I have to be honest with you guys. I came dangerously close to including ChloĆ© Zhao's new film, Hamnet, in the November edition of TFINYW (and before you say anything, I will resume the series; I just had to take a hiatus for December and January due to all the hectic bullshit I was dealing … Continue reading Shakespeare in Mourning – Hamnet
The heist movie is a subgenre that's basically out of gas at this point, at least from a plot perspective. Pretty much every film follows a fairly standard pattern of a big idea, complications that could be easily foreseen with a bit of logical thinking, at least two betrayals, and an ultimate victor when it … Continue reading Stacking the Deck – No Sudden Move
First off, I just want to deliver a brief apology for the delay in this review. I saw this movie a few weeks ago, but then spent about two weeks covering this year's Brooklyn Film Festival for my friends at "No Rest for the Weekend." I'll have a recap post in the coming days, but … Continue reading Sounds Easy Enough – A Quiet Place Part II
Shia LaBeouf has definitely earned himself some career rehabilitation this year. The first step was his absolutely wonderful performance with Zack Gottsagen inĀ The Peanut Butter Falcon back in August. Now, he's followed it up with one of the best examples of art therapy in recent memory with Honey Boy. Written by LaBeouf and directed by … Continue reading Like Father, Like Shia – Honey Boy
There are times when the success of a film is more about what it doesn't do than what it does. While just about everything in cinema has high and low points, more often than not a film is as good as or better than the sum of its parts. But in the case ofĀ Ford v. … Continue reading Shut Up and Drive! – Ford v. Ferrari
The "unofficial" phase is finally over. We are now firmly and officially into Awards Season! The next three months of hardware, hand-wringing, and haranguing kicked off this morning with the announcement of the nominees for the 35th Annual Independent Spirit Awards, which were presented by Zazie Beetz and Natasha Lyonne. There's a lot of love … Continue reading We’ve Got Spirit (Awards), Yes We Do! – 35th Independent Spirit Awards Nominations Announced!
You know it's an odd weekend when you have consecutive films that rely heavily on the sound designers to make them succeed. WhereasĀ You Were Never Really Here assaulted and bombarded the audience with a cacophony of chaotic noise to show us just how tormented Joaquin Phoenix's character was, here in John Krasinski'sĀ A Quiet Place, silence … Continue reading Silence is Golden, Blood is Red – A Quiet Place
I Actually Paid To See This 