Author: John Dotson

Movie ReviewsReviews

‘Dune: Part Two’ Review: A Cinematic Miracle

Once in a blue moon, a movie comes along that feels different. For this writer, experiences such as The Matrix or even Sam Raimi’s first Spider-Man had a quality to their execution that felt progressive in their blockbuster styles. Dune: Part Two is the first movie in a decade that feels like it is pushing the art form. We live in

Read More
Movie ReviewsReviews

‘Molli and Max in the Future’ Review: A ‘When Harry Met Sally’ Inspired Galactic Rom-Com

Imagine a movie that combines Tron, Guardians of the Galaxy, and, somehow, When Harry Met Sally. Once the image of the film appears, add astral projections, cults, cosmic gods, and interdimensional trash planets. For most filmmakers, throwing this number of fantastic concepts into one film would be too much luggage. But Michael Lukk Litwak’s writing and direction in Molli and Max

Read More
Film FestivalsMovie ReviewsReviews

‘She is Conann’ Review: A Banksy-inspired Vision of Conan the Barbarian

She is Conann is not a Conan film. The characters are mostly here, including the addition of Red Sonja. But the acid dream of She is Conann has other ideas on its mind. In a weird, nightmarish feminine LGTBQ vision of the Barbarian. We see the iconic character through various stages of her life, bathing the brutal character’s journey in a tub of

Read More
Movie ReviewsReviews

Review: ‘All of Us Strangers’ is a Heart-wrenching Daydream

As a disclaimer, when it comes to the subject of LGTBQ, there are far better voices to discuss this film, especially among The Cosmic Circus writers. After seeing All of Us Strangers, it was a wish that this writer had someone like Head Writer Brian Kitson to discuss the movie’s themes. What did it mean to them? How accurate are the

Read More
Movie ReviewsReviews

Review: ‘The Iron Claw’ is Devastatingly Powerful

A while back, there was a critic who spoke online about being rejected by an organization. The reason: He put too much himself into the reviews. The notion of this seems baffling. Movies, television shows, novels, and even music impact us partially due to life experiences. Asking someone to rebel against cinematic connection seems criminal. But with The Iron Claw, the urge to

Read More
Movie ReviewsReviews

Review: Hayao Miyazaki’s ‘The Boy and the Heron’ is a Farewell Poem

Hayao Miyazaki is easily one of the greatest storytellers of our time. The imagination and artistry on display with each project showcases an auteur who dreams of worlds beyond our understanding. Like Spider-Man: Across the Spider-verse, every image of this film can be a poster, keepsake, wallpaper, etc. His latest effort, The Boy and the Heron, continues to demonstrate Miyazaki’s powers. However, this might be one of his

Read More