Luca
Chances are you don’t know much about Pixar’s latest feature Luca, which was quietly released on Disney+ last Friday to little fanfare. But if you’ve heard anything about it, you’re probably familiar...
View ArticleWerewolves Within
A comedy horror that doesn’t pack much of a wallop in either category, Werewolves Within bites off more than it can chew. With an ensemble cast that boasts credits from “SNL,” “Orange Is the New...
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Oeuvre: Fellini: Roma
There comes a point in every great maximalist filmmaker’s career when they effectively max out. They push their particular brand of cinematic extravagance, whether it be visual opulence, graphic...
View ArticleThe Evil Next Door
The Evil Next Door is a useful reminder that foreign films are not inherently more interesting than domestic ones. Any longtime horror fan will recognize one tired trope after another in this film,...
View ArticleToo Late
The satirical point that director D.W. Thomas makes in Too Late is a stroke of genius. According to Tom Becker’s screenplay, the world of stand-up comics and the venues in which they perform is almost...
View ArticleAgainst the Current
As the subject of a documentary, Veiga Grétarsdóttir is a generous one. As the subject of this particular documentary, the kayaker, who became the first person to circle the island country of Iceland...
View ArticleKenny Scharf: When Worlds Collide
Footage of artist Kenny Scharf from the ‘80s reveal a boisterous jester who comes off like a lost Beastie Boy; but in the present day, while his art still resembles the spirit of his early work, he’s...
View ArticleRevisit: Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
Some comedies, like good science fiction, say as much about their own time as they do about whatever outlandish premise they revolve around. For this reason, their relevance can either wan as times...
View ArticleLong Story Short
It’s a truth universally accepted that time passes far too quickly. One should hope that such a sensation isn’t as literal as what happens to the protagonist of Long Story Short, which operates in the...
View ArticleFathom
The title of Drew Xanthopoulos’ new Apple TV+ documentary is a play on words that borders on willful deception. The poster for the film features a majestic humpback whale front and center, so it stands...
View ArticleCriminally Underrated: Morning Glory
Rachel McAdams is arguably one of the most versatile and underused talents of the last two decades. In 2004, she played two vastly different roles with Allie Hamilton in The Notebook and Regina George...
View ArticleThe God Committee
If TV has taught us anything about the fictional medical community, it’s that hospitals are hotbeds for sentimentalism and juicy melodrama. The God Committee, which due to its exposition-heavy dialogue...
View ArticleZola
Have you read the story “Guts” by Chuck Palahniuk? It is not for the faint of heart; it is about the weird, increasingly dangerous ways that one teenage boy finds to masturbate. Reactions to “Guts” can...
View ArticleThe Boss Baby: Family Business
One approaches The Boss Baby: Family Business much like its 2017 sibling: One acknowledges the inherent strangeness of its talking-baby power structure premise while finding the adventure story...
View ArticleThe Forever Purge
If they stuck to the plan, The Forever Purge would have had more bite. The sequel to the notorious action/horror franchise was supposed to come out in 2020 but was delayed because of the pandemic. It...
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Oeuvre: Fellini: Amarcord
While he would continue making films, television and commercials for almost two more decades, Amarcord (1973) represents the last high-water mark for Fellini’s brilliance as a director of seemingly...
View ArticleSummer of Soul
For most people, the musical zeitgeist of the late ‘60s begins and ends with three festivals. Monterey Pop, the 1967 wunderkind set squarely during the Summer of Love, featured a diverse lineup from...
View ArticleThe Phantom
There’s been a boom over the last five years or so in the popularity of “true crime” documentaries and podcasts such as “Making a Murderer” and “Serial” that frequently take a murder case committed in...
View ArticleBlack Widow
There is a character in Black Widow nicknamed Red Guardian. Played with familiar enthusiasm by David Harbour, he is a proud Soviet super-soldier who believes in his country like Captain America...
View ArticleFirst Date
For a story that hinges on crooked cops, car chases, drug deals and deadly shootouts, First Date‘s most unexpected ingredient is its charm. How much abuse and danger will one boy endure in order to...
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