Review: “Blink Twice”

When we first meet Frida (Naomi Ackie), she’s squatting on the toilet in the bathroom of the dingy apartment she shares with her best friend Jess (Alia Shawkat), compulsively scrolling through Instagram on her phone. She’s sent down an exposition-heavy rabbit hole after landing on a video apology from billionaire tech mogul Slater King (Channing […]

Review: “Sing Sing”

Sing Sing opens on a darkened stage, a sole figure in its center bathed in glowing blue light as he delivers a powerful, Shakespearean monologue. He closes the scene to thunderous applause and walks backstage, chatting and congratulating his castmates. As they remove their regal costumes, they all don the same neutral green jumpsuits and […]

Review: “Dìdi”

It would be all too easy to dismiss Sean Wang’s Dìdi as the exact sort of semi-autobiographical, coming-of-age comedy/drama that seems to become the Sundance darling on an annual basis. In fact, when Dìdi premiered at the festival earlier this year, it won the Audience Award, cementing its position as a sturdy crowdpleaser. Sure, in […]

Review: “Crumb Catcher”

Crumb Catcher opens with a sensory assault that sets the tone for the film’s all style, no little substance (or at least, confounding substance) approach: Leah (Ella Ray Peck) and Shane (Rigo Garay) stand in front of a backdrop, taking post-wedding photos in their dress and tux. Flashbulbs fire as chaotically as the photographer issues […]

Review: “Deadpool & Wolverine”

As I stretch my fingers in preparation for typing up a response to Deadpool & Wolverine, I almost feel guilty about how badly I plan to savage it. The 34th entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the first appearance for the raunchy Deadpool character there following Disney’s purchase of 20th Century Fox in 2019, […]

Review: “Twisters”

From the jump, it’s clear that Twisters— whose cold open introduces a personable young cast, throws in some science-y gobbledygook, and culminates in a visceral, effects-laden action sequence—is straining to resurrect the good-old-fashioned summer blockbuster. For the most part, it succeeds, although a lot of that success is dependent on its continuing a legacy. Jan […]

Review: “Mother, Couch”

It only takes a few minutes for Swedish writer and director Niclas Larsson’s feature directorial debut, Mother, Couch, to start to feel as tired as an old sofa. It’s a shame, because the story’s absurd premise on paper sounds ripe for comedy, drama, and moments of surrealism: an elderly matriarch (named only as Mother, and […]

Review: “Dandelion”

KiKi Layne is a star, and that’s no more apparent than when she’s playing a person struggling so hard to become one. In writer and director Nicole Riegel’s second feature, Dandelion, it’s a bit too on-the-nose that Layne’s titular character, a struggling singer/songwriter, is named for the perennial that is famed for its ability to […]

Review: “MaXXXine”

“To be good is to be forgotten. I’m going to be so bad I’ll always be remembered. The reason good women like me and flock to my pictures is that there is a little bit of vampire instinct in every woman. I will continue doing vampires as long as people sin.” Theda Bara reportedly stated […]

Review: “Horizon: An American Saga- Chapter 1”

As the credits rolled on the first part of Kevin Costner’s epic western series, Horizon: An American Saga— Chapter 1, I had but one thought: “I cannot believe he’s promised three more of these.” For those who have never seen a western before, or possess only a fleeting familiarity with the genre, Horizon is serviceable. […]