The “Star Wars” movies do not exist within the world of “Top Gun.” That might be an odd thing to have stick with someone walking out of the long-delayed “Top Gun: Maverick,” a sequel to the 1986 film, but it… Read More ›
movies
Movie Review: “Italian Studies”
As the end credits roll in writer-director Adam Leon’s new film, “Italian Studies,” the character played by Vanessa Kirby is given the name “Alina Reynolds.” She does go by this name for a little while in the movie, but until… Read More ›
A Little Shouting About “Scream”
Okay, fine, Halloween was last week. We admit that, but also refuse to accept a world in which we can’t discuss a horror movie in November. Heck, the fifth “Scream” movie–which is not so cleverly titled, “Scream”–is being released this… Read More ›
“The Forever Purge” is the Scariest Yet
There can be a sense of relief sometimes when one finishes watching a scary movie — the credits roll, the thing is over, and you can look out your window and remind yourself that the real world is just not… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Old”
Some movies are clever, subtle, little things. They deftly offer up a notion, throwing it into the back of your mind before moving on to something else (“Inception”-style, if you will). But the idea sits there, lingering, growing in your… Read More ›
Danny Kaye’s “The Court Jester” and Mel Gibson’s “Fatman”
As a youth, Josh avoided Danny Kaye movies. It felt like there was always one that was on TV or about to be on TV and he skipped them. As he now realizes, that was a terribly grievous error. “The… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Antebellum”
(editor’s note: I have done my best to avoid spoilers in the below, but can’t swear that there aren’t any.) Not for the first, it is important to say that there is a difference between raising important ideas in a… Read More ›
Movie Review: “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”
I would be lying if I say to you that I have fully worked out what is truly taking place in Charlie Kaufman’s new film, “I’m Thinking of Ending Things.” I have ideas and suspicions and am on my way… Read More ›
Movie Review: “You Cannot Kill David Arquette”
Not every documentary can necessarily be believed. By their very nature, a documentary claims a certain amount of nonfiction status, but claiming that status and actually being nonfiction are two wholly different things. It would not surprise me in any… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Stage Mother” (2020)
The new film “Stage Mother,” directed by Thom Fitzgerald with a script from Brad Joseph Hennig is one of those movies which may be obvious and stilted and all too easy, but which still manages some level of success. The… Read More ›
Different Deplorables: “The Hunt” and “Urban Cowboy”
John Travolta’s character in 1980’s “Urban Cowboy” is not a good person. The sad thing about the movie, however, is that it doesn’t seem to recognize this. In this year’s “The Hunt,” we have a whole lot of folks who… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Exit Plan”
There is something to be said for moody films which contemplate what it means to be alive and what it means to die on one’s own terms. Nicolaj Coster-Waldau’s latest, “Exit Plan,” is just that – a movie that examines… Read More ›
Looking at Movie Cliches with the Man who Wrote the Book
Out on March 31st is a new book called “Spoiler Alert!: The Badass Book of Movie Plots: Why we all Love Hollywood Cliches,” and so this week on the podcast we have one of the authors, Chris Vander Kaay, here… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of one Harley Quinn)”
For a, relatively speaking, light and airy movie, “Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of one Harley Quinn)” sports an exceptionally unwieldy title. It is a title that feels designed to do a lot of heavy lifting for the… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Bad Boys for Life”
The new entry in the “Bad Boys” franchise, “Bad Boys for Life,” does not feature Michael Bay at the helm. Even so, the man known for his particular brand of action—affectionately or not, known as “Bayhem”—is certainly in evidence here… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Like a Boss”
tvWith Rose Byrne, Tiffany Haddish, and Salma Hayek leading the cast, there is certainly the necessary on screen talent for the new comedy, “Like a Boss,” to be one truly hysterical ride. That sense is only enhanced with addition of… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Les Misérables” (2019)
An alternate version of Ladj Ly’s new film, “Les Misérables,” would end without the final 20 minutes. It would be a powerful and sad film, one which gets its point across and makes the viewer contemplate. With those last 20… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Just Mercy”
The act of discussing an important issue in a film does not magically confer exceptional status to the movie itself. That is, making a movie about an important topic doesn’t necessarily make the movie important, nor does it make the… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Cats” (2019)
In the movie (and presumably play, but I’ve never seen it) “Six Degrees of Separation,” a con man claims to be the son of Sidney Poitier, and that Poitier is working on a film version of “Cats.” The explanation of… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Little Women” (2019)
There is a beautiful, incredible, level of truth which bursts forth from Greta Gerwig’s adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s “Little Women.” It is there in every in every frame, in every line, in every face. This is not to say… Read More ›
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