Review: “Dead Lover”

Dead Lover isn’t shy about its status as a Frankenstein riff. In fact, it opens with a quote from Mary Shelley’s novel: “There is something at work in my soul, which I do not understand.” In the story, this line is delivered by the doctor Victor Frankenstein, as he ponders what force may be compelling […]

Review: “The Encampments”

On April 17, 2024, a group of pro-Palestine students began an encampment on New York City’s Columbia University campus, standing in solidarity with Gaza in the broader context of the Gaza war that began on October 7, 2023, and demanding that the university divest from Israel. The immediate and global impact of the movement happened […]

Review: “The Pee Pee Poo Poo Man”

Situated somewhere in the neighborhood of a ripped-from-the-headlines true crime tale, absurdist comedy, tech age paranoid thriller, and slice-of-life indie, you’ll find The Pee Pee Poo Poo Man. Writer and director Braden Sitter culled the inspiration for his bizarre feature film from a viral news event that occurred in Toronto in 2019, when a man […]

Review: “Eephus”

I am not a baseball fan. This has plagued me for most of my life. Having lived in St. Louis— widely regarded as one of the nation’s most fanatical sports towns— for over half of my life now, I’m used to shrugging off the question I receive most from people when I’m out of town […]

Review: “Rats!”

Rats! is very much a your-milage-will-vary sort of movie. Writers, directors, and producers Maxwell Nalevansky and Carl Fry’s debut feature film’s blend of satire, gross-out comedy, and social commentary drew comparisons to the filmography of John Waters following its award-winning world premiere at Fantastic Fest in 2024, a comparison that turns out to be an […]

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: “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: “The People’s Joker”

If I regret one thing about my experience covering the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival, it’s returning my ticket for the Midnight Madness world premiere of Vera Drew’s The People’s Joker. My reasons for doing so have nothing to do with the film itself; as a lifelong Batman fan and a bonafide hater of Todd […]