In this edition of Additional Bite-Sized Reviews, I give you my thoughts on 1) an iconic film that I struggled with, 2) a strange passion project from a genuine pop star, 3) the debut film of one of Britain’s finest auteurs, 4) one of last year’s best animated films, and, finally, 5) a horror film that didn’t work for me.
Continue reading “‘Sexy Beast,’ ‘TMNT: Mutant Mayhem,’ and More | Bite-Sized Reviews”
Directed by Andy Muschietti (IT: Chapters One and Two) — Screenplay by Christina Hodson (Birds of Prey) — Story by John Francis Daley, Jonathan Goldstein, and Joby Harold.
Few films have had as storied and controversial pre-release periods as that of Andy Muschietti’s The Flash. A live-action solo film about DC’s speedster has supposedly been on the drawing board since the 1980s, back when no one had even thought to consider multiverse movies or toxic fandoms. Over the years, the idea changed shape multiple times (and went through multiple filmmakers’ hands) from solo film to team-up film to guest appearance and back to solo film within the Zack Snyder-orchestrated DC Extended Universe (DCEU), as one of the follow-ups to Snyder’s Man of Steel. While we waited for this film to materialize, The CW’s shared TV-DC Universe, the Arrowverse, came and went with Grant Gustin portraying The Flash in a nine-season-long series of the same name, which just ended this year (and which, notably, featured an appearance from Ezra Miller — the actor chosen by Warner Bros. to play the speedster on the big screen).
Continue reading “The Flash (2023) | REVIEW”
Directed by Ben Affleck — Screenplay by Alex Convery.
Ben Affleck’s AIR is a biographical drama about the origin of the highly successful original AIR Jordan basketball shoe, which was designed with Michael Jordan in mind when he had yet to actually play an NBA game. It follows Sonny Vaccaro (played by Matt Damon), a basketball talent scout for Nike, as he tries to convince first Nike and then Michael Jordan and his parents, including his mother Deloris (played by Viola Davis), to choose Nike, which was, at that time, not the massive company that it is today, as his brand of choice. There are, however, quite a few obstacles that Sonny must overcome. Jordan allegedly prefers Adidas, Nike likely cannot afford to compete with Adidas for his signature, Nike is considering axing their basketball division, and Sonny doesn’t have the best relationship with Jordan’s agent (played by Chris Messina).
Continue reading “AIR (2023) | REVIEW”
In this edition of my recurring movie and television catch-up article series titled ‘Additional Bite-Sized Reviews,’ I take a look at one of the start of the year’s best shows, and I also give you my thoughts on a (currently) Oscar-nominated film. So, get comfortable, and get ready to read my thoughts on things like Apple TV+’s latest gem and the film that very well could earn Jessica Chastain her first Academy Award tonight.
Continue reading “Additional Bite-Sized Reviews, Early 2022: ‘The Eyes of Tammy Faye,’ ‘The Afterparty,’ and More”
Directed by Matt Reeves (War for the Planet of the Apes) — Screenplay by Matt Reeves & Peter Craig.
I was elated when Robert Pattinson was announced to play Batman. Pattinson’s work in independent films had impressed me so much, and I thought he was a pretty obvious choice for the role. However, as many people know, Batman movies always lead to premature casting criticism (people were critical of Heath Ledger, Michael Keaton, and Ben Affleck long before they had even seen them in their respective films). I remember receiving rude comments about my excitement for Pattinson as Bruce Wayne. After having finally seen the film, I can honestly say that I feel vindicated. Pattinson is great and Reeves has once again made an outstanding blockbuster film in a vastly popular (and, to some, tired) franchise.
Continue reading “REVIEW: The Batman (2022)”
Directed by Ridley Scott — Screenplay by Nicole Holofcener, Ben Affleck & Matt Damon.
Based on the Eric Jager non-fiction book of the same name, The Last Duel tells the true story of one of the last judicial duels in France in 1386, when Jacques Le Gris (played by Adam Driver) and Sir Jean de Carrouges (played by Matt Damon) went head-to-head in a trial by combat to decide whether or not Le Gris was guilty of raping de Carrouges’ wife, Marguerite (played by Jodie Comer). However, all three of their lives were on the line. Because their rules stated that if her husband were to lose the duel (and his life in the process), then the courts would regard Marguerite as a false accuser and sentence her to death as a result of his loss.
Continue reading “REVIEW: The Last Duel (2021)”
Directed by Zack Snyder — Screenplay by Chris Terrio — Story by Chris Terrio, Zack Snyder, and Will Beall.
In 2017, Warner Bros. released the film titled Justice League in theaters worldwide. This was a superhero team-up film that was supposed to be the third installment in a series of films set in Warner Bros.’ cinematic universe that has been dubbed the DC Extended Universe. The previous two installments — Man of Steel and Batman v Superman — were directed by Zack Snyder, who had essentially become the godfather, or the face, of the DC Extended Universe.
Snyder was also supposed to complete Justice League, but, due to a family tragedy, he decided to step away from the film and let Joss Whedon, the seasoned superhero filmmaker hired by Warner Bros. to replace him, finish the film. But Whedon and Snyder are very different filmmakers and they have different sensibilities, and, ultimately, the theatrical cut of Justice League was met with largely negative reviews. The final product lacked a uniform vision and tone, and it started to become clear that a lot of the essential material that Zack Snyder had planned for the film had been left on the cutting room floor.
Continue reading “REVIEW: Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021)”
In this edition of my monthly movie and television catch-up article series titled ‘Additional Bite-Sized Reviews,’ I take a look at a couple of films that I didn’t get the chance to watch in 2020 — specifically Fantasy Island and The Way Back. But I also give you my thoughts on two 2021 documentaries — the latest Netflix true-crime docu-series and a Marvel Comics documentary film on Disney+. Continue reading “Additional Bite-Sized Reviews, Feb. ’21, Pt. I: ‘Fantasy Island,’ ‘The Way Back,’ and More”
The following is a review of Triple Frontier — Directed by J. C. Chandor.
From the director of All is Lost and A Most Violent Year, J. C. Chandor, and the writer of The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty, Mark Boal, Netflix’s Triple Frontier — named for the tri-border area of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay — includes arguably the most star-studded blockbuster-like cast for a Netflix Original Film yet. Continue reading “REVIEW: Triple Frontier (2019)”
Oh, Affleck. It seems like just yesterday that I was flip-flopping on the night of the announcement whether or not I liked that he was cast as DC’s Caped Crusader. He ended up doing a pretty good job in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, but he was one of the clearly noticeable problems with Justice League. Recently, it was announced that Affleck will not be playing Bruce Wayne in Matt Reeves’ film about the Dark Knight. So, today, I want to show my readers who I want to see play Batman in Reeves’ film. Continue reading “Who Should Play Batman in Matt Reeves’ Batman-Film? – Special Features #47”
I'm Jeffrey Rex 