If you’re a fan of the Harry Potter books and films, then trust me when I say Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is going to be a treat for you. While I myself have never read the Harry Potter books, nor was I the biggest fan of the films or main character. I was very intrigued by the overall world that was created, and was always hoping for another movie to come set in the same universe, just not centered on the Harry Potter character. Mrs. J.K Rowling, who actually wrote the script for this film, reveals a little more of the magical world by taking us to the United States and showing us how they live there.
Read moreDoctor Strange Review (spoiler free)
In a year that sees Disney sitting atop the box office charts with the four highest-grossing films worldwide of the year, with one more likely waiting in the wings (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story), and with more than $4.7 billion in global receipts so far (with another likely $3.433 bigllllion to come), the studio’s next potential blockbuster franchise is just around the corner. Marvel’s Phase 3 kicked off this summer with the release of Captain America: Civil War, taking $1.15 billion at the box office, and now the MCU’s next entry arrives November 4th when Doctor Strange hits theaters. With a mix of popular superhero and fantasy elements plus the seemingly invincible Marvel branding...
Read moreBlair Witch Review (spoiler free)
Somehow Lionsgate has put one of the most influential horror franchises in film history into the hands of two of our most promising and exciting young filmmakers without anyone knowing. Blair Witch, as the film is now called. It was originally promoted as The Woods, was directed by Adam Wingard and written by Simon Barrett. They’re the team behind the underrated genre films You’re Next and The Guest, and now they’ve created a sequel that in my opinion both pays tribute to the original but also elevates it in ways that only 17 years of space could allow...
Read more31 mini movie review (spoiler free)
Combining elements of BATTLE ROYALE and THE RUNNING MAN, the stage for 31 is simply set: Five carnies (including one played by Sheri Moon Zombie) are abducted and forced to enter a survival game. Conceptualizing his scenario from the statistic that Halloween (i.e. October 31) is the day that the most people go missing, Zombie creates a “Murder World” where three bewigged British fops (the leader played by Malcolm McDowell) take mortality bets on the five captured circus folk as they are chased around an industrial labyrinth. Those doing the chasing are a series of pseudo archetypal evil clowns...
Read moreSuicide Squad Review (non-spoiler)
Ever since that first bit of footage was leaked from Comic Con last year…:) Suicide Squad has been presumed to be destined for resounding critical praise and warm audience embrace. The marketing has been out of this world, interest and awareness are high, and it taps into some of the same sensibilities that made Guardians of the Galaxy and Deadpool so beloved and popular. In fact, if you can imagine Guardians of the Galaxy’s anti-hero team dynamics and humor (dialed down a couple of notches but still frequent) mixed with Deadpool’s more cynical tone and extreme ultra violence, that’s a pretty good way to describe what to expect from Suicide Squad. After having just seen this movie I think this movie will mostly get the sort of positive reaction everyone expects when it officially comes out Aug 5th, but I also think it won’t wind up quite as acclaimed as those two films, for a few reasons...
Read moreThe Neon Demon: How To Embrace The Disturbing And The Beautiful
Even when I don’t like his films (which is rare), I’m always glad writer-director Nicolas Winding Refn is out there in the world making movies. He’s something of a button pusher, sometimes a little too obviously so, but going back to his PUSHER trilogy, BRONSON, VALHALLA RISING, and his breakthrough work DRIVE, Refn remains as solid a visual artist as anyone working today. I consider him a modern day Stanley Kubrick, even if his themes of violence amid a certain amount of serenity don’t always hold together. Again, the fact that a filmmaker is even thinking in these terms and challenging the norm (of both big-budget and indie films) is just a sight to behold.
Read moreX-Men Apocalypse: AKA How To "KILL" A Franchise
smh
At the beginning of this movie is a scene in the 80’s set X-Men: Apocalypse where a young Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) and Scott Summers (Tye Sheridan) exit a showing of Return of the Jedi and argue the merits of the various Star Wars films. The participants discuss “Empire Strikes Back was better” versus “Star Wars started it all” before coming to a consensus that the third films always stink. It’s intended as a jab at X-Men: The Last Stand, but it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy...
Read moreCaptain America: Civil War Review (spoiler free)
Functioning as both a sequel to Captain America: The Winter Solider andThe Avengers: Age of Ultron, the film is the most comprehensive Marvel Cinematic Universe chapter to date, and while that put a great deal on the plate of writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, the movie soars because the challenge is accepted and responded to in brilliant and entertaining fashion. Bringing together tremendous character dynamics; bold structure; an emotional narrative earned after years of story work; and spellbinding, fun action sequences, it’s everything a blockbuster should be.
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