Category: Films

Film Review: “The Unknown Country”

Gladstone anchors lovely, meditative film

Tana (Lily Gladstone) pauses on her journey to her cousin’s wedding.

Lily Gladstone first garnered attention for her quietly affecting breakout role in Kelly Reichardt’s 2016 indie award winner Certain Women. She’s been back in the spotlight recently, thanks to Martin Scorsese, who cast her as Mollie, wife to Leonardo DiCaprio’s Ernest, in Scorsese’s highly anticipated upcoming adaptation of Killers of the Flower Moon. In between, Gladstone worked on several other projects (First Cow; Walking Out) and finally landed her first leading role in The Unknown Country, a beautiful, meditative film worthy of her talents.

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Film Review: “The Last Voyage of the Demeter”

The Demeter sinks slowly but surely

There are two pieces of classic literature to which I’m happily devoted in the case of any film adaptation, re-imagining, modern take, or spin-off: Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol and Bram Stoker’s Dracula. I’ll save any further reading into my personal attachment to these two stories for therapy, because right now the latter intellectual property has a new entry in a long lineage of film adaptations, The Last Voyage of the Demeter. Based on a short but haunting chapter from the original Dracula text, The Last Voyage of the Demeter continues director André Øvredal’s impressive filmmaking streak, but too many imbalanced components can’t keep this Demeter afloat. 

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Film Review: “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem”

“Mutant Mayhem” is packed with undeniable T-U-R-T-L-E power!

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series and three feature films of the early 1990s that centered around the reptilian mutant fighting foursome were hugely successful and spawned a multimedia franchise of toys, shows, and comics for decades. The hype was tempered by three mediocre films between 2007-2016, with the latter two misfires produced by Michael Bay. Nostalgia was keeping the franchise afloat, despite diminishing returns. So with a huge sigh of relief and a heart full of nostalgic glee, I’m happy to report that the series reboot Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem is an energetic and artistic cinematic take on what makes the Ninja Turtles brand so fun.

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Film Review: “Talk to Me”

Old school filmmaking leads Talk to Me to chilling results

When it comes to the horror genre, A24 has excelled in its decade long output. The studio has championed unknown filmmakers and launched mind-bending, risk-taking titles into the pantheon of the genre’s greatest entries, like Ari Aster’s Hereditary and Midsommar, Ti West’s X and Pearl. Once again, A24 has backed a feature film debut with Talk to Me, an old school horror film directed by Australian twin brothers Danny and Michael Philippou. Filled with practical effects and a quietly pervading sense of dread, Talk to Me is a chilling throwback horror flick that also serves as a calling card for a handful of fresh talent.

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Film Review: “Oppenheimer”

Physics, war, and the father of the atomic bomb: Nolan’s biopic captivates

General Leslie Groves (Matt Damon, l.) confers with Manhattan Project scientific director J. Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy).

Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gave it to man, Greek mythology tells us, and for that he was punished for all eternity. While physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer’s fate wasn’t quite as brutal, it proves nearly as tragic, as we see in Oppenheimer, writer/director Christopher Nolan’s epic new film about the father of the atomic bomb. 

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Film Review: “Barbie”

Gerwig delivers with a playful and clever Barbie movie

Margot Robbie is Barbie.

First, here’s a bit of context and factoids for your next trivia night: Barbie (the doll) was created by Ruth Handler and manufactured by the toy company Mattel, Inc. in 1959. A live-action Barbie movie had been rumored and tossed around in studio purgatory for many years before landing in the hands of Warner Bros. and director Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird; Little Women). There are over forty previously released Barbie movies, most if not all straight-to-video and all animated, but Gerwig’s vision was bound to be different. With each new set photograph, marketing ad, and interview released, anticipation grew to a fever pitch. Now it’s finally arrived: Barbie the live action blockbuster summer movie! And it’s as playful as a child could want and as incisive as everyone older yearned for. 

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Film Feature: Preview of the 43rd San Francisco Jewish Film Festival

The 43rd San Francisco Jewish Film Festival (the world’s longest running Jewish film festival) will take place July 20 – Aug 6, 2023, with screenings at theaters in San Francisco and Oakland. The festival will showcase 67 films from 18 countries, all touching upon the complexities of Jewish life, history, and culture. 

For a full view of special awards and opening and closing night events, check out the complete festival film guide. Tickets can be purchased  here. 

Below is a preview of the festival, featuring brief looks at six films: Continue reading “Film Feature: Preview of the 43rd San Francisco Jewish Film Festival”

Film Review: “Joy Ride”

Joy Ride is the funniest summer movie in years

Stephanie Hsu as Kat, Sabrina Wu as Deadeye, Ashley Park as Audrey, and Sherry Cola as Lolo in Joy Ride. Photo Credit: Ed Araquel

Sex comedies are officially back! Maybe they never completely left, but the sub-genre felt as if it were suffering, scarce, or diverted to streamers as limited series. Over the last decade, only a few exceptions like Girls Trip (2017) and Blockers (2018) broke through and made a splash. Now, hot on the heels of the R-rated sex comedy No Hard Feelings doing impressive business at the box office, Joy Ride hits theaters. Joy Ride is the feature directorial debut from Adele Lim (co-screenwriter of Crazy Rich Asians) and comedy producing super duo Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (This is the End; Neighbors). It’s a raunchy road trip movie that doesn’t shy away from explicit content – so let’s be perfectly clear: it’s super dirty, and f*cking hilarious!

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Film Review: “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One”

Dead Reckoning keeps the franchise flying high!

Death-defying stunt. Fight and chase. Team regroup. Death-defying stunt. Fight and chase. Team regroup. Death-defying stunt. Fight and chase. Team regroup. Although repetitive, this formula has been successfully carrying the Mission: Impossible franchise forward. It’s now on its seventh film, Dead Reckoning – Part One. The newest film showcases, once again, the finest action stunt work choreography in the film industry. Although the franchise continues to steer away from the intricate spy work that the original television series and first few films featured, there’s no denying that with Tom Cruise on screen and Christopher McQuarrie in the director’s chair, a thrilling cinematic experience is guaranteed.

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Film Review: “No Hard Feelings”

Limp sex comedy offers few laughs

Percy (Andrew Barth Feldman) and Maddie (Jennifer Lawrence) share a moment together.

Actress and producer Jennifer Lawrence’s new film No Hard Feelings is being promoted as a sex comedy. The big problem, though, is that the picture features almost no sex and even less comedy. The film was directed by Gene Stupnitsky (Dirty Grandpa; Good Boys), who co-wrote the screenplay with fellow comedy writer John Phillips. They both were nominated for a Worst Screenplay Razzie in 2017 for their Dirty Grandpa script, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they receive similar honors for this lackluster comedic attempt.

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