Death is inevitable. And it’s not too often we can stare it in the eyes and welcome it with open arms. “The End of the Squirrel” is a refreshing, kind of heartbreaking take on the zombie apocalypse, where everything goes wrong and its heroes simply… accept their fates, once and for all. They’ve done everything they could do, and now it’s a matter of how they go out.
Category Archives: Movie Reviews
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023)
We are in desperate need of a fantasy movie renaissance, and I truly hope “Honor Among Thieves” is the one to lead the charge. It takes a true D&D fan to really know how to bring this universe to life and director John Francis Daly rises to the challenge brilliantly. “Honor Among Thieves” is one of the more refreshing genre pictures of 2023; it’s a movie that is filled with so much appeal for any audience. I dare say that it might even open the door to a new generation of players.
Malum (2023)
I have to admit that I never did catch Anthony DiBlasi’s original 2014 film “Last Shift.” Despite its acclaim and reputation in the horror world, it never quite caught my attention. Anthony DiBlasi does what many indie filmmakers do, and uses this opportunity to not only remake “Last Shift,” but expand upon it with bigger scares, more gore, and a greater emphasis in to the mystery of John Malum. The results are ultimately a mixed bag of horror highs and lows. I tend to appreciate with director Anthony DiBlasi and writer Scott Poiley do here, taking “Last Shift” and giving it a polish that allows their universe to breathe better.
The Fabelmans (2022)
If you’re at all familiar with Steven Spielberg’s life story and how he related to his family, then “The Fabelmans” has been a long time coming. As someone who read his biography, it’s interesting to explore Spielberg’s home life and how his relationship with his father and mother ultimately crafted who he’d become not just as a man but as a filmmaker. While “The Fabelmans” suffers from being a tad schmaltzy here and there, it’s a worthwhile and engaging drama about family, and how film as a medium can help us view life as we’ve never seen it before.
Living with Chucky (2022)
Director Kyra Elise Gardner’s “Living with Chucky” is a great summarizing of the entire movie series that started from its humble origins, and then explores the reboot which saw the emergence of a new dawn for the series. It’s interesting and garners some unique anecdotes from its cast and crew. There’s a lot of good information and nuggets of wisdom to be mined with “Living with Chucky” and for a one hundred minute movie, it’s sad that it only kicks in in the last twenty five minutes or so.
John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023)
Often times when a movie series has gone on as long as “John Wick” has, it offers diminishing returns. Thankfully, though the saga of “John Wick” has only amped up its game the further along it gets in the storyline of the “Baba Yaga” and “John Wick: Chapter 4” really is a massive step up. While the previous three films in the series have been monstrous, “John Wick Chapter 4” is thankfully something completely different while also it embraces what made the aforementioned movies so dazzling and engrossing. The narrative furthers Wick’s transformation in this world from an ex-assassin trying to live his life, as someone who is trying to re-claim his life.
Heathers: The Musical – Live at The Other Palace (2022)
How do you take one of the most twisted, yet perfect dark comedies from the 1980’s and make it even better? You turn it in to a musical, apparently. I didn’t know there was even a “Heathers” musical up until about two years ago when snippets of the music appeared on social media. Although I loved the original 1989 Dan Waters dark comedy (it’s a childhood favorite), I was more than open to seeing what the musical had in store. In fact, I was quite optimistic, when all was said and done.