Review: “Censor”

Censorship has played a role in film almost ever since the medium was invented. It takes different shapes and goes to varying extremes depending on the country and the time period. In Hollywood, for instance, the Production Code established to regulate content after the advent of the talking picture at the end of the 1920s […]

Review: “Zola”

“Y’all wanna hear a story about why me & this bitch here fell out???????? It’s kind of long but full of suspense.” Those words, attached to four selfies of herself with a white blonde woman, were posted on Twitter by Aziah “Zola” King in October 2015, kicking off a thread of 148 tweets detailing a […]

Streaming Movie Recap: October 2020, Part 3

Happy November everyone! I’m looking back on some October releases one more time with the last part of my streaming recap. Read on for mini reviews of the movies “Clouds,” “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm,” “The Witches,” “On the Rocks,” “Over the Moon,” “Yes God, Yes,” and “His House.” “CLOUDS” (Disney Plus) For a supposedly faith-based movie, […]

Streaming Movie Recap: October 2020, Part 2

Here’s the second part of my mini reviews for October! Six reviews follow, of the films “The Forty-Year-Old Version,” “American Murder: The Family Next Door,” “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” “A Baby-Sitter’s Guide to Monster-Hunting,” “The Mortuary Collection,” and “Rebecca.” All of these films are currently available on streaming services, so be sure to […]

Streaming Movie Recap: October 2020, Part 1

This month has felt pretty busy, hasn’t it? In terms of movies, there have been a lot of new releases, from spooky films for Halloween to the first rumblings of potential awards season contenders. I wanted to get this out as soon as possible because my mini reviews will be split into at least three […]

Streaming Movie Recap: September 2020

September’s streaming releases are largely dominated by some big movies from Netflix, from Charlie Kaufman’s latest and the all-star ensemble of “The Devil All the Time” to the controversial “Cuties” and the crowd-pleasing period piece “Enola Holmes.” Read my reviews of those movies and more below. “I’M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS” (Netflix) “I’m Thinking of […]

Review: “A Call to Spy”

“A Call to Spy” contains many of the typical hallmarks of a World War II movie. We follow the heroes through action, espionage, struggle, and sacrifice, all performed on behalf of their country. But these movies usually follow male heroes, whether they be soldiers on the front lines, spies trying to covertly gather intelligence against […]

NYFF Review: “Nomadland”

Driving down a lonely highway. Floating in a creek. Gazing at the sweeping vistas of the American West. Writer and director Chloé Zhao’s “Nomadland” is comprised of many of these quiet moments. The film serves as a character study for Fern (Frances McDormand), an older woman who, after losing her job and her home in […]

Review: “Mulan” (2020)

Warning: this review contains spoilers for “Mulan.” I will never forget watching the animated Disney movie “Mulan” in the theater when it was first released in 1998, and the sense of elation I felt walking out of the auditorium, the Stevie Wonder/98 Degrees tune “True to Your Heart” blaring over the end credits. It’s still […]

Review: “Summerland”

“Summerland” is a period piece that is exactly as pleasant as it looks and sounds. But by injecting a rather traditional and sentimental narrative with a more contemporary attitude, and through Gemma Arterton’s winning performance, writer and director Jessica Swale’s debut feature is a sumptuous treat. Set during World War II, “Summerland” stars Arterton as […]