Warning: this review contains unabashed adoration for Tom Cruise. So leave your shit at the door, no one wants any part of it. Cowards couch their praise of Cruise behind opening statements like, “We all…
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A year ago, Nicolas Cage starred in a small, buzzy movie called Pig. When I wrote about it, I described his performance as somber and moving — an excellent Cage performance that put him back…
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“People are desperate to tell you who they are.” This lesson is one of many imparted to Stan (Bradley Cooper) in the first act of Nightmare Alley — the story of a rise and fall…
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There’s a line that creators of topical art must keep in mind as it’s being crafted — so easy is it to become melodramatic, “preachy”, or unrealistic. The slightest misstep can take a viewer out…
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At one point in this 113-minute slog, Cinderella (Camila Cabello) asks another character with great distress, “But, but, but why??” And such is the question we all must ask ourselves after viewing what is nearly…
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1992’s Candyman is considered a classic of the slasher genre — mythologically inventive, steeped in relevant racial themes, and far more ambitious than contemporary slasher films; which at the time were so verging on self-parody…
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Coming off Fear Street Part One: 1994 — a nostalgic 90s-style teen slasher and a fabulously fun entry into the genre in its own right — I was concerned that the follow-up sequels in the trilogy…
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Nature documentaries often take a wonder-first approach to storytelling: the narration and cinematography are acutely focused on portraying the majesty of nature, the beauty of its subjects, and the stunning worlds that exist parallel to…
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Few arguments seem more daunting in 2021 than taking the stance that Nicolas Cage is a good actor. Best known in 2021 as the man who stole the Declaration of Independence, or perhaps more unfortunately…
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Teen slasher flicks — we all know how they work. The kids are horny (unless you’re the bullied virgin), the night is dark and full of terrors, and the blood is fire engine red. Wash,…
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Once scheduled for a mid-2020 release, In the Heights was one of last year’s summer blockbusters to fall victim to a delayed launch due to the pandemic and the shuttered theater industry. And after a…
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I promise I like a lot of movies — I even am a huge fan of the thriller genre! I know that recent reviews of The Virtuoso and The Woman in the Window seem to…
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As I’m sitting at my laptop writing this review, I’m drinking a glass of red wine — partly inspired by The Woman in the Window’s central protagonist Anna Fox, and partly driven to drink by…
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Growing up, there was a time in my life where only one book series truly mattered: Goosebumps. And within R.L. Stine’s nearly infinite list of book titles was a particularly special set of books, the…
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“CHICK FLICKS DON’T HAVE TO SUCK.” This quote from Movieline’s Jen Yamato was splashed across movie posters for Bridesmaids leading up to its wide release on May 13th, 2011. The marketing team must have loved…
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Let’s get it out of the way first: Conspirasea was right there. It’s a vastly better name, but then again, it may have raised expectations for a documentary certainly incapable of delivering on any promise…
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What is the nicest way to ask a happily married couple to call it quits? An email? A phone call? A box of Shari’s Berries? If you have an answer, sound off in the comments.…
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What a treat it must be to be Lucas Hedges. By twenty-four, he’s already established himself as one of the finer actors of his generation and has had the chance to work for the best…
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If you had not heard of The Mauritanian prior to Jodie Foster’s surprise Golden Globes win for best supporting actress, you weren’t alone; I was right there with you. The film — based on Mohamedou…
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Raya and the Last Dragon premiered on Disney+ on Friday, March 5th with perhaps the best lead-in it could have asked for in the midst of the pandemic: the season finale of WandaVision (it also…