Connoisseurs of bad movie viewing know the best ones think they’re good movies. That’s why you can keep your Sharknado and basically any self-knowing impostor. Those films know they’re bad and can only hope the viewer plays along. 2003’s The Room, now a cult sensation that still enjoys midnight screenings… Continue reading
The coming-of-age comedy sub-genre has been quietly shimmying back into style the past few years. It seemed for a while like filmmakers had conceded that no one was up for trying to top – or even equal – John Hughes, but after last year’s fantastic The Edge of Seventeen and… Continue reading
It’s almost impossible not to compare Robert Pattinson’s career arc with that of Leonardo DiCaprio. Both were teenage heart-throbs in iconic roles. Both took time off after said roles, then began taking on smaller projects to re-invigorate their careers as adults. Good Time, a frenetic and grimy crime thriller, is… Continue reading
Travis’s grandfather is not well. As It Comes at Night opens, he has been infected with an unknown disease. His body is covered in open sores, his eyes black, and occasionally he contorts and vomits blood. He mercifully passes on, much to the family’s sadness but ultimate relief. The next… Continue reading
Watching Room is essentially the act of barely breathing and nearly crying for two hours. It’s a devastating, yet surprisingly uplifting celebration of life, survival instinct, and the impenetrable bond between mother and son. Featuring two of the year’s best performances, nearly unbearable suspense and raw emotion, and a knack for… Continue reading
One of the more amazing things about Amy, Asif Kapadia’s tragic and sad documentary about the late singer Amy Winehouse, is just how much footage of Winehouse there was. Today we can all shoot video on the fly with smartphones, but Amy begins in 2001, when Winehouse was only eighteen. Much… Continue reading
You have to hand it to writer/director J.C. Chandor. He is immensely skilled at taking otherwise mundane topics (the stock market in Margin Call, a disastrous solo sailing adventure in All Is Lost, and the oh-so-glamorous heating oil industry here) and making tense dramas surrounding them. His films are all character-driven,… Continue reading