Thursday, December 5, 2024

'Lake George' (2024) Movie Review

shea whigham and carrie coon standing outside.
Shea Whigham and Carrie Coon are prime examples of character actors who show up and automatically make anything better. No matter the film or show, no matter the genre, no matter how major or minor the role, whenever they appear, things get a substantial boost. And because they’re so often supporting players, it’s always welcome when a movie like Lake George comes along that places them front and center. 

Tuesday, November 19, 2024

'Armor' (2024) Movie Review

sylvester stallone robbing an armored car
It happens on occasion that two movies with similar plots release on top of one another. There was Armageddon and Deep Impact in the summer of 1998, Dante’s Peak and Volcano in 1997, and November 2024 gave us Aftermath a few weeks ago and now Armor. And talking about these two DTV armored-car-heist-on-a-bridge movies, Armor is not only the lesser of the two, by far, there's nothing of value or interest to find here. Except for die-hard Sylvester Stallone completists.

Friday, November 8, 2024

'100 Yards' (2024) Movie Review

Jacky Heung looks dope with a short saber
When a martial arts master dies, his son and his top apprentice vie for control of his wushu school in 1920s Tianjin. On this simple foundation director Xu Haofeng (The Hidden Sword, screenwriter The Grandmaster), with his brother/co-director Xu Junfeng, builds 100 Yards into an intricate exploration of rivalry, social change, the weight of tradition and expectation, and much more, all wrapped in absolute top-tier martial arts choreography. 

Thursday, November 7, 2024

'Elevation' (2024) Movie Review

anthony mackie with a machine gun
Elevation, the new sci-fi adventure from The Adjustment Bureau director and Bourne Ultimatum writer George Nolfi, is fine. That’s the most accurate way to put it. It’s a solidly executed creature feature with an intriguing if underdeveloped hook, charismatic leads, moderate tension, and a crisp visual style. It gets right in, does its business, and wraps things up in less than 90 minutes. Is it thought provoking, innovative, or particularly memorable? No. But it’s entertaining and compelling enough if that’s all you’re after.

Friday, October 11, 2024

'Parvulos' (2024) Movie Review

parvulos movie 2024
Isaac Ezban’s Parvulos: Hijos del Apocalips is very literal in its title. These are actual children of the apocalypse. Salvador (Farid Escalante Correa), Oliver (Leonardo Cervantes), and Benji (Mateo Ortega Casillas) are three brothers, the oldest, Sal, a young teen, surviving on their own after a virus causes the end of the world. They do all the typical apocalyptic things, scrounge food, do their best to get through every day, and tend to the dark, sinister secret lurking in their basement. 

Thursday, October 10, 2024

'Falling Stars' (2023) Movie Review

witchy desert stuff
Have you ever looked up at the night sky, seen a falling star, pointed, and screamed, “Witch”? If so, or if you’re a fan of eerie, modern desert folk horror, you may want to put Falling Stars, the first feature from directors Gabriel Bienczycki and Richard Karpala, on your radar. 

Friday, September 27, 2024

'Azrael' (2024) Movie Review

samara weaving covered in blood with a machete
In the wake of the Rapture, a devout religious enclave has forsworn the “sin of speech,” living a wordless existence in relative isolation. (Their whistling, however, does feel a bit like cheating at times.) When a young woman the credits tell us is named Azrael (Samara Weaving, Ready or Not) is set to be sacrificed to zombie-like creatures that inhabit the woods, she attempts to escape with her lover (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, Candyman) and must fight to avoid being torn limb from limb.