What could be more unusual than a horror film written and directed by women? Even more unusual is that it’s a western and, as horror films go, it’s actually good. It’s a shame to have to still acknowledge that both genres are typically dominated by male filmmakers. “The Wind” is a small film that packs […]
Part of the 2017 Toronto Film Festival “New Wave” series, Oscar winning actress Brie Larson made her directorial debut with “Unicorn Store”. A welcome surprise and a more impressive actor-turned-director film than Andy Serkis’ “Breathe” which also debuted at the festival that year. Yet no distributor would buy the film, even with an Oscar winner
From the looks of “The Highwaymen,” you might think it a dated “Dad’s movie” as it’s been dubbed, or just another cops and robbers movie. John Lee Hancock has found success with movies set in Texas like “The Rookie,” and “The Blind Side” (which was actually shot in Georgia, because Texas does not offer the
Following up on the kind of success Jordan Peele had with directorial debut “Get Out” was always going to be an anticipated event, hard to satisfy. “Us” will please the fans who discovered “Get Out” before it became a phenomenon and Oscar winner. What it won’t do, is make the leap to awards contender or bring in audiences who typically stay far away from the horror movies. That doesn’t
Irish director Neil Jordan is a bit unpredictable when you sit down for his films. “The End of the Affair” was unpredictably sexual, “The Brave One” outrageously violent and suspenseful, even his vampire flick “Byzantium” gave the genre a completely different perspective. His latest thriller “Greta” makes very good use of Isabelle Huppert, recently Oscar
Can a film be both really good and yet stereotypical in every way? “Arctic” is the best film of 2019, so far. The survival thriller received a ten-minute standing ovation at the Cannes Film Festival, but there isn’t much to celebrate in this compact 90-minute thriller that you can’t find elsewhere. With so little dialogue,
“Isn’t It Romantic” might be the first film to successfully please both those who despise romantic comedies and those who love them. Director Todd Strauss-Schulson describes his new film as “a romantic comedy about falling in love with yourself.” The script simultaneously makes fun of every popular romantic comedy of the past 20 years while pointing
“A lot of stuff happens in Marwen that doesn’t make sense”. The fact that Robert Zemeckis new film is about a hate crime victim who wears high heels isn’t what doesn’t make sense, that’s actually explained as part of Mark Hogancamp’s own personal therapy. What doesn’t make sense is why Zemeckis thought balancing live action
The book Queen of Scots: The True Life of Mary Stuart by John Guy makes a lot of assumptions that one can only wonder if they are true or just wishful thinking. If you are able to set aside its historical inaccuracy, “Mary, Queen of Scots,” will prove a more enjoyable, diverse experience for modern audiences. For
Despite internationally acclaimed director Yorgos Lanthimos not penning the script this time, “The Favourite” is still very much one of his films. The severe divisiveness among critics caused by “The Lobster” and “The Killing of a Sacred Deer” is lessened in “The Favourite,” which started garnering Oscar buzz the moment it debuted at the Venice Film Festival. It’s