Edward Berger’s 2022 adaptation of All Quiet on the Western Front is a brutal triumph. In a year where Top Gun Maverick is the top-grossing film in America, it’s essential to see the other side. Given the state of the world now, with conflicts abounding, it’s pertinent to show the …
Read More »Avatar: The Way of Water Review: A Grand Cinematic Spectacle
James Cameron is proof you can have your cake and eat it too, that it’s possible to make large-scale blockbuster entertainment with cutting-edge technology while also touching on worthy themes. Avatar touches on imperialism, racism, militarism and patriotism, corporate greed, property rights, spirituality, and religion. Compare this to the pro-military …
Read More »ELVIS Review: An Unfocused Mess
As a Baz Luhrmann apologist, I agreatly disappointed in the director’s latest offering. Elvis lacks the attention and focus to give the audience something truly memorable. Instead it’s one long 159 minute commercial of Elvis’s career. What’s worse is the whole time Elvis feels at a distance from the audience. …
Read More »Bullet Train is Warmed Over Guy Ritchie
I’m a fan of Brad Pitt, and I think he’s one of the last genuine movie stars we have. Unfortunately, in Bullet Train, he’s hampered by a script and direction that’s neither smart nor well-made. This is a derivative cross between Guy Ritchie and Quentin Tarantino movies (shades of Joe …
Read More »DEVOTION Review: By The Numbers, But Affecting
Devotion demonstrates that old-fashioned well made movies can still get the job done. Driven by the two leads, Jonathan Majors and Glen Powell, the film tells the true story of Korean War fighter pilots Jesse Brown and Tom Hudner and their friendship. Their relationship develops sufficiently along with the family …
Read More »The Menu Review: A Clever Class Based Horror Comedy
Mark Mylod’s The Menu is a slick black comedy horror movie that falls short of greatness but is involving enough throughout, with moments of genuine surprise. The film satirizes the world of gourmet food, pretentious chefs, food critics (and critics in general), the superficiality of the wealthy, and fanboys. There’s …
Read More »Violent Night Review: A Genre Film That Gets The Job Done
Violent Night is a very meat-and-potatoes kind of action picture. You want to see David Harbour’s Santa Clause kick some ass, and he does just that. You’ll hear it described as a cross between Bad Santa, Home Alone, and Die Hard. Directed by Tommy Wirkola (Dead Snow, Hansel & Gretel: …
Read More »Space Jam: A New Legacy Review
2 out of 4 stars The target audience (children) will enjoy it, but this sequel is a step down in quality. Blatant product placement aside, the biggest problem is the lack of clever comedy or dialogue. The first film was no masterpiece, but there was some witty dialogue and memorable …
Read More »The Suicide Squad Review
3 out of 4 stars Extremely enjoyable and well made. James Gunn strikes the right tone overall. It was perhaps too long by 15-20 minutes, but it felt refreshing compared to recent comic book movies—an immense improvement over the 2016 David Ayer movie that the studio butchered. The 2021 version …
Read More »Venom: Let There Be Carnage Review
2 out of 4 stars An improvement over the first movie, which admittedly isn’t saying much. The strength of these movies continues to be the interplay between Eddie Brock and Venom. Unfortunately, Woody Harrelson doesn’t have much to do, and the villain storyline is weak. The direction from Andy Serkis …
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