DIDI, meaning younger brother in Mandarin, starts as the typical coming-of-age story, but quickly builds into something bigger. This semi-autobiographical film by Sean Wang takes us to Fremont, CA in the summer of 2008, when its eponymous 13-year-old character, Chris “Wang Wang’” Wang (Izaac Wang) is spending a quietly tumultuous August failing at life but… Read More »
ALIEN: ROMULUS
ALIEN: ROMULUS may be the strongest entry into the franchise since the original. Certainly, this taut thriller provides strong characters, and an even stronger sense of dread, concentrating on the horror of the unknown that turns out to be as unstoppable as it is homicidal. The high-minded philosophical musings found in PROMETHEUS, for example, are… Read More »
BORDERLANDS
There are some sins that are simply unforgivable, and wasting Cate Blanchett is one of them. Yet, that is precisely what BORDERLANDS, based on the video game, has done. This sub-par fantasy/sci-fi adventure features lackluster effects, static action sequences, and a rambling plot that manages to be both moribund and irksome at the same time. … Read More »
IT ENDS WITH US
IT ENDS WITH US, based on the novel by Colleen Hoover, follows blandly in the grand tradition of the Women’s Films of Hollywood’s Golden Age. In it, we meet the effulgently monikered Lily Bloom, a woman with a troubled childhood who is returning home through the exquisite New England autumnal landscape to bury her father.… Read More »
DEADPOOL AND WOLVERINE
It is a fine line to walk, loving a pop culture phenomenon with all your being, yet being able to make mad sport of it at the same time. Thus is DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE, the ultimate fanboy and fangirl experience of the Marvel Universe that manages to be both wickedly funny and curiously reverent. Deadpool… Read More »
TWISTERS
There is much to admire in TWISTERS, the >not<-sequel to TWISTER. The way the science of tornadoes is woven into the dialogue with a minimum of clunky exposition. The fine performance from Daisy Edgar-Jones as a meteorologist on a mission to stop tornadoes before they can devastate communities. Maura Tierney as her mother who has… Read More »
FLY ME TO THE MOON
It is well worth overlooking the historical inaccuracies to be found in FLY ME TO THE MOON. I’m not talking about the conspiracy theories about how the first moon landing was faked on a soundstage. This bright and breezy look at what may or may not have really happened has dedicated itself to the emotional,… Read More »
LONGLEGS
With LONGLEGS, writer/director Oz Perkins has created an original tale of horror set in the 1990s while staying true to familiar tropes. There’s an unhinged suspect, a series of family slaughters that don’t ring true to a murder/suicide scenario, and a neophyte FBI agent at the center of the case in ways she didn’t see… Read More »
AMERICAN DREAMS (WAS DEMOCRACY JUST A DREAM?) from the San Francisco Mime Troupe
Click here for the interview with Andre Amarotico. The San Francisco Mime Troupe once again comes through with a thought-provoking musical comedy about the state of the nation with AMERICAN DREAMS (WAS DEMOCRACY JUST A DREAM?). The tripartite focus is on what the fallout will be from the 2024 election, and what is happening now… Read More »
MAXXXINE
At one point in MAXXXINE, a character says that it’s all about money. But that’s not true, at least not in this story of Maxine Minx (Mia Goth), born Miller, who has reached the top of the adult film industry, but at 33, knows that the clock is ticking on her career in porn. And… Read More »