continue reading The Sweet Smell of Excess – Parasite
Ang Lee is one of the most celebrated filmmakers in the world. His films have garnered a total of 12 Academy Awards from 38 nominations, including two wins for himself as Best Director. He's been one of the greatest crossover auteurs in the industry, wowing audiences with foreign films (The Wedding Banquet, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) … Continue reading You’re Gonna Die Twice – Gemini Man
I'm not the biggest comic book nerd. Frankly, it would have been WAY too expensive of a hobby when I was a kid. But I've always had a fondness for certain members of the cape-and-mask set, particularly Batman. As an adult, I like him because he's seemingly the only billionaire on Earth that uses his … Continue reading I’m About to Break! – Joker
One of the most annoying marketing ploys of the movie industry is a misleading trailer. The primary goal, of course, is to get people to hand over their cash and watch the movie, no matter how good or bad it is. Still, when you have to outright lie to make your sale, it leaves a … Continue reading No Diamonds, No Diapers – Lucy in the Sky
I'm not sure if I've mentioned it on this blog before, but my all-time favorite movie is Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket. Apart from the stark sense of realism that was Kubrick's trademark, the performances of Matthew Modine, Vincent D'Onofrio, and the late great R. Lee Ermey provided the perfect capsule of how the fog of … Continue reading Monkey See War, Monkey Do War – Monos
There's a moment in Rupert Goold's Judy, a biopic about Judy Garland's London tour shortly before her death, that rises above your standard-issue celebrity sob piece to something truly brilliant. After showing up late, and drunk, to her first performance at the "Talk of the Town," Renée Zellweger as Garland can barely stand, and needs help … Continue reading An “Eh” True Hollywood Story – Judy
DreamWorks' latest animated feature, Abominable, is the third movie to come out in the last 12 months concerning the welfare of yetis and yeti-adjacent species. The previous two films represent the extremes of the quality spectrum on the subject, from the brilliantly designed Missing Link to the crime against humanity that was Smallfoot. My initial thoughts when going … Continue reading Do You Wanna Help a Snowman? – Abominable
It's an extremely hard task to create an Oscar-worthy film out of disparate elements from other movies, particularly when the previous materials have gone down as all-time classics. Thankfully, Writer/Director James Gray (whose last film - the transcendent Lost City of Z - was ignored during awards season) and leading man Brad Pitt are a pair ably … Continue reading A Prestige Star Vehicle In More Ways Than One – Ad Astra
It was inevitable. It's September, we're officially into awards season, and that means we get the prestige films that studios think will attract critics and voters for the highest prizes. Most of these films range from middling to great, with even the mediocre ones showcasing a single amazing acting performance, or some inspired camera work, … Continue reading A Little Birdie Told Me This Sucks – The Goldfinch
I Actually Paid To See This 