Author: John Dotson

Movie ReviewsReviews

‘Buddy’ Movie Review: A Twisted, Violent ‘Barney’ Satire

The 2026 horror film Buddy acknowledges a point about Barney the Dinosaur that we’ve all been quietly thinking about for the past thirty years: The purple behemoth is a low-key narcissist. The film by Casper Kelly cleverly unwraps the pop culture craziness of the time period when every child became fixated on a character that ended on a song about “loving”

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‘Colony’ Review: Zombie Thrills Searching for Emotional Center

Colony sees the Train to Busan filmmaker Yeon Sang-Ho return to the zombie genre after the subpar follow-up Peninsula. With his new film, he pivots back to his familiar strengths, taking a group of survivors in a single-location setting and throwing as many flesh-eating zombies at them as humanly possible. But Colony adds new concepts to the zombie mayhem. Colony has

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‘It Ends’ Movie Review: A Well-Made Miserable Ride

It Ends is another entry in the liminal horror craze, focusing on souls getting lost in never-ending familiar voids. Directed by Alex Ullom, the film takes those ideas but removes them from enclosed spaces. Instead, It Ends is on an endless road with no meaning or purpose. Others trapped in the same space either feel overly panicked and volatile or have

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Fantasia Fest 2026: ‘The Samurai and the Prisoner’ Review

The Samurai and the Prisoner shares a unique commonality with Rian Johnson‘s recent work. Like Knives Out, it shares themes with the overall story. The film directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa (Cure, Pulse) sees the prolific filmmaker lean into the charm of a detective mystery like an Agatha Christie novel, only here it’s through the lens of a period war drama set

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Fantasia Fest 2026: ‘No Rest for the Wicked’ Review

No Rest for the Wicked is an unusually haunting title at Fantasia International Film Festival. One that speaks to the challenges of same-sex relationships through the lens of a supernatural story. The setting is far in the past, but its core themes remain true. The act of love can be treated like a curse by the family members of the LGBTQ+

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Fantasia Fest 2026: ‘When You Open The Door’ Review

When You Open The Door is one of the more unconventional offerings at the 2026 Fantasia International Film Festival. The film brings a fresh approach to the mythology of werewolves. It takes one main character down a mysterious path as she tries to understand the changes inside her. Unlike previous werewolf interpretations, there is no big monster that attacks the central

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Fantasia Fest 2026: ‘You Are The Film’ Review

Fantasia International Film Festival 2026 brought a familiar talent to the festival. You Are The Film sees playwright Makoto Ueda bring another playful sci-fi concept, only this time he takes a unique spin on the multiverse craze. Ueda, who previously scripted minimalist pieces in the genre such as Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes, River, and Rewrite, moves away from the theme of

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Fantasia Fest 2026: Our Five Most Anticipated Films

Fantasia International Film Festival 2026 kicks off this week, and we are back once again to cover the biggest movies from the lineup. Last year brought many great titles, such as Rewrite, Foreigner, and more. The event also featured Sundance darlings like Undertone and Lurker. This year is another stacked lineup with films like Her Private Hell, Corpus, and more Sundance

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‘The Odyssey’ Review: A Pure Visionary Achievement

The Odyssey is a fascinating follow-up to Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer. In fact, it might be the film I was hoping Oppenheimer might become. A movie about a man conflicted by his responsibilities in changing the world through destruction, but the key difference is that Nolan places Odysseus face-to-face with his sin, while Oppenheimer lost its way. Here, Odysseus is confronted with the

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