I admit I was very skeptical about “Pearl.” I loved “X” but I didn’t think Ti West could do much with the film’s villain and the back story he intended. “Pearl” is a shocking horror film, one that takes a seemingly one dimensional tragic horror villain and put the spotlight on their story which ends up being quite emotional. Big credit goes to Mia Goth and Ti West, both of whom deliver on a disturbing and twisted horror drama that focuses on a young girl who explodes in a powder keg of body parts and corpses.
Category Archives: Movie Reviews
A Man Called Otto (2023)
It seems like these days actors nearing their seventies have to make a drama comedy about nearing the end of their lives. Hell, Jack Nicholson gave us “About Schmidt” and “The Bucket List,” and Robert DeNiro had “The Intern.” With Tom Hanks we have “A Man Call Otto” which is basically his “About Schmidt.” He lends his talents to a sad tale of a widow trying to find a way to move on from the love of his life. It’s shockingly a pet project for the Hanks fam that is just fine when all is said and done. It’s not Tom Hanks’ masterpiece, but just a fine outing for the man who can do roles like this in his sleep.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)
Ryan Coogler’s “Wakanda Forever” is not the sequel we expected, it’s not the sequel anyone expected, especially with the untimely death of Chadwick Boseman. His loss left a gaping hole in film, and left sadly a budding franchise without its lead. “Wakanda Forever” takes the chance to not only act as a sequel to “Black Panther” but also act as a meditation on the ideas of grief, mourning, and the cost of losing those that we dearly loved in our lives who were important to many.
M3GAN (2023)
Everyone and their mother knows “M3GAN” by now. Its trailer was the viral sensation of 2022, a movie that built anticipation less on press and more on the clout the clips built on formats like Tik Tok. Thankfully director Gerard Johnstone’s horror scifi amalgam lives up to its hype. It’s a breezy ninety minute horror flick about technology run amok, and three female personas battling for domination. And it might be my favorite genre flick of the year, yet.
Nope (2022)
“Nope” explores the idea of fame, and sensationalism among other things. Much of “Nope” involves Haywood and Emerald looking for that one big shot that can acquire dreams of wealth and notice. But when they contact an acclaimed wildlife filmmaker, he warns that sometimes fame is “a dream you can’t wait up from.” Keke Palmer and Daniel Kaluuya are wonderful in their respective roles as a pair of ranchers anxiously trying to keep their family’s ranch afloat after the inexplicable death of their dad (Keith David has a welcome cameo). Fate inevitably comes knocking down their doors, as they begin witnessing strange phenomenon in the skies.
BAD MOVIE MONDAY: NEW YEAR’S EVIL (1980)
Today’s BAD MOVIE MONDAY column is about a film called NEW YEAR’S EVIL. It was released in 1980 and was directed by Emmett Alston. It stars Roz Kelly, Kip Niven, Grant Cramer and Chris Wallace. The film is a pretty good horror movie, but… is it a slasher? I’ve always said that from 1979 to about 1983 every horror movie was trying to force itself into the slasher subgenre, often with poor results, and NEW YEAR’S EVIL is the perfect example of a movie that feels like it was hastily rewritten to fit the trend. So you know what? Instead of a review, I’m going to answer the question of whether or not NEW YEAR’S EVIL is a Slasher Movie, and my answer will be definitive.
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The House (2022)
“The House” is one of the most unnerving and abstract anthologies ever made. Despite its stop motion format, and meticulous attention to detail, “The House” introduces a trio of short films that border on horror but explore more interesting themes. The directors choose to change animation forms through the trio of shorts, and they’re all interconnected with a house that’s basically a menacing character all on its own.