Chris van Dijk

The American dream has destroyed a lot of people. Sometimes one person’s dream comes at the expense of others. Other times, a dream required too many sacrifices, leading to spiritual decay or a short lifespan.…

As a filmmaker, Josh Trank is less famous for his body of work than for his public persona. It all started with the modestly budgeted, Chronicle. Told via a found-footage narrative, it entailed the story…

Get In opens with a black man being manhandled by the police on his own front porch. A freakishly prescient scene, as there’s never a shortage of news concerning police brutality against minorities. For many,…

On April 15th, 2020, we lost the great Brian Dennehy. It goes without saying that, as an actor, he left behind a great legacy. As with many people, the first time I noticed him was…

Days before the release of Bad Trip, I had discovered the wonderful stupidity of The Eric André Show. It’s a baffling show, not just hilarious, but sometimes eerily surreal. It’s not a show that wants you…

Clark Duke has made a sizeable living being the dependable comic relief. He was the one who traveled to the fictional eighties alongside John Cusack in Hot Tub Time Machine; he was the nerdy sidekick…

The buddy cop genre came to prominence in the eighties. We all know the clichés: two guys with opposite character traits, butting heads, and learning to respect each through a hail of gunfire. The genre…

On paper, The Hunt didn’t seem to offer anything new. The initial premise calls back to the 1924’s short story, The Most Dangerous Game, which has been adapted numerous times — most notably, of course,…

It might sound ridiculous to some, but so be it: VFW was one of my most anticipated films of the year. It started with the premise: a siege-style thriller with a group of aging veterans…

We don’t need to see eye to eye, we just have to remain respectful. This virtue is understood by most children, but it seems lost in American political discourse. It’s disheartening seeing people cheer for…

The Iran-Contra affair is just one of the many dark elements of Reagan’s presidency. While The Gipper’s supporters perceived him as a warm and benevolent figure, his presidential reign was merciless on unions, the LGBTQ community, HIV-sufferers, or…

Like my fellow ordained Dudeist Ministers out there, I’ve seen The Big Lebowski countless times. It’s a film that not only became increasingly entertaining after each consecutive viewing, but its underlying message also became of great philosophical and spiritual…

Elijah Wood will most likely be remembered as Frodo Baggins, the kind-hearted and heroic hobbit who struggled through the corrupting powers of Sauron’s Ring. But his acting career besides his middle-earth ventures should be not…

The literature of H.P. Lovecraft has had a significant influence on cinema, though surprisingly, there haven’t been many straight adaptations of his stories. Instead, many films are loosely based or inspired by his work. The…

When I saw Disturbing the Peace on a list of upcoming movies, I thought it was going to be an adaptation of Richard Yates’ titular novel. The ending of the novel was particularly haunting. I always…

The poster of Knives Out is enough to make any cineaste salivate. An ensemble cast featuring the likes of Jamie Lee Curtis, Don Johnson, Michael Shannon, Toni Collette, and Christopher Plummer? Not to mention also…

When it comes to movies, it’s been a particularly good year for me. I don’t expect to come across another year quite like it any time soon. The magic started at the end of May…

Whichever side of the political spectrum you reside on, the unequal distribution of wealth should concern you. But the solution to this is anything but clearcut. Sometimes it seems that the ultimate answer to this…

Wounds has been on my watchlist ever since I read the early reviews. It could have been the mysterious and vague premise: creepy and gross things transpire after a bartender (played by the hunky Armie…

Eddie Murphy is a comedy legend whose greatness is often spoken about in the past tense. A comedic descendant from the likes of Richard Pryor and Redd Foxx, he kickstarted his cinematic career with the…

Here’s the premise: a psychotic hitman goes on an ultra-violent odyssey to avenge his brother’s death. Does this sound intriguing to you? Not really? Well, that’s because I forgot to mention that this hitman is…

You might not believe this, but there used to be a time when a movie starring either Nicolas Cage or Gary Oldman would be an indicator of high quality. This seems like such a long…

I’ll be honest, my reasons for seeing Cuck were partly masochistic. I wanted to find out if this film was as bad as it appeared to be. Many people are mocking this film, and it’s…

Rob Zombie’s filmography has always been an acquired taste, even among horror fanatics. Rob Zombie’s cinematic hallmarks include the seventies’ grindhouse aesthetics; profanity-laden rednecks with an excessive amount of nudity and gore; and the inevitable…

My introduction to Paolo Sorrentino’s wondrous style of filmmaking was with the first season of The Young Pope, a show that, despite much critical acclaim, became the subject of much ridicule in social media and…

John Rambo has been a prime example of the muscle-bound eighties action hero for many years, even though the roots of the character were literary and his first on-screen outing had none of the typical…

A teacher engaging in a sexual/romantic relationship with his/her sixteen-year-old student is a subject fraught with a moral quandary — besides the fact that it’s illegal, of course. A fundamental societal norm has been broken:…

I’m a huge Stephen King fan so I was quite satisfied with It Chapter Two, despite its numerous flaws. (With all respect to the film magazine, Empire, its five-star rating of the film is quite…

I’m one of the few moviegoers out there who was actually looking forward to seeing Fred Durst stalker-thriller/wacky John Travolta vehicle, The Fanatic. The fact that it’s already hailed as both a critical and financial…

Seeing a noted character actor, someone known for a long list of memorable supporting roles, take on a lead role — especially if the role requires a certain amount of psychotic ham — is likely…

Being a devoted admirer of writer Cormac McCarthy, it was hard not to be reminded of arguably his most celebrated work, The Road, while watching Light of My Life. Both feature a father and his child,…

It’s time for another Nicolas Cage VOD feature! I’m not saying I’d rather watch Quentin Tarantino‘s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood — nor am I at all bitter about it not being out in my…

”Never think you’re better than anyone else, but don’t let anyone treat you like you’re worse.” – Rip Torn It’s enjoyable to muse about how cinema history would have looked like had a different celebrity…

Over the years, I’ve only gained more appreciation for the original blaxploitation classic known as Shaft. Not just for its cultural significance, but for its gritty seventies style, slick dialogue, and fascinating characters. There’s also…

I still need to make amends for being one of the hundreds of millions of people that watched Adam Sandler’s cinematic obscenity, Murder Mystery, on Netflix. Therefore, I felt I was obligated to watch something…

The fact that I’m reviewing Child’s Play proves that I’m a horrible sell-out. When I first heard about this movie, I flat-out refused to see it. Not just because it’s a remake of one of…

I remember hearing about a potential upcoming remake of The Wild Bunch, starring Will Smith. Without a doubt, Will Smith’s involvement made the prospect even more grotesque. Remember, this is the same guy who asked…

Despite its availability on Netflix and a star-studded cast — including Terence Stamp, Gemma Arterton and Luke Evans — none of my distinguished MovieBabble colleagues wanted to review Murder Mystery. And who can blame them?…

Every fanatic of cinematic entertainment dreams of that one impossible movie. I have more than a couple, but the one thing I really wanted to see was a return of Deadwood, HBO’s gloriously foulmouthed show.…

The Perfection reportedly received rave reviews at its screening at Fantastic Fest and was described as being both “elegant” and “terrifying.” Such acclaims naturally piqued my interest. I hadn’t seen the trailer beforehand, and I…