REVIEW: We Have A Ghost (2023)

David Harbour and Anthony Mackie in WE HAVE A GHOST — PHOTO: NETFLIX.

Directed by Christopher Landon — Screenplay by Christopher Landon.

Christopher Landon is a rather interesting up-and-coming horror filmmaker. Reportedly scheduled to remake Frank Marshall’s Arachnophobia, Landon has made a career off taking well-trod genre fare and giving it a modern feel and often with a comedic slant. Among other things, he co-wrote D. J. Caruso’s Disturbia (a thriller that is so close to Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window in the concept that it led to a lawsuit) and several Paranormal Activity films, before he became a household name for horror film fans by writing and directing his Happy Death Day films (slasher comedies that runs with the time-loop concept from Harold Ramis’ Groundhog Day) and Freaky, 2020s horror comedy reinterpretation of the classic body swap story Freaky Friday. His latest film, We Have A Ghost, is similarly placed squarely in the horror-comedy genre-blend and it, too, wears its inspirations on its sleeves. Most of Landon’s previous films as a director have been decent-to-good, and although We Have A Ghost doesn’t reach its full potential, it’s still a pretty decent but derivative little family film. 

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REVIEW: Stranger Things – Season Four, Vols. 1 & 2 (2022)

(Left-to-Right) Joe Keery, Gaten Matarazzo, Maya Hawke, Sadie Sink, Natalia Dyer, and Caleb McLaughlin’s characters must confront a new mysterious and murderous monster in the latest season of ‘Stranger Things’ — Photo: NETFLIX.

This is a review of both halves — Vols. I & II– of Stranger Things: Season Four.

Like The Crown and BoJack Horseman, Stranger Things has long been one of Netflix’s most consistently good shows. The nostalgia-based supernatural coming-of-age horror-thriller show that was created by the Duffer brothers has managed to stay really good and really entertaining for four seasons now — including this latest season, which was split into two parts (with the season finale having a runtime of almost two-and-a-half hours) — and, even though the show still wears its inspirations on its sleeves, the show is getting better in many ways. In fact, I would say that this fourth season, which is probably the goriest and most horror-like of the bunch, is the best season of the show since the very rewatchable debut season, even though this latest season included two season-long subplots that were never as engaging as the main story was.

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Additional Bite-Sized Reviews, Nov. 2021, pt. II: ‘The Morning Show,’ ‘A Quiet Place Part II,’ and More

Valeria Golino and Billy Crudup in “The Morning Show,” now streaming on Apple TV+ — Photo: Apple TV+.

In this edition of my monthly movie and television catch-up article series titled ‘Additional Bite-Sized Reviews,’ I give my thoughts on the second season of the major Apple TV+ series The Morning Show, but I have also taken a look back at Steven Soderbergh’s latest film. And then, at the end of the article, I will finally reveal what my thoughts are on the sequel to A Quiet Place.

Continue reading “Additional Bite-Sized Reviews, Nov. 2021, pt. II: ‘The Morning Show,’ ‘A Quiet Place Part II,’ and More”

REVIEW: Black Widow (2021)

Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff, David Harbour as Alexei, and Florence Pugh as Yelena in Marvel Studios’ BLACK WIDOW — Photo by Jay Maidment / Marvel Studios.

Directed by Cate Shortland — Screenplay by Eric Pearson — Story by Jac Schaeffer & Ned Benson.

After numerous delays as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Cate Shortland’s Black Widow is finally here. Out now in theaters and on Disney+ with Premier Access, the latest entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is the first film in its so-called Phase Four — which also already includes Disney+ series WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and Loki — but it is also the first theatrically released Marvel Studios product in two years (since 2019’s Spider-Man: Far From Home).

My fellow Marvelites and so-called True Believers can now rejoice as the wait is finally over. However, while I’d say the film is quite good and, at least to some extent, worth the wait, I also have to say that it is clear as day that this film is ‘out of time’ in more ways than one, which makes the film feel quite strange even though it is ‘just’ a long-awaited solo film with a beloved character.

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Feige Announces MCU Phase Four at San Diego Comic-Con – Special Features #54

Some people in the industry may have been questioning the future viability of Marvel’s Cinematic Universe after the incredible infinity saga came to an end recently. If Spider-Man: Far From Home didn’t convince the naysayers, then what Kevin Feige and Marvel Studios announced last night certainly did. Today, let’s talk about the Marvel Studios announcements at the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con. Continue reading “Feige Announces MCU Phase Four at San Diego Comic-Con – Special Features #54”

REVIEW: Stranger Things: Season Three (2019)

Release Poster – Netflix

The following is a review of the third season of Netflix’s Stranger Things — Created by the Duffer Brothers.

Today, Stranger Things is, alongside The Crown, probably the original show that has become the face of Netflix. The first season of the series was a surprise hit that seemed to have significantly overperformed. It was a nostalgic 80s science-fiction drama with children in the leading roles that made people think of E. T., The Goonies, and many other films like those. It was a 2016 breakout hit that gave career boosts to David Harbour, Millie Bobby Brown, and Finn Wolfhard. The much anticipated second season, which was released the following year, wasn’t met with as much acclaim, but still succeeded in developing characters’ relationships satisfyingly while still bringing pleasant references to the beloved 1980s-era cinema, with Aliens now being the primary inspiration. Continue reading “REVIEW: Stranger Things: Season Three (2019)”

REVIEW: Hellboy (2019)

Theatrical Release Poster – Lionsgate

The following is a review of Hellboy (2019) — Directed by Neil Marshall.

In 2004 and 2008, Oscar-winning auteur Guillermo del Toro brought us two critically well-received comic book monster movies about Mike Mignola’s Dark Horse Comics creation ‘Hellboy,’ a red Nazi-summoned half-demon that fights for the human race against monsters and other dark forces. Even though del Toro is a beloved figure and his films are still held in high regard, del Toro’s request for a third film was denied. Instead, producers decided that it was time to replace the first two films’ auteur — del Toro, who had a real, recognizable love for his creatures — and its indispensable leading man, Ron Perlman — who was absolutely perfect in the role — in a new reboot of the franchise. Continue reading “REVIEW: Hellboy (2019)”

REVIEW: Stranger Things – Season Two (2017)

Release Poster – Netflix

The following is a full review of the second season of Stranger Things. Available now on Netflix.

When I published my short review of the first season of Stranger Things five days after Netflix had released all eight episodes, I had no idea how big of a mainstream hit it would be. Although House of Cards was the first streaming show to appear as more than just a blip on the radar for television aficionados, Stranger Things seems to be the first Netflix show to hold the attention of western audiences the way the biggest AMC and HBO dramas have in previous years. Continue reading “REVIEW: Stranger Things – Season Two (2017)”

REVIEW: Stranger Things – Season One (2016)

Poster - Netflix
Poster – Netflix

The following is a quick review of the first season of Stranger Things. Available now on Netflix.

Stranger Things is Netflix’s newest original series, and, in my opinion, it might be the best new show they’ve done since maybe Marvel’s Jessica Jones. Stranger Things is a science fiction horror show, which is set in the 1980s, starring Winona Ryder, David Harbour, and Millie Bobby Brown. Continue reading “REVIEW: Stranger Things – Season One (2016)”