In this edition of Bite-Sized Reviews, I reveal my thoughts on a horror video game adaptation, a Jack Black-led Christmas film, an Apple TV+ film whose title references a Frank Sinatra song, and an indie horror film with an interesting premise.
Continue reading “‘Fly Me to the Moon,’ ‘Late Night With the Devil,’ ‘Dear Santa,’ and ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ | Bite-Sized Reviews”
Directed by Jacques Audiard — Screenplay by Jacques Audiard.
As was already evident based on Julia Ducournau’s Titane and Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance, modern day French filmmakers sometimes gravitate toward these ambitious and unique films that defy genre conventions and classifications (and that are difficult to describe to acquaintances without getting strange looks) with great success. Un Prophet and Dheepan director Jacques Audiard, a Palme d’Or winning filmmaker, had similar aspirations recently with his Emilia Pérez, which is arguably most succinctly described as a gender transition musical crime film (mostly set in Mexico and mostly in Spanish) despite the fact that it contains even more sides than even that brief description encompasses. Emilia Pérez has already earned Audiard and his cast plenty of awards attention including the Jury Prize and Best Actress award (for its four female principal actresses) at the Cannes film festival. Nonetheless, the film has also been met with criticism from both Mexican audiences and the LGBTQ+ community. Setting aside all of the praise and all of the controversy, how good is the actual film itself? Well, let’s have a look.
Continue reading “Emilia Pérez (2024) | REVIEW”
In this post, I’ll give you my thoughts on my first Aki Kaurismäki experience, a 2-time Cannes award winning Farhadi film, an underseen Joaquin Phoenix film, and Viggo Mortensen’s latest film as a writer-director.
Continue reading “‘Fallen Leaves,’ ‘C’mon C’mon,’ ‘The Salesman,’ and ‘The Dead Don’t Hurt’ | Bite-Sized Reviews”
In addition to all of the other reviews I’m publishing by themselves, and other relevant articles to kick off the year, I am also starting the year by publishing a small handful of bite-sized review compilation posts. In this edition, I’ll give you my thoughts on two Danish films from last year that didn’t fully win me over, as well as an American horror film released 12 months ago, and John Krasinski’s family film about imaginary friends.
Continue reading “‘Night Swim,’ ‘IF,’ ‘For Evigt,’ and ‘Birthday Girl’ | Bite-Sized Reviews”
Directed by Robert Eggers (The Witch; The Northman) — Screenplay by Robert Eggers
Everyone knows the name Dracula. That name and character have become such an indelible part of horror fandom and popular culture since the original Bram Stoker epistolary gothic horror novel was published back in 1897 and forever put a name to the quintessential vampire figure. It’s a character that has been played by so many iconic actors through time including Bela Lugosi, Christopher Lee, Nicolas Cage, and Gary Oldman. You may not have seen all of those films, but, I’m pretty sure, even if you haven’t seen a ‘Dracula movie’ before, certain images instantly pop into your head due to cultural osmosis when you hear the name. I am, however, not as certain most people know about ‘nosferatu,’ and, unless you’re a cinephile or a horror aficionado, you almost definitely don’t know who, or what, Count Orlok is. Kids may dress up as Dracula for Halloween (and many probably do), but you’re going to have to search for quite some time if you want to find someone who dressed up as Orlok.
Continue reading “Nosferatu (2024) | REVIEW”
Directed by Clint Eastwood — Screenplay by Jonathan Abrams.
Movie-star-turned-filmmaker Clint Eastwood is a 94-year-old four-time Oscar winner who is still working with some of the industry’s best actors and studios. Although we’d all love for him to keep making films forever, this could theoretically be the final film from one of the very few stars of Hollywood of which adults of all ages will have had some kind of knowledge. It could even, given his status and talent as a filmmaker, have been a genuine Oscar contender. You would think, then, that this film — which stars actors like Nicholas Hoult, Toni Collette, J.K. Simmons, Kiefer Sutherland, and others — would be a film that Warner Bros. would proudly release in theaters as prestigious cinema for grown-ups. And yet, that’s not exactly what happened. Eastwood’s potentially final film was released in fewer than 50 theaters across the United States, as well as modest theatrical releases in only a select few territories around the world. Instead, it was prioritized as a holiday streaming release as a ‘Max Original’. It sounds like a headscratcher even before you see the film, and, frankly, it’s still a headscratcher after you see it because, well, Juror #2 is a gripping legal thriller that shows that Clint Eastwood, even at 94 years old, still has what it takes to make compelling films.
Continue reading “Juror #2 (2024) | REVIEW”
Directed by Edward Berger — Screenplay by Peter Straughan.
How do you follow up successfully directing a German-language version of All Quiet On the Western Front to critical acclaim and multiple little golden men statues from the Oscars? It’s a good question, and it is exactly the kind of challenge German filmmaker Edward Berger had in front of him. Now, two years later, we have our answer with Conclave, as Berger has crafted yet another adaptation of a major novel. This time around his film is a big screen adaptation of Robert Harris’ 2016 thriller novel of the same, and his adaptation was written by Peter Straughan, a BAFTA-winning co-writer of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. Straughan’s writing and Berger’s direction are paired with a stellar cast spearheaded by Ralph Fiennes, together that trio has brought us a political thriller for grown-ups that is deeply engaging.
Continue reading “Conclave (2024) | REVIEW”
Directed by Jake Kasdan — Screenplay by Chris Morgan — Story by Hiram Garcia.
In Jake Kasdan’s Red One, not to be confused with the similarly titled Red Notice also starring Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson, we follow Callum Drift (played by Dwayne Johnson), the commander of the so-called E.L.F. (Enforcement Logistics and Fortification), who spends his Christmases as the head of security for, and bodyguard to, Santa Claus (played by J.K. Simmons). However, after Callum has made it clear to his boss that he wants to retire because of how many people are on the naughty list this year, Santa Claus is kidnapped. Desperate to get him back to the North Pole safely, Callum Drift seeks out the black-hat hacker Jack O’Malley (played by Chris Evans) and demands that he helps him to get him back, since O’Malley was reportedly the person who revealed the secret location of Santa’s workshop.
Continue reading “Red One (2024) | REVIEW”
Directed by Sean Baker — Screenplay by Sean Baker.
When Sean Baker walked up to the stage to accept the Palme d’Or prize at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, he stood next to George Lucas, who had just received an honorary award. There the legendary creator of Star Wars, essentially the blockbuster film that changed the direction of American cinema for the next many decades, stood next to perhaps the most well-known American independent filmmaker who was enjoying the biggest moment of his career with his latest film, Anora. Arguably, no two filmmakers could better symbolize the vast breadth of American filmmaking, and here Baker was becoming the first American competitive Palme d’Or winning director in more than a decade (since Malick in 2011). Frankly, for Baker, Anora marks arguably his feature with the most public appeal.
Continue reading “Anora (2024) | REVIEW”
Directed by Ian Bonhôte and Peter Ettedgui.
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story is likely to be remembered as one of the best documentaries of the year and, at the same time, also one of the most emotionally overwhelming. It is an incredibly moving portrait of the man who became synonymous with the Man of Steel and whose life was forever changed when he landed head-first on the ground after being thrown off a horse. Reeve’s story is well-known one: from a superhero superstar to a man paralyzed from the neck down forever fighting for improvements for people with disabilities, as well as the opportunity to walk again potentially. But this documentary takes you a step further.
Continue reading “Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story (2024 – Documentary) | REVIEW”
I'm Jeffrey Rex 