Tarot feels caught between trying to be two different kinds of horror films. The film wants to be a dark and creepy horror film with brutal kills. But, with its hilariously obvious foreshadowing and over-the-top performances and writing, it almost feels like the film wants to be a more campy and comedic horror film.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes borrows from the original series' themes and ideas while connecting to the lore of the 2010s trilogy.
With The Fall Guy, David Leitch and writer Drew Pierce attempt to make a Blockbuster action movie that simultaneously delivers a pure-hearted celebration of movies and moviemaking while also delivering the fight scenes and glorious practical stunts you expect in this kind of action movie.
For most of its runtime, Boy Kills World is a simple but effective revenge action film with stylistic flourishes.
Challengers is a movie about the emotional high of relationships- the exhilarating feeling that comes from connecting with another human being, both on a romantic and platonic level.
Sasquatch Sunset does the most with its reasonably simple concept. It's 90 minutes of pure slice-of-life moments of grunting sasquatches doing everything you'd expect sasquatches to do.
Abigail finds the filmmaking duo Radio Silence returning to their roots, returning to the single-location horror concept of Ready or Not for an enjoyably bloody and entertaining experience. Like with Ready or Not, that commitment to its single-location concept made Abigail so successful for me. Aside from the kidnapping scene at the start, Abigail takes place in one location. Radio Silence makes excellent use of that single location, with many tense, bloody, and incredibly entertaining sequences set in cramped hallways and single rooms.
Civil War focuses on the war referenced in its title and more on the characters at the film's center. The film throws the viewer into the lives of its central photojournalist characters. The film spends quite a lot of time fleshing out these characters, exploring who they are and why they do what they do. The bond that forms between these characters created an emotional core that made so much of this film so captivating to me.
Much of Wicked Little Letters's comedy stems from showing its cast of prestige actors swearing and shouting expletives. And to the film's credit, that is indeed very funny.
What makes The Empire Strikes Back such a phenomenal movie is that, compared to most other Star Wars movies, its story feels the most character-focused. The arcs of Luke, Han, and Leia directly drive the plot. Luke has to learn the values of being a Jedi, such as patience and control, and Han and Leia learn to value and trust each other.
The Last Waltz shows the pure collaborative power of music. It's a concert film that celebrates the pure power of music and performing through its large band and dozens upon dozens of guest performances.
When Re-watching the original Star Wars, I attempted to look at it beyond its now iconic status. And in doing that, I was surprised by how charming so much of the film is.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is a film that looks good, sounds good, and has some decent scenes involving Spider-Man. But it also has a horrible script that juggles too many storylines at once that aren't very interesting.
Amy crafts a profoundly intimate, moving portrait of Amy Winehouse. The film avoids any of the artificial traits of your standard music documentary. There are no talking head interviews or an overly stylized presentation. Instead, the film presents an authentic glimpse into the life of Amy Winehouse through archival footage and audio interviews.
Revenge of the Sith seems most successfully attuned to the operatic, Shakespearean aspirations George Lucas wanted out of the prequel trilogy.
Episode II has its merits, but for me, it's mostly George Lucas's failed attempt at turning Star Wars into a Shakespearean drama.
The Amazing Spider-Man has always been a film that I've always found featured a lot of good wrapped around a lot of dullness.
Steel Magnolias wasn’t doing much for me early on, but it soon grew on me.
