A few months ago, I raged at Marvel's Eternals as the worst film of 2021, and I continue to stand by it. It was overcrowded, utterly without plot, and filled to the brim with eyesore special effects. But the worst offense of all was that the so-called "surprise twist" was that the obvious bad guy … Continue reading Disney’s Dark Hold – Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
The calendar has finally turned over, and of course, because we just can't have nice things, the universe decided to take Betty White out at the last fucking minute. But anyway, the official book has closed on 2021, a year where we almost, kinda, sort of got back to something resembling normal, only for the … Continue reading The Best (and Worst) of 2021
After the absolutely infuriating tragedy that was Eternals, the Marvel Cinematic Universe desperately needs a palate cleanser, if not a full-on reversal to redeem itself. Hope was on the horizon with a new Spider-Man movie fast approaching, one that would also feature Doctor Strange. Tom Holland is widely considered to be the greatest version of … Continue reading Into the Villain-Verse – Spider-Man: No Way Home
The films of the Marvel Cinematic Universe tend to follow a fairly set formula at this point, especially for the origin stories. You get the standard hero's journey archetype of an otherwise mild-mannered person thrust into a supernatural situation beyond their control. There are a couple of good action scenes to make up for the … Continue reading Endure the Bad for the Really Good – Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
I've mentioned before that one of my favorite movies is Hirokazu Kore-eda's After Life from 1998, easily one of the most profound existential explorations ever put to celluloid. In it, a group of dead social workers welcome the souls of the recently deceased to a way station of sorts, where they spend a week interviewing … Continue reading Live to Work, Work to Live – Nine Days
Damn, this has been a busy week so far, and it's only Thursday. Awards Season got itself into full swing basically overnight, and already I'm doing my best to keep up. For example, over the last 48 hours I've been trying to get a handle on foreign films in anticipation of the Academy's announcement of … Continue reading Spirit Fingers, Everyone! – 36th Independent Spirit Nominations
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
First off, I must apologize for the lateness of this review. The whole point of this blog is to get reviews out as quickly as possible, so you the consumer can decide the best use of your movie-going dollars. That said, there are two major reasons for the delay, which I think excuse it. For … Continue reading We Finally Got to the Fireworks Factory! – Avengers: Infinity War
I Actually Paid To See This 