French producer and director Louis Leterrier and screenwriter Matthew Robinson’s The Last House is flawed in its storytelling. The problems don’t just lie in setting a narrative in Seattle, Washington, but in believing that its populace feels alone. I remember visiting the area in late July and seeing how a beautiful community can coexist. That is, until the shooting in Seattle
Read MoreThe metaphor is heard loud and clear in Cristian Mungiu’s Fjord, this year’s Palme d’Or-winning picture, as the evangelical, conservative Gheorghiu family moves into a highly progressive (and liberal) neighborhood in Norway. If you didn’t click it because you didn’t meet Mungiu’s latest at its terms, it’s an apt parallel for the return of conservatism, which has become more prominent around
Read MoreNo 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+
Read MoreIt’s been nearly 12 years since Gregg Araki’s last feature film. If anything, what’s most apparent about I Want Your Sex is that the director is letting loose in both poppy stylization and a plea for younger generations to get out and get laid. In the process of providing a silly atmosphere to match its brightly colored zaniness, I Want Your
Read MoreThe 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
Read MoreI know, another Toy Story sequel? Are they ever going to stop making these? This is a valid question, given how many agree that Toy Story 3 ended the franchise perfectly and offered thoughtful conclusions for the toys many of us grew up repeatedly watching on VHS until the tape wore out. Toy Story 4, while enjoyable, existed only to print money, and many
Read MoreLeviticus resides in a fascinating place when viewing it from its genre roots. It’s able to weave both a compelling queer story and progressively brutal horror while changing enough elements to remain just distinctive enough from its inspirations. You’ll hear many comparisons to genre flicks like It Follows and Smile, but director Adrian Chiarella clearly understands that within his feature debut.
Read MoreFor years, Prime Video’s The Boys built its reputation as a superhero satire and often crossed lines that most superhero stories would never even consider. Heads exploded, politicians became puppets, and corporations weaponized celebrity culture. With each season, superheroes slowly transformed into terrifying symbols of unchecked power and terror. What started as a violent, funny parody of comicbook universes eventually evolved
Read MoreIt would be futile for me to give you a succinct plot summary of Boots Riley’s I Love Boosters. The movie is the rapper-turned-filmmaker’s sophomore effort in the world of cinema following Sorry to Bother You and, most recently, a digression inside the world of television with the limited series I’m a Virgo. It would also be futile for me to
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