We made it, everyone! Twenty-three categories up, 23 down! It's the final award of the ceremony, the greatest of the Academy Awards, the highest honor in all of cinema - Best Picture! After weeks of analysis, it's time to tackle the big one. Ten nominees go into Sunday night hoping to hear their name called, … Continue reading Oscar Blitz 2024 – Best Picture (VIDEO)
There have been a lot of movies over the last decade based on consumer products. Most of them are thinly-veiled, feature-length commercials. But every once in a while, a film breaks through and becomes an essential part of our cultural conversation, like The Lego Movie. We can safely add Greta Gerwig's Barbie to that short … Continue reading Life in Plastic – Barbie
We're halfway through the year, and as we go into July, I have to say, things don't look half bad. While the major tentpole movies of the 2023 Blockbuster Season have largely fallen flat, on the whole the general output for mainstream media hasn't been all that terrible. Yes, Indiana Jones disappointed to an extreme … Continue reading This Film is Not Yet Watchable – July 2023
Back in 2006, filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan released what is arguably his worst movie, Lady in the Water. Derided for being incredibly self-indulgent, the project was rightly lambasted for Shyamalan's sanctimonious take on art, writing, and criticism, in which he essentially staged a cinematic hissy fit due to negative reactions to his previous work. He … Continue reading The Play’s the Thing – Asteroid City
Apologies one and all for the lack of content over the past two weeks. It's an unfortunate side effect of Summer Blockbuster season sometimes. There are the odd weeks where the major studios will essentially get out of each others' way and let one film dominate the box office for a cycle. Two weeks ago … Continue reading This Film is Not Yet Watchable – June 2023
I like to think that, overall, 2022 was a better year than 2021. There were some down moments, to be sure - Billie Eilish won an Oscar before Lin-Manuel Miranda, I had to move my mother into hospice, Republicans retook the House, basically every celebrity we still cared about died, AMC charged us more money … Continue reading The Best (and Worst) of 2022
There's a moment late in Damien Chazelle's new film, Babylon, that offers what feels like the one instance of pure honesty in the entire project. Jack Conrad, played by Brad Pitt, has gone from being the biggest star in Hollywood to yesterday's news during the transition from silent pictures to talkies. After two flops in … Continue reading Cocaine’s a Hell of a Drug – Babylon
At long last, a very tumultuous year is about to come to an end. Inflation was rampant, an absolute slew of beloved celebrities shuffled off the mortal coil, and once again America just barely squeaked by on maintaining the basic tenets of democracy. It was rough, no doubt about it, and there are still 31 … Continue reading This Film is Not Yet Watchable – December 2022
There's something to be said for sticking to a successful formula. When certain elements work, it's natural to want to go back to the well and try it again. I totally get that. And there are plenty of filmmakers who've relied on tried and true methods to come up with an entertaining product, be it … Continue reading The Department of Redundancy Department – Amsterdam
Over the last few years, the DC Extended Universe has seemingly - and finally - come into its own. With dud after dud from Batman v. Superman to Justice League, the ship really feels like its been righted, thanks to the overwhelming success of Wonder Woman, Birds of Prey, and Shazam!. There's still a misstep … Continue reading This is What Happens When You Try – The Suicide Squad
I Actually Paid To See This 