The New “Halloween” Struggles to Add to John Carpenter’s Classic
Expectations were raised sky high with all the press and PR attached to this latest take on Halloween. The new sequel/reboot/annulment of the previous seven sequels was supposed to be the best of all of those that followed John Carpenter’s original 1978 classic. While it’s competently made and contains a full-throttled performance by star Jamie […]
“Bad Times at the El Royale” Drags Out Its Stay
Drew Goddard is an impressive filmmaker. His screenplay for 2015’s “The Martian” netted him an Oscar nomination in 2015, and his direction of “The Cabin in the Woods” was resoundingly acclaimed, as was his revisionist horror script for the 2012 sleeper. Much of his new film “Bad Times at the El Royale” is splendid as […]
“First Man” Salutes the Work of Putting a Man on the Moon
Damien Chazelle’s new feature “First Man” is an ode to elbow grease. Telling of the painstaking years it took for NASA to put a man on the moon, it is less about the glorious conquering of space and more about the tireless work involved in making it happen. Specifically, it focuses on astronaut Neil Armstrong […]
“Venom” Has Plenty of Fangs but Lacks Teeth
With audiences’ insatiable thirst for superhero movies, it was inevitable that the villainous foils would start headlining their own films as well. One of the first out of the gate is “Venom” and it tells the origin story of one of Spider-Man’s key enemies. Spidey is nowhere to be found in this film, and that’s […]
“A Star Is Born” Spawns a Natural Born Filmmaker and Leading Lady. Bradley Cooper & Lady Gaga Shine.
“A Star is Born” yet again, and this time so is a natural born filmmaker. Actor Bradley Cooper not only headlines the fourth version of the perennial love story, but he makes his directorial debut as well. It’s a stunning accomplishment. You’d expect an actor to be great at coaxing superb performances out of his […]
