Directing his fifth feature length film, Steve Buscemi had us at Tessa Thompson. That’s an immediate victory. Go ahead and close your eyes. Picture Tessa and hear her voice. If you’re hearing her approachable tone and timbre in softer roles like Passing or Sylvie’s Love before her heroic bellows in the Thor and Creed franchises, you’re the right kind of cinephile and have dialed in to the proper Tessa Thompson.
Read MoreHow did this all happen? What can tear apart a marriage? Most folks go straight to the tawdry daytime talk show topics of money and infidelity, neither of which are anywhere close to the catalysts in Black White and the Greys and there’s zero crowd to watch it all go down. Rather, the frost seeping into the cracks of the Grey family lies in a growing divergence of intellectual contrasts and moral conflicts.
Read MoreDreamin’ Wild comports itself unlike many other musical biopics. This one is not trying to strap a rocket to the back of its subjects and launch them to superstar heavens in front of massive crowds shining a barrage of spotlights and flashbulbs. That’s not the Emersons’ story whatsoever. As hinted at before, these songs, characterized, again, as a “dream-like symphony to teenhood,” came from an emotional place beyond what was captured on vinyl. Fragile care was needed.
Read MoreWhen the larger societal issues of Britain’s social politics towards POC creep in, the hurdles, so to speak, get even higher. To Shekhar Kapur’s great credit and shared with producer and debuting screenwriter Jemimia Khan, those inclusions are honest more than heavy-handed. More than anything, What’s Love Got to Do With It puts a strong emphasis on family honor and its aforementioned different speed of romantic finality. Those nuclei become natural and not forced on a journey where the wallup and flourish surprisingly arrive in two different places.
Read MoreIf you need a feel-good pick-me-up, there’s nothing quite like a hilarious comedy movie. Laughter is good for the soul, and watching a feel-good comedy movie can boost your mood, lower stress levels, and release endorphins. It’s the perfect way to decompress and disconnect from the daily stressors in your life.
Read MoreThe Critics Choice Association (CCA) announced today the winners of the 3rd Annual Critics Choice Super Awards, honoring the most popular, fan-obsessed genres across both movies and television, including Superhero, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Horror, and Action. Flying the Film Obsessive and Every Movie Has a Lesson flags, yours truly is a voting member of the CCA and a committee member for these Super Awards.
Read MoreAfter ballots were finalized in 25 categories, the Chicago Indie Critics announced the winners of their seventh annual and newly-named “Windie” film awards on January 21, 2023. Members, guests, and local nominees gathered for a festive winter evening party at the stylish Music Box Lounge in Chicago. The awards presentation was recorded for the CIC’s YouTube channel.
Read MoreWhen You Finish Saving the World stops right when an interesting alignment of merits could possibly begin. That ambiguous final moment of discovered courage and acceptance ends the journey at the point it should have begun. What you’re left with is that same decision mentioned earlier of deciding between bearable and unbearable feelings about incensed and outspoken people. Too often, the latter impression wins out.
Read MoreThe Online Film Critics Society (OFCS) today announces nominees for their top film honors of 2022; winners will be announced on Monday, January 23. Leading with a total of 11 nominations is Everything Everywhere All at Once. Other films earning multiple nominations include Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees of Inisherin (9), Steven Spielberg’s The Fabelmans (8) as well as TÁR (6), Aftersun, Elvis, Nope and Top Gun: Maverick (4 each).
Read MoreThe latitude was there in Alice, Darling to have characters become completely destroyed in more shocking and titillating fashions. Many movies circling abuse go straight to stiffer physical variety with bolder and wilder narratives. Mary Nighy and Alanna Francis took on a more unique challenge to expose the coercive side that lacks tawdry bloodshed. Their result hurts plenty in its own right and succeeds to seek higher healing.
Read MoreOn Sunday, January 15th, the Critics Choice Association (CCA), of which yours truly is a two-year member, announced the winners of the 28th annual Critics Choice Awards LIVE on The CW. The efficient and on-time show was hosted by Chelsea Handler and held at the Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles. One of these years, you will see me there!
Read MoreAaron White of the Feelin’ Film podcast and I relish competition and appreciate a challenge for any kind of bragging rights. He had the idea of laying down some bold predictions for the coming year as “bets” to win a prize between us. So, we each took turns to research and document six measurable claims for the upcoming year across industry trends and box office projections. The critic with the most predictions right this time next year wins. Enjoy the show!
Read More
