Sure, it may have taken a bit to get there, but talented writer-director Vincent Grashaw demonstrated the shrewd patience to make those culminating moments happen on their own time and without some grand public showdown or audience. The “what for” and the “why” came to a head with dramatic focus. Bang Bang was never built to be anything close to a cliched sports movie. Instead, what burned intimately for the people involved stayed intimate to the bitter–and therefore realistic–end.
Read MoreIt’s not that the movie or the actors don’t look the part in Sasquatch Sunset. That’s not the issue. It’s more about the purposes and examinations at hand. This film, which enjoyed praise during its world premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival earlier in the year, is one hell of a bizarre enigma poking and prodding any number of desires and intentions.
Read MoreWhile ambitious as a ripe tangent in borrowing a real-life scandal, the whole shadowing angle of May December overloads what was excessive enough as off-screen history to begin with. Applying a smattering of unlikely kinks and a confounding third act of insecurity swerves sinks the film. Haynes is left with a mood piece of examining taboo with more taboo. and it gets unattractively lost in just that very vibe.
Read MoreJust like the first film that crescendo-ed with the Oscar-nominated “Can’t Stop The Feeling,” the high point of Trolls Band Together arrives with its signature song “Better Place.” It’s sung first by the combined cast during the plot while *NSYNC takes over for the full version over the closing credits. It’s an earworm of a pop ditty and siren’s song for the moms and dads. If “Better Place” were any catchier, it would be made of Velcro, require a multi-stage emergency vaccine, and required to be gloved by MLB All-Star J.T. Realmuto.
Read MoreWhile film stars often grace headlines with their latest roles, fashion choices, or glamorous events, some aspects of their personal lives, such as home maintenance, remain relatively under the radar. Among the myriad considerations a homeowner faces, roofing is pivotal. But do film stars, with their hectic schedules and luxurious lifestyles, personally dive into the world of roofing contractors? Let's shed some light on this less-discussed facet of celebrity homeownership.
Read MoreMany romantic comedies skew heavily to presenting the female perspective. Most of those movies are built to follow a woman’s plight to get away from the wrong partner and find the right one. We side with her, cheer on her actions, and sneer at the suitors. In a unique way, Shortcomings is different. This one stays on the bad partner and, for that, it has a little extra engrossment going for it.
Read MoreThere was a measure of true cleverness possible in inserting a throwback maverick character into the present day. Paint wanted to bend a vibe with fiction and flexed too far, to a place where its main character would not survive personally or professionally in the first place. The surrounding characters chipping away at the fraud underneath Carl Nargle– an arc amusingly not all that different from the esteemed Oscar-nominated TAR when you really think about it– exposed nothing we could not already see for ourselves.
Read MoreLike the GTFO fight-or-flight speed and freak happenstance of real-life, Herman delivers precisely that exhilarating sense of urgency. There are no shouted demands from a pursuing criminal that pretend to describe motive or what the encounter all means. Likewise, no wimpy and waffling “Wait a second. Can we talk about this?” pleads are attempted in return. Herman stays a mystery through the very end.
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 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 MoreTo press that feeble aesthetic further, the dramatic soap of Empire of Light is that everyone is cleansed when lovely cinematic journeys push viewers and servants alike to go out and get the life they want. Movie theaters are indeed an oasis of culture, a safe haven for friendship, and a shared glue of communal experiences. Can movies unlock repressed emotions for Hilary or improve her attitudinal state? Maybe and maybe not, but it’s quaintly nice to think so.
Read MoreFor better or worse, Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees of Inisherin is an unrelenting emotional tussle of stubbornness among men. Your tolerance level for such behavior will undoubtedly mix feelings and inform your experience. Some will relish in its afflicted dark humor while others will be ready to throw their hands up and beg for the clashing characters to get over themselves. No matter if you are engaged in the tailspin or irked by the whole ordeal, you will find plenty to be impressed with in this pitch black comedy and surefire awards darling.
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