Tag: Naomi Ackie

Mickey 17 (2025) | REVIEW

Robert Pattinson and Robert Pattinson in Bong Joon-ho’s MICKEY 17 — PHOTO: Watner Bros. Pictures (Still image from trailers).

Directed by Bong Joon-ho — Screenplay by Bong Joon-ho.

It boggles the mind that it’s been more than half a decade since the release of Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite, the first non-English language feature to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards. Director Bong’s Oscar-winning magnum opus is a widely recognized 21st Century masterpiece, and, thusly, the director’s follow-up to such an achievement would always be hotly anticipated, especially given the fact that his next release was a blockbuster-budgeted American studio release. In fascinating fashion, Bong Joon-ho has spent his Hollywood blank cheque, or carte blanche, on a scathing but funny political satire sci-fi flick about the way capitalist governments, whose leaders may use religion to gain and exercise power, view and treat the common person, women, and foreign territories, as well as its inhabitants. Bong Joon-ho’s Mickey 17, an adaptation of Edward Ashton’s novel Mickey7, is ambitious, messy, strangely predictive about the time we’re in, and very much a Bong Joon-ho film, even though it is very different from Parasite.

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Blink Twice (2024) | REVIEW

(L-R) Naomi Ackie and Channing Tatum in Zoë Kravitz’s BLINK TWICE — PHOTO: Amazon MGM Studios / Warners Bros. International (Still image from the trailers).

Directed by Zoë Kravitz — Screenplay by Zoë Kravitz and E.T. Feigenbaum.

When I saw the directorial feature debut from actress-turned-filmmaker Zoë Kravitz, Blink Twice, the other night, the very last thing on the movie theater screen prior to the film starting was a relatively long statement meant to function as a trigger warning for the audience to prepare them for the potentially distressing themes and violence discussed and depicted in the film. Before I had sat down to watch the film, I had noticed that said trigger warning had gone viral on social media for how rare it is for a new release to feature such a warning in addition to the MPA rating. It’s certainly a modern addition, which is befitting of this film, as it is a very modern #MeToo-psychological thriller that mixes elements from so many recent films, such as Olivia Wilde’s Don’t Worry Darling, Jordan Peele’s Get Out, and, perhaps even, Rian Johnson’s Glass Onion. Though I, ultimately, thought the film was a relatively good directorial debut, I only really feel that it is as good or better than the first of those three films, with it not really holding a candle to the remaining two. 

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REVIEW: Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker (2019)

Theatrical Release Poster – Disney / Lucasfilm

The following is a review of Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker — Directed by J. J. Abrams.

Although the subtitle of this film suggests otherwise, Disney has been pretty adamant in saying that the Skywalker saga (i.e. the episodes) is coming to an end with this ninth episode, which thus ends Disney’s sequel trilogy. It has been a trilogy that has been bumpier than I expected it to be, which is largely due to Lucasfilm hirings and firings, as well as the return of a rabid, entitled, and toxic part of the Star Wars fandom, which has been determined to have their say on what can and cannot be appreciated about these films. This part of fandom has been absolutely infuriating, and it has robbed Star Wars fans of the happiness that one should get when you discuss something that you love. J. J. Abrams’ The Force Awakens was an undeniably satisfying and very rewatchable table-setter, and Rian Johnson’s The Last Jedi was an ambitious, bold, and critically acclaimed exploration of legacy, legends, and failure. Now we have The Rise of Skywalker, J. J. Abrams’ curtain-closer. Though I did ultimately enjoy the film, I have to admit and acknowledge that this is definitely the sequel trilogy’s low-point, in part due to Abrams’ obvious attempt to appease parts of the fandom that could only be pacified by reversing decisions that were made in Rian Johnson’s film. Continue reading “REVIEW: Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker (2019)” →