Tag: 2022

REVIEW: Grimcutty (2022)

The titular monster attacks Asha (Sara Wolfkind) in John Ross’ GRIMCUTTY — PHOTO: Disney/HULU.

Directed by John Ross — Screenplay by John Ross.

A couple of days ago, I noticed that a new horror film had been released on Disney+ (on Hulu in the U.S.), and, since it was a title that I had heard absolutely nothing about, I was somewhat puzzled. Where had this been hiding, why did Disney/Hulu acquire it, and why are they now releasing it without any fanfare? I assumed that it was a bad sign, just like how January has previously been known as a bit of a dumping ground for movie releases. I was right. I take no pleasure in writing highly negative reviews, but I think this is a big miss. It is an ineffective and quite bland horror film with no staying power, even though its general interest in how parents want to control what their children see online is an interesting premise for a horror film. 

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REVIEW: Werewolf By Night (2022)

Gael García Bernal as Jack Russell in Marvel Studios’ WEREWOLF BY NIGHT, exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2022 MARVEL.

Directed by Michael Giacchino — Screenplay by Heather Quinn and Peter Cameron.

Since the launch of Disney+, Marvel Studios has pumped out a plethora of straight-to-streaming series. It has, honestly, been a little bit overwhelming at times, and not all of the shows are equally good. One of the things that excited me about this streaming service, and the potential for Marvel Studios on it, was the general idea that this gave Marvel an opportunity to break from their formula and try new things. To give examples, Marvel has done that somewhat with Ms Marvel but also with She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, which is this sitcom that doesn’t take the overall universe as seriously as most of the Marvel films do. With Werewolf By Night, Marvel Studios has released their first so-called ‘special presentation.’ This is essentially a Halloween special just like how we know a Christmas special is coming down the line from James Gunn and the Guardians of the Galaxy cast. And think outside of the box they certainly have, as Marvel Studios have hired their frequent composer Michael Giacchino to direct for them on the streaming service. and this special presentation proves that if they need a director for a future feature-length theatrical project, then Michael Giacchino could very well be their guy. Werewolf by Night is surprisingly good.

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REVIEW: Mr. Harrigan’s Phone (2022)

Donald Sutherland in John Lee Hancock’s Mr. Harrigan’s Phone — PHOTO: Netflix.

Directed by John Lee Hancock — Screenplay by John Lee Hancock.

At the time of writing, we are now in October, which means that, for a lot of people, it’s time to focus on horror and Halloween. Streamers such as Netflix have to cater to that crowd, and one of the ways that they are doing that this year is by releasing yet another Stephen King adaptation. Netflix has actually been a pretty decent home for these adaptations, as it has previously released such King adaptations as In The Tall Grass, 1922, and Gerald’s Game, with the last one being easily the best of the Netflix-King films. Like In the Tall Grass and 1922, Mr. Harrigan’s Phone is based on one of King’s novellas, and, like those other two films, while there are things I really like about the film, I think there are a couple of things about it that make it difficult to recommend to general horror fans.

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REVIEW: Holy Spider (2022)

Zar Amir Ebrahimi in Ali Abbasi’s HOLY SPIDER — PHOTO: TriArt Film / Camera Film.

Directed by Ali Abbasi — Screenplay by Ali Abbasi & Afshin Kamran Bahrami.

In 2022, only a select few films are as timely as Ali Abbasi’s Holy Spider. For weeks, people have protested in the streets of Iran over the death of Mahsa Amini, after she died in police custody allegedly due to police brutality. As far as I understand it, she was apprehended by the country’s morality police for not wearing the hijab in accordance with their government’s standards, and witness accounts claim that she was then tortured and beaten to death. In Iran, some women are even taking off their hijabs and burning them on bonfires.

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REVIEW: Triangle of Sadness (2022)

Woody Harrelson (right) plays a drunken American captain of a yacht that’s about to be bought by a wealthy Russian capitalist (played by Zlatko Burić) in Ruben Östlund’s TRIANGLE OF SADNESS — PHOTO: NEON / SF Studios..

Directed by Ruben Östlund (The Square) — Screenplay by Ruben Östlund.

Alongside the Norwegian filmmaker Joachim Trier (Oslo 31. August) and the Danish filmmaker Thomas Vinterberg (Druk), the Swedish filmmaker Ruben Östlund is one of the very best Scandinavian filmmakers working right now. Östlund has been working as a filmmaker for more than a decade, but I think it’s fair to say that it is with his 2014 effort, Force Majeure, that he had his true international breakthrough. Including his latest film, Östlund’s last three films have all received awards at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival. With Triangle of Sadness, the Swede is now a two-time Palme d’Or winner (winning his first one for the utterly hilarious The Square from 2017). Having swapped the square out in favor of a triangle (the title refers to an area between your eyebrows and your nose bridge that can be ‘fixed’ with botox), Östlund has managed to keep his satirical writing equally sharp and at times outright hilarious. Triangle of Sadness is one of the best films of the year.

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REVIEW: Don’t Worry Darling (2022)

Florence Pugh and Harry Styles star in Olivia Wilde’s second feature-length film as a director, DON’T WORRY DARLING — PHOTO: Warner Bros. Pictures.

Directed by Olivia Wilde (Booksmart) — Story by Carey van Dyke, Shane van Dyke, and Katie Silberman.

Whether by design (for marketing purposes) or not, Don’t Worry Darling has amassed one of the wildest behind-the-scenes on-and-off-set dramas in recent memory. Olivia Wilde’s sophomore effort as a director — following the hit teen comedy Booksmart — is one of the most talked about films this year, but ‘the talk’ isn’t about the film itself. It started with an embarrassing public disagreement about whether Shia LaBeouf was fired or if he left the project of his own volition (and a leaked video wherein Wilde tried to get LaBeouf back on board), but it snowballed into stories about on-set tension (alleged screaming matches between the director and her leading lady), internet sleuthing about whether or not Harry Styles spat on Chris Pine at one of the film’s premieres, and Olivia Wilde’s alleged absence from the set has even been compared to Boris Johnson’s rule-breaking COVID era behavior. 

It’s a lot of noise that is far more interesting than the film itself, honestly. But it is also true that certain male directors (and their films), which others have argued, have gotten away with even more questionable behavior. It’s a mess that may ultimately help the film at the box office (again, inadvertently or not), but I just wish the film was anywhere near as good or memorable as the behind-the-scenes drama surrounding it.

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REVIEW: I Came By (2022)

Hugh Bonneville in Babak Anvari’s crime-thriller I CAME BY — PHOTO: Netflix.

Directed by Babak Anvari — Screenplay by Babak Anvari & Namsi Khan.

The British-Iranian filmmaker Babak Anvari burst onto the scene with his wildly impressive feature-length directorial debut, Under The Shadow, a terrific but underseen psychological horror film that was selected as the British entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards. Widely praised, it was a good springboard for Anvari, but his follow-up film, Wounds starring Armie Hammer, represented “a disappointingly severe sophomore slump” for Anvari. When his third effort, I Came By, which, like his previous two efforts, was released on Netflix in my region, it was without much fanfare. To me, it almost felt like it was being hidden, which concerned me. In my review of Wounds, I noted how I really wanted “to see [Babak Anvari] make a triumphant return with a film that is as brilliant and promising as I thought [Under The Shadow] was.” So, did I get what I want? Eh, not really. It’s not a recommendation, but, admittedly, it is better than Wounds.

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REVIEW: The Invitation (2022)

Evie (played by Nathalie Emmanuel) falls for Walter De Ville (played by Thomas Doherty) in THE INVITATION — Photo: Sony Pictures Releasing.

Directed by Jessica M. Thompson — Screenplay by Blair Butler.

Not to be confused with 2016’s The Invitation, which is a far superior thriller from Karyn Kusama, Jessica M. Thompson’s The Invitation follows Evie (played by Nathalie Emmanuel), a waitress in New York City, who, after receiving the results of a DNA kit, is invited by distant British relatives — that she previously knew nothing about — to attend a wedding. Evie eventually agrees to attend the wedding, and, once she is there, she becomes charmed by the owner of the manor that she will be sleeping in. While she slowly, but surely, falls for the young lord (played by Thomas Doherty), strange things happen in the manor, and Evie starts to see foreboding visions. You shouldn’t know more about the film than that when you sit down to watch it in the theater. Unfortunately, all of its secrets have already been given away in the marketing.

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REVIEW: For All Mankind – Season Three (2022)

Scene from “For All Mankind,” now streaming on Apple TV+.

Series Created by Ronald D. Moore, Matt Wolpert, and Ben Nedivi — Available Now on Apple TV+.

For All Mankind is my favorite Apple TV+ show, which is saying something considering how much I absolutely love Ted Lasso. Ronald D. Moore, Matt Wolpert, and Ben Nedivi’s historical fiction series started as ‘what if the Soviet Union had reached the Moon first and, as a result, the United States continued and accelerated the space race,’ and the second season explored this alternate history science-fiction by having the Cold War take place in outer space, essentially. If the first season was a ‘small step,’ and the second season a ‘giant leap,’ then this third season cements that the previous season wasn’t just a fluke. For All Mankind is still one of the best ongoing shows on any streaming service.

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REVIEW: Kærlighed for Voksne (2022)

Dar Salim plays Christian, a cheating husband, in LOVING ADULTS — Photo: NETFLIX.

Directed by Barbara Rothenborg — Screenplay by Anders Rønnow Klarlund and Jacob Weinreich.

As a Dane, I’d love to be able to say that each and every Danish film is a must-watch. But that definitely wouldn’t be true. Not every Danish film is as good as Another Round, Riders of Justice, Queen of Hearts, or Speak No Evil — to name just a few of the recent Danish hits. Now that Netflix has started to produce Danish films, one would hope that their presence in the Danish film industry would be a really good thing. It could be. It’s certainly offering new opportunities for Danish filmmakers. But based on Toscana, Against the Ice, and now Kærlighed for Voksne (int. title: Loving Adults) it is becoming clear that the streamer is having a difficult time making truly memorable Danish films. Kærlighed for Voksne doesn’t work.

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