Imagine waking up in the bottom of a hole – you, your spouse, your kid. You’ve been drugged, and now you’re being held hostage. There’s no way out. Worse, your son is missing. What happened to him? Is he hurt? Worse? Who’s doing this, and why? Imagine waking up in the bottom of a hole […]
Sundance 2021: John And The Hole
Good storytelling skates by on the tension between what we see, read or hear unfold, and what we hope or fear might happen as the tale unfolds. Dickens or “Dumb & Dumber,” it’s all about meeting or willfully defying our expectations, great or otherwise. “Happy Cleaners” is a Korean-American immigrants and their children drama, a […]
Movie Review: “Happy Cleaners” and the burden of Korean-American expectations
“Some things never let us go” is the tagline of the new film THE LITTLE THINGS out in select theaters and streaming today on HBO Max. Problem is, even with three Academy Award winners – Denzel Washington (Training Day, Glory), Rami Malek (Bohemian Rhapsody) and Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club) – this film not only […]
MMT Quick Review of THE LITTLE THINGS
Crisis (2020), Armie Hammer, Quiver Distribution From writer/director Nicholas Jarecki; new drama/thriller Crisis stars Gary Oldman, Armie Hammer, Evangeline Lilly and Greg Kinnear. The focus is on three stories about the world of opioids. I’m not fully loving this trailer edit, but, hopefully the actors involved will deliver something memorable overall. I know that I’ve […]
CRISIS (2021): New Trailer From Gary Oldman, Armie Hammer, Evangeline Lilly, Greg Kinnear…
The National Theatre has released the first image of the filmed version of Romeo and Juliet, starring Josh O’Connor and Jessie Buckley. The venue utilised the stage spaces of its Lyttelton theatre to house the production of the 90-minute film over the course of a three-week shoot. The film will premiere in the UK on […]
First look: Josh O’Connor and Jessie Buckley in Romeo and Juliet
Whatever you do don’t confuse Jayro Bustamante’s “La Llorona” with 2019’s promising but ultimately disappointing “The Curse of La Llorona”. The two couldn’t be more different, their only real connection being the ubiquitous Latin American folk tale of “The Weeping Woman”. Bustamante has a much more sobering ambition, using the ghostly legend as a means […]
I’m loving the layers of Wandavision. The comedy and the horror but while watching the two commercials during the show I couldn’t help think how very sad Wanda’s story, and by extent the show, actually is. Spoilers below! Especially that first commercial for the Stark toaster/bomb and remembering the story about Wanda and her brother […]
While not as prominent in today’s news headlines as the current global pandemic, opioid addiction is ravaging lives at its own unspeakable rate. The new drama “Crisis” from director Nicholas Jarecki’s (“Arbitrage”) looks to tackle the issue head-on by using its star-studded cast to cover several interconnected storylines. Jarecki’s goal is to show how the […]
“Minari” is a near classic of the timeworn “troubles on the farm” drama, a story of a family of non-farmers facing the whims of nature and the widening fracture in a marriage as they set out to work the land and grab The American Dream. It’s “Country” or “The Southerner” or “Jean de Fleurette” but […]
Movie Review: Korean Immigrants are tested by the American dream in “Minari”
Title – Penguin Bloom (2020) Director – Glendyn Ivin (Last Ride) Cast – Naomi Watts, Andrew Lincoln, Rachel House, Jacki Weaver, Griffin Murray-Johnston Plot – Based on the true story of Australian family the Blooms and their relationship with a young Magpie they rescue months after their mother and wife Sam (Watts) loses the use […]
Film Review – Penguin Bloom (2020)
Off the wagon. So this is about four friends who all are high school teachers in Denmark. Over a 40th birthday dinner, one of them mentions a theory that all humans are born with a .05% alcohol deficiency in their blood. They decide to test this thesis by maintaining this level through the workweek. Now […]
Stay Drunk – Another Round (2020)
Justin Timberlake serves up a healthy slice of cinematic comfort food in this tender drama about an ex-con who befriends a social outcast.
‘Palmer’ Review: Justin Timberlake Is an Ex-Con Who Befriends an Abandoned Little Boy in Sweet Drama
Seven years ago, Cass was one of the brightest students in medical school, along with her closest friend, Nina. Then, after a rape scandal that involved Nina, they both dropped out. Fast forward to present day, Cass was a 30 years old, living with her parents, and single. During the […]
Movie Review: Promising Young Woman
Hunter Schafer lays bare Jules’ side of things in an emotionally vibrant if narratively slight second hourlong special.
‘Euphoria’ Review: Jules’ Special Episode Ties Together a Tangled Romance — Spoilers
I didn’t like the book and I didn’t like the movie. I am so, so tempted to leave this review at just that one sentence but I know that would be a bit disingenuous since I am very much in the minority on this. So I’ll give you a slightly fuller picture and you will […]
“Sometimes I feel like I’ve seen everything that’s going to happen. And it’s a nightmare.” That line of dialogue from “Cherry” really sums up the new trailer’s vibe nicely. This emotionally dense and dark-looking Apple Original reunites Tom Holland with the MCU’s Avengers architects Anthony and Joe Russo. But rest assured, judging by our first […]
In May of 2015 journalist Matthew Teague wrote an essay for Esquire magazine titled “The Friend: Love is Not a Big Enough Word“. This deeply personal piece told of his late wife Nicole who had died from ovarian cancer eight months earlier. She was only 34-years-old. It told of the dignity and courage she showed […]
No faithful movie about the Holocaust is going to be an easy watch. But they have long served as powerful reminders of unbridled human evil and they have testified to the resilience and bravery of many who suffered and died as a result of the atrocities. The upcoming Serbian historical drama “Dara of Jasenovac” tells […]
First Glance: “Dara of Jasenovac”
Brothers Conor and Jake Allyn grew up Dallas, Texas and made frequent trips across the southern border into Mexico with their father. The many visits opened their eyes to a much different side of Mexico and ultimately helped inspire their new film “No Man’s Land”. This modern-day western uses a reverse migration story of sorts […]
REVIEW: “No Man’s Land” (2021)
About midway through Steve McQueen’s compact “Lovers Rock” is a scene sure to be written about in nearly every review you’ll read. Let’s just call it the “Silly Games” scene, a long ten-minute slow dance that encapsulates the entire movie. A room full of young West Indian men and women intimately dance to Janet Kay’s […]