Synchronic Review - Fantastic Fest 2019

Synchronic Review – Fantastic Fest 2019

These days, science fiction films aren’t necessarily about the ideas but the spectacle.  Many have several hundred-million-dollar budgets, gigantic CGI moments, and actors who work against green screens all day playing pretend on a wide scale. And while those films done right are perfectly enjoyable, it feels like something has been lost. Great character work,…

Ad Astra Review: Startlingly Beautiful with one of Pitt’s Best Performances

Ad Astra Review: Startlingly Beautiful with One of Pitt’s Best Performances

Man is a solitary creature. If there is anything to take from James Gray’s loving and lovingly strange 2001: A Space Odyssey hat tap, it’s the aching hole inside individuals that no amount of exploration or discovery can fill. That may not be particularly comforting to fans of human scientific advancement, but its combination of…

It Chapter Two Review

It Chapter Two Review

It Chapter Two is a glorious mess. When the decision was made to split Stephen King’s It into two films, it seemed a sensible choice. The novel is over 1,100 pages long, and even the space of two lengthy films couldn’t possibly cover everything. King’s novel not only dives into the characters of the Loser’s Club…

Joker Review: Joaquin Phoenix Astounds in Todd Phillips Film

Joker Review: Joaquin Phoenix Astounds in Todd Phillips Film

It’s a rare occurrence when you watch a film and realize that you’ve spoken out loud about it before it’s over. I apologize to the person sitting next to me, but I think he totally understood. There was a moment while watching Joker when the screen went black and a breathless “wow” came out of my…

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark Review: A Proper Introduction to Horror for Kids

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark Review: A Proper Introduction to Horror for Kids

I still remember the illustrations. Drawn originally by Stephen Gammell, I remember the feeling of my breath seizing as I stared at the screaming scarecrow on the cover of Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark and thinking to myself, “Nope.” It would be a couple more years until I would actually conquer my fear and…

Stuber Review

Stuber Review: The Kumail Nanjiani and Dave Bautista Action Comedy

Stuber feels almost revolutionary in a summer where every film seems to have earth-shattering stakes and where the simple pleasures of a good belly laugh and solid chemistry between actors happy to be there seem like the movie staples of a bygone era.  To whip out an old critic’s cliché, they really don’t make them…

The Lion King Review

The Lion King Review: Should You Check Out This Disney Remake?

Before I start this The Lion King review, I want to address something so you know where I stand. There has been some discussion online lately about whether or not people are fans of Disney live-action remakes. Though I’ve enjoyed reading both sides, I have loved some and not others. I’m also okay with changes…

Midsommar Review: Let the Festivities Begin

Midsommar Review: Let the Festivities Begin

It’s difficult not to compare Ari Aster’s Midsommar to his previous film, Hereditary; in both, Aster uses grief as an entry point into explorations of horror and despair. In the case of Midsommar, that grief hits directly and quickly as Dani (Florence Pugh) is given some devastating news that destroys her world as she knows it. Her…

Toy Story 4 Review: A Great Final Send Off for a Much Loved Franchise

Toy Story 4 Review: A Great Final Send Off for a Much Loved Franchise

It is difficult not to get teary-eyed when I think about the Toy Story franchise. It is a movie franchise that I quite literally grew up on, with the first movie coming out in 1995, right when I was a young pre-schooler. And, while I may not be the biggest fan of sequels to animated films, the Toy…

We Review Jennifer Aniston, Adam Sandler's Murder Mystery
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We Review Jennifer Aniston, Adam Sandler’s Murder Mystery

The new Netflix film Murder Mystery, starring Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler, is released today. In the film, when a NYC cop (Adam Sandler) finally takes his wife (Jennifer Aniston) on a long-promised European trip, a chance meeting on the flight with a mysterious man (Luke Evans) gets them invited to an intimate family gathering on…