Following the maddening nature of Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining is no easy task. But after nearly 40 years since that film, now would be the time to try to take a whack at it, given the success of numerous sequels in the past few years from films over 30 years Continue Reading
“Terminator: Dark Fate” Review
Even though the Terminator franchise seems to have been stuck in the same gear since its initial time-travel premise, Dark Fate tries desperately to switch out as many parts as it can. Instead of taking place mostly in America, the battle shifts to Mexico and the Texas border. Instead of Continue Reading
“The Kill Team” Review
In 2013, Dan Krauss directed a documentary on the Maywand District murders during the War in Afghanistan, trying to find context and meaning within interviews. In 2019, he has directed a film on the same subject with the same title but now seeks a tougher answer. How would we feel Continue Reading
“The Laundromat” Review
The craziness of the corruption within capitalism breeds a similar sense of maddening within the assembly of Soderbergh’s The Laundromat. The film takes aim at the Panama Papers scandal, the damage it caused and how the leaks only revealed a small part of a big problem yet to be resolved. Continue Reading
“Pain & Glory” Review
There’s a sweetly somber vibe to the contemplative and quiet appeal of Pain & Glory. It would seem like in the twilight years of director Salvador Mallo (Antonio Banderas), having been inspired to revisit the past, that there’s a lot on his plate to reconcile with. But he’s also aged Continue Reading
“Zombieland: Double Tap” Review
Ten years have passed but the post-apocalyptic world of Zombieland has more or less remained the same. There are some new zombie types, a few more non-zombie faces and plenty of new zingers to sling. The snappy sass of the familiar foursome is still present and strong enough to keep Continue Reading
“Maleficent: Mistress of Evil” Review
The good news is that the sequel to 2014’s Maleficent has some notable improvements. It’s more colorful, magical, features a more solid story and a significant reduction in rape allegories. In its place, however, is a more milquetoast fantasy of familiar elements that comes off as Ferngully meets Guess Who’s Continue Reading
“Gemini Man” Review
It’s clear that in the two decades leading up to Gemini Man finally being produced that the focus was more on the tech than the script. Branded with gimmicks, the talk of the picture is more about how impressive and believable a computer-generated Will Smith appears on the screen. Another Continue Reading
No Punchline: Joker’s Nihilism Nosedive
The 2019 film Joker may appear like the most artful picture amid the tsunami of samey superhero films. It is by far the most divergent. There’s no hero that comes to save the day. The central villain is not made out to be an anti-hero. The tone is relentlessly bleak, Continue Reading
“The Addams Family” (2019) Review
The Addams Family is a premise that seems as though it’d be perfect for animation. A comically creepy family living in a haunted house with all manner of monsters lurking about would be suited well for a medium where anything is possible. But when mired in the current framework of Continue Reading