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War for the Planet of the Apes
This summer has been holding out on us. Over the past month, we’ve seen the rise of a lasso-wielding warrior, the ongoing drama of transforming cars, and the return of a web-swinging hero. With all of these big blockbusters practically coming back to back, a film would need to be unique in order to survive. War…
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Baby Driver
We first crossed paths with Edgar Wright in the 2004 sleeper hit Shaun of the Dead. The film put Wright on the map, along with actors Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. Two sequels rounded out the “Blood and Ice Cream” trilogy, Hot Fuzz and The World’s End, continuing Wright’s style of paying homage to genre…
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I, Daniel Blake
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The Mummy
Much has been made about the recent rise of movie universes. Marvel, DC, Star Wars, etc. A film universe allows production companies the comforts of a franchise — character familiarity, crew stability — while bypassing the obvious drawbacks of narrative fatigue. Need to crank out another film, but your last effort flopped? Hit your audience…
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Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
I’ve never been a big fan of the term, “guilty pleasure,” especially because of its use in popular culture. Obviously, it implies the presence of guilt when enjoying something — movies, music, food etc. But aside from legal and moral codes, should anyone have to feel guilty about liking something? Most examples include your one…
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I Knew Her Well
I Knew Her Well opens with a landscape shot of a beach, steadily panning across the sand and continuing onto the body of Adriana Astarelli (Stefania Sandrelli). We are primed to assume that, like many others before and after it, the film is objectifying women. But the shot is a masterful preview of a piece…
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The Circle
If you are reading this review on this site, you are already more or less technologically adept. And like most of us you very likely go to the “information superhighway” for entertainment, education, and news. And you probably also use the internet to make the business and file-keeping of your life easier. To do that…
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Wonder Woman
I should start this piece by admitting something: I’m firmly entrenched as a Marvel Cinematic Universe fan. I loved watching the Spiderman and X-Men movies as a young teenager, and I’ve enjoyed seeing the rise of Marvel as a movie powerhouse. There aren’t too many smart and fun blockbusters out there, and the MCU has…
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Paterson
“Say it! No ideas but in things. Mr. Paterson has gone away to rest and write.” – William Carlos Williams, Paterson (1946-1958) Why is Adam Driver a leading man? He’s not Hollywood sexy, but he can act. In Paterson, from writer/director Jim Jarmusch, Driver plays Paterson (the man) living in Paterson, NJ (the town) in a…
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Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
No one makes superhero movies like Marvel Studios. They’ve earned their big-screen domination with quality films, and Guardians of the Galaxy is at the top of the list. Released in 2014 after three Iron Mans, two Thors, two Captain Americas, and an Avengers team-up, Guardians was the breath of fresh air Marvel needed. The movie…
