Archive for January 2020
Parasite Blu-ray Review: Remarkable and Timely
A modern masterpiece of wicked social commentary and unexpected pathos.
Read MoreJosé Movie Review: Realism Dominates Craft
This Guatemalan drama is a delicate observation of an episode in the life of its titular character.
Read MoreFive Cool Things and A Quiet Place Part II
January was a great month for cool things. Here’s hoping February has just as many.
Read MoreSundance 2020 Review: Herself and Miss Juneteenth are Actress Vehicles About Hopefulness
Two successful star vehicles about working-class mothers looking to find a new lease on life.
Read MoreHarriet (2019) Blu-ray Review: A Long Walk to Freedom
Though mildly hampered by biopic cliches, the film succeeds with a strong performance by Cynthia Ervio.
Read More2020 Oscar-nominated Documentary Short Films Review
How does our humanity express itself in the face of trauma? War? Tragedy? These are the questions that are explored in this year’s Academy Award nominees in the Documentary Short Film category.
Read MoreTV Review: Twin – A Limited Series
In his new series, Kristofer Hivju gets to play not just one larger-than-life character, but twin brothers who couldn’t be more dissimilar – or more at odds with one another.
Read MoreAll About My Mother Is the Pick of the Week
A gorgeous 1999 Almodovar classic tops a new week of stellar releases.
Read MoreSundance 2020 Review: ‘Falling’ Definitely Falls Flat
Viggo Mortensen’s directorial debut lands with a thud.
Read More2020 Oscar-nominated Animated Short Films Review
The five nominees are…
Read MoreA Sister Live Action Short Review: Utilizes Minimalism to the Fullest
A brilliant exercise of inducing anxiety.
Read MoreTV Review: The Forgotten Army: Predictability Plays the Spoilsport
A barely effective war drama that never finds it foot.
Read MoreThe Addams Family (2019) Blu-ray Review: Not Creepy or Kooky
Animated take on the famous family is so bland it practically vanishes from sight.
Read MoreThe Neighbor’s Window Live Action Short Review: Leaves a Lasting Impact
A little film with a huge heart.
Read MoreFive Cool Things and the Year of the Rat
Happy Chinese New Year, everybody.
Read MoreZombi Child Movie Review: A Slow Exploration of Voodoo and Adolescence
A meditative zombie flick that revitalizes the genre while simultaneously exploring its origins.
Read MoreBrotherhood Live Action Short Review: Family and the Cruel World
The sorrowful story takes center stage despite the masterful cinematic craft at display.
Read MoreBrewster’s Millions Collector’s Edition Blu-ray Review: Maybe Worth a Hundred
A movie I loved as a kid as depreciated a great deal over the years.
Read MoreSliding Doors Collector’s Edition Blu-ray Review: Let Them Close
A unique concept that stretches itself way too thin.
Read MoreFathom Events and TCM Present An American in Paris
Watching “An American in Paris” on the big screen was an exceptional experience and one I fully recommend.
Read MoreJexi Blu-ray Review: Mindless, Silly Fun with a Hint of Possibility
Overall, the movie is enjoyable.
Read MoreColor Out of Space (2020) Movie Review: A Campy and Gorgeous Lovecraft Adaptation
Not on the same level of nuttiness as Mandy, but a thrilling, B-grade invasion film overall.
Read MoreCorpus Christi (2019) Movie Review: A Drama of Mistaken Identities
The journey of a juvenile in reformatory who becomes a reformer himself.
Read MoreThe House by the Cemetery Is the Pick of the Week
Lucio Fulci’s gore-iffic 1981 haunted house chiller tops a new week of releases.
Read MoreTV Review: Arrow / Legends of Tomorrow: ‘Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part 4 & 5’
A pair of Sentries are teaming up to take on the five-part “Crisis on Infinite Earths” crossover event. If you would like to start with previous episodes, please read Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. Arrow Gordon S. Miller As the miniseries continues, The Paragons, seven heroes (well, six since Lex Luthor replaced Superman),…
Read MoreNefta Football Club Live Action Short Review: A Light Film with a Heavy Moral
A sweet tale of ignorance where the wisdom lies beneath the silliness.
Read MoreFive Cool Things and Neil Peart
This week I dig deep into French director Jean-Pierre Melville’s films and we mourn the loss of a great drummer.
Read MoreWater and Sugar: Carlo Di Palma – The Colours of Life DVD Review
An affectionate, if not entirely in-depth document on a truly influential cinematographer.
Read MoreSaria Live Action Short Review: Agonizing and Heartbreaking
A potent work that emphatically proves the effectiveness of short-form cinema.
Read MoreAll the Freckles in the World Movie Review: Suffused with Simplicity, Innocence, and Lively Moments
Yibrán Asuad’s film is suffused with simplicity and innocence.
Read MoreThe Fugitive Kind Is the Pick of the Week
Sidney Lumet’s 1960 adaptation of a Tennessee Williams play heads a new week of releases.
Read MoreSinister Six Card Game Review: Supervillains Unite (or Not)!
“Every villain is a hero of his or her own story.” – Christopher Vogler, “The Writer’s Journey”
Read More1917 Movie Review: A Visually Bold Look at the Heart of War
A terrific war epic with masterful technical aesthetics.
Read MorePSIFF 2020 Review: Adventures of a Mathematician
The story piqued my interest about the scientists involved, making me want to learn more about them and their projects.
Read MoreFive Cool Things and Another New Cat
Another week filled with cool new things.
Read MoreThe Sonata Movie Review: Safe, Self-aware, and Focussed
It marries the physical and mental facets of horror.
Read MoreThe Lighthouse Blu-ray Review: A Shining Beacon of Excellence
A two-hander where your two hands will be firmly embedded in your armrests.
Read MoreLike A Boss Movie Review: A Middling Investment
Rose Byrne and Tiffany Haddish are the strong center of this amusing yet manufactured comedy.
Read MoreJoker Blu-ray Review: A Gritty Origin Story for Batman’s Most Iconic Villain
Joaquin Phoenix delivers a strong performance as the Clown Prince of Crime.
Read MorePSIFF 2020 Review: Antigone (2019)
An ancient Greek tragedy re-imagined in the living conditions and troubles faced by an immigrant family in Montreal.
Read MoreHoliday (1938) Is the Pick of the Week
An almost forgotten 1938 George Cukor classic starts off 2020’s first new week of releases.
Read MoreChuck Berry Hail! Hail! Rock ‘n’ Roll Blu-ray Review: It’s Good to Be the King
Hail! Hail! tells an important, albeit incomplete, story of an American music legend.
Read MoreFive Cool Things and Hunters
It was really hard to just pick five, but never fear.
Read MorePSIFF 2020 Review: Free Color Replicates Its Master’s Art Form
Alberto Arevalo’s documentary follows Carlos Cruz-Diez, Venezuelan-born artist, who at 94, sets out to achieve something unseen and unheard of in the artist community.
Read MoreBest of 2019 Assorted Lists
I appreciate your patience with me through the year with my silly little projects.
Read MoreBest of 2019 TV / Streaming Lists
We live in a very high-quality, TV-show era now.
Read MoreBest of 2019 Film Lists
The best of movie lists of 2019 for movies I saw and ones I should have seen. And a stab at 2020.
Read MoreThe Magic Sword Blu-ray Review: Dragons, Princesses, and Basil Rathbone
A film so bad the guys at Mystery Science Theater 3000 called it “pretty good.”
Read MoreBlue Collar Blu-ray Review: Workingman’s Blues
Paul Schrader’s directorial debut gets a nice new release from Kino Lorber.
Read More