Starting with the immensely entertaining one-two horror punch of ‘X’ and ‘Pearl’ in 2022, writer/director Ti West and actress Mia Goth, who’s also his creative partner for this series of films, bring their saga to a close (?) with ‘MaXXXine.’ If the first two movies were their odes to grimy 70s grind house and ‘Oz’… Continue reading ‘MaXXXine’ – Mia Goth & Ti West Do It Again?

The answer? A resounding YES!! ‘Furiosa’ (with its silly clarifier “A Mad Max Saga”) is the rare prequel that effectively fleshes out its main character and the world of its progenitor, “Mad Max: Fury Road”. It’s so good and so compelling to be back that the film justifies its existence even as it suffers the… Continue reading ‘Furiosa – A Mad Max Saga’ – Can George Miller Return to the Well?

Starting with “Rise of” in 2011, the current iteration of the the “Planet of the Apes” franchise has been of a consistent quality that’s hard to compare to other blockbuster series. Perhaps it’s the meticulous nature of their motion capture craft that has restricted output over the years. Those behind the scenes, from the many… Continue reading “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” – Is This the Most Consistent Current Franchise?

For many filmgoers, the prospect of a new Alex Garland movie is a tantalizing event. That the British novelist/writer/director (‘The Beach’, ‘28 Days Later’, ‘Ex Machina’) decided to make a movie about a contemporary American ‘Civil War’, is both intriguing and confounding at the same time. There’s always been a foreboding sense of controlled nihilism… Continue reading ‘Civil War’ – Purposely Provocative Premise, Purposely Not Provocative Movie?

With his new film, ‘Dune: Part Two’, writer/director Denis Villeneuve has fully realized his dream of bringing Frank Herbert’s heretofore unadaptable foundational sci-fi novel to the biggest screen. Based on the incredible work on display throughout his first foray into the world of Arrakis, 2021’s ‘Dune: Part One’, the success of this next part was… Continue reading ‘Dune: Part Two’ – The Subversion of the “Hero’s Journey” Fully Realized?

There’s been a lot of press lately centering on the decline of Marvel Studios. It seems to have culminated with the financial failure of its latest film entry, ‘The Marvels’, a sequel to 2019’s, ‘Captain Marvel.’ Due to the strikes and a concerted effort to reevaluate the product, there won’t be another MCU movie until… Continue reading ‘The Marvels’ – Edited Within an Inch of its Life . . .

‘The Exorcist’, considered by many to be one of the greatest horror masterpieces of all time, is fifty years old this year. In honor of this monumental anniversary of what is pretty much the invention of modern horror, writer/director David Gordon Green, along with a writing troupe that includes actor and cohort Danny McBride, set… Continue reading ‘The Exorcist: Believer’ – Old Idea, Not Enough of a New Spin?

How does Writer/Director Christopher Nolan keep doing it? He has somehow become the purveyor of smart, challenging blockbuster entertainment that pushes the experience of watching a film, in that it provokes and delights audiences in ways they never thought possible. Leave it to him to put his unique, time-twisting spin on the biopic with ‘Oppenheimer’,… Continue reading ‘Oppenheimer’ – A Propulsive, Explosive Masterpiece?

After an inescapable anticipation due to marketing genius and a long wait on baited breath of what promising filmmaker Greta Gerwig would do with the source material, ‘Barbie’ is finally here. And it’s truly wonderful. As crass as it sounds, Mattel Productions (yes, the toy company behind the iconic doll), has backed a vision (yes,… Continue reading ‘Barbie’ – Who Run The World?

‘Mission: Impossible’ as a franchise just might be the most successful in achieving its, pun intended, mission. While other action blockbuster intellectual properties have ambitions that go way beyond just the movies themselves, Tom Cruise’s ‘M:I’ series is content to entertain, one movie, one set piece, one moment at a time. Nearing 30 years since… Continue reading ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ – Choose To Accept?