Author: James Preston Poole

Movie ReviewsReviewsStellar Picks

‘When Evil Lurks’ Review: A Whole Other Level of Fear

Horror, like any genre, is beholden to certain tropes. A well within the genre that’s been run into the ground is the possession sub-genre, to the point where trailers for a new Exorcist film are eliciting eye-rolls instead of the desired terror. Repetition of the same beats from possession films ad nauseam is to blame. To reinvigorate the possession movie, you

Read More
Film FestivalsMovie ReviewsReviews

‘The Creator’ Review: A Perfect Audio-visual Experience With An Imperfect Story

Approaching a Fall/Winter movie season full of promising films, one has stuck out a surprising outlier: Gareth Edwards’ The Creator. The filmmaker burst onto the scene with his debut Monsters, displaying comfortability in playing with human perspective against large-scale threats. He then parlayed that into 2014’s excellent Godzilla, which then catapulted him into 2016’s divisive Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.

Read More
Movie ReviewsReviews

Review: ‘Expend4bles’ Is A Serviceable Sequel That Keeps The Action Franchise Going

Out of all the franchises out there, The Expendables isn’t one where yet another sequel would be expected. After the first film, which opened to decent profit off its premise of teaming iconic action stars such as Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Bruce Willis, Dolph Lundgren, and every other icon your dad grew up on in one movie, a sequel, The Expendables 2, performed even better. The same luck

Read More
Movie ReviewsReviews

Review: ‘Blue Beetle’ Is A Heart-Filled Shot In the Arm For DC Films

It’s been a rough year for films based on DC Comics. The mixed critical reception and box office whimper of Shazam! Fury of the Gods as well as, well, everything surrounding The Flash has resulted in the home stretch of this iteration of the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) becoming a laughing stock for the public at large. Other than Aquaman: The Lost

Read More
Movie ReviewsReviews

Review: ‘Haunted Mansion’ Replicates Ride’s Spooky Atmosphere

“The Haunted Mansion” has been a staple attraction at Disney parks nearly since their inception. The dark ride made its debut in 1969 at Walt Disney World. Daring riders to board one of its “Doom Buggies”, The Haunted Mansion takes guests through a Southern Gothic abode, brimming with many manor of quirky haunts. Ingenious tech like a waiting room with stretching

Read More
Movie ReviewsReviews

‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’ Review: A Rousing Enough Adventure

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny hasn’t received quite the warm welcome many expected. After Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was lambasted by fans, some would say undeservedly, James Mangold (Logan, Walk the Line) stepped into the director’s chair to give Indy one final adventure. Steven Spielberg’s shoes are monumental to fill, but Mangold’s track record speaks for itself. Following

Read More