As the credits started to roll on “Uncut Gems,” the new Adam Sandler film written and directed by the Safdie brothers (Ronald Bronstein also has a writing credit), I checked my pulse. That is not hyperbole. My watch monitors my… Read More ›
movies
Movie Review: “Knives Out”
In an unusual turn of events, I was able to see Rian Johnson’s “Knives Out” more than once prior to release. There first time through, I was, for a time, slightly disappointed. That disappointment was not in evidence during the… Read More ›
Movie Review: “21 Bridges”
The new Chadwick Boseman film, “21 Bridges,” takes its name from the 21 bridges that lead on/off the island of Manhattan. The basic notion of the film is that an NYPD detective, Andre Davis (Boseman), is tasked with finding robbers… Read More ›
Movie Review: “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood”
Watching “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood” one inescapable truth came to the fore: I am a cynical human being. Technically I knew this before I sat down to watch this inspired-by-reality tale of Mr. Rogers’ influence on the life… Read More ›
Movie Review: “The Good Liar”
From an early moment in “The Good Liar,” it is quite clear what one of the big twists will be down the line. That made this reviewer rather trepidatious. On the one hand, watching two masters like Ian McKellen and… Read More ›
Movie Review: “The Lighthouse” (2019)
There is an incredible sense of claustrophobia that immediately makes itself felt with “The Lighthouse.” Director Robert Eggers has opted to create his film in the 1.19:1 aspect ratio as opposed to what we usually see on the big screen… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Ford V Ferrari”
To start at the end, it is the final irony that James Mangold’s new film is titled “Ford V Ferrari” and not “Shelby and Miles V Ford.” This is a movie—a wonderful movie—which is so much less about Ford going… Read More ›
“Badland” and Ticking the Trope Boxes
This weekend the new movie, “Badland,” hits theaters and streaming platforms. Written and directed by Justin Lee, the film stars Kevin Makely. It’s a western, and it ticks all the boxes you would imagine a western would hit. But, is… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Terminator: Dark Fate”
There is a moment early on in “Terminator: Dark Fate” where anything seems possible; where it feels like the story truly could head anywhere. It is a false a hope; a lie. “Dark Fate,” the sixth entry in the “Terminator”… Read More ›
Movie Review: “The Kill Team” (2019)
As sometimes the two things are confused, it must be stated that just because the story told in a movie is important, the movie is not automatically a “good” movie. In this case, no one would argue that the tale,… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Zombieland: Double Tap”
It has been 10 years since the first “Zombieland” movie arrived on the big screen and not only have things changed in our world, they’ve changed within that of the franchise’s as well. Yes, the specifics are different what with… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Cyrano, My Love”
Watching the new movie “Cyrano, My Love” it is easy to recall the Oscar-winning “Shakespeare in Love.” After all, the latter is a tale about Shakespeare and his troubles writing “Romeo and Juliet” and the former is a tale about… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Gemini Man”
Writing about “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk,” I stated, ” The changes to the language of cinema Ang Lee has made with this work are not yet fully understood, nor codified.” I further referred to the movie as “an oddity.” Here… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Little Monsters”
At this point in time, if you’re going to make a zombie movie, you have to do something different with it. You can’t just have zombies attack a small group of holdouts in a shopping mall anymore. We have all… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Joker”
As an origin story, Todd Phillips’ “Joker” tells us exactly how the Clown Prince of Crime came to be (in this universe anyway). Co-written and directed by Phillips, the movie breaks down exactly what drives Joker to commit unparalleled acts… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Zeroville”
Do you prefer your movies simple and straightforward, or do you like them to operate as some sort of a fever dream, where one is never quite sure what is taking place, nor whether the events are real or imagined? … Read More ›
Movie Review: “Hustlers” (2019)
Written and directed by Lorene Scafaria and “inspired” by a true story, “Hustlers” is one in a long line of movies that pretends to be deeper and smarter than it is in reality. At one crucial moment for the viewer,… Read More ›
Movie Review: “It: Chapter Two”
There is a recurring joke in “It: Chapter Two” that James McAvoy’s Bill Denbrough, an author, doesn’t know how to write a good ending. Rather than simply feeling as though it is a trait of Bill’s work, it comes across… Read More ›
Movie Review: “Blinded by the Light”
The strength and determination it must take to go to a new country, a place where people speak a different language, look at society differently, act differently, live differently, is incredible. Even taking such an action believing it will better… Read More ›
Movie Review: “47 Meters Down: Uncaged”
Much like “Jaws” before it, the shark-based horror film “47 Meters Down” may seem like an unlikely candidate for a sequel and yet, just like “Jaws,” it continues past the first film. We now have a second entry in the… Read More ›