Hollywood Reviews
Review: THE SANDMAN, Neil Gaiman's Magnum Opus Gets the Streaming Treatment It Deserves
Between 1989 and 1996, a then little-known, British-born writer, Neil Gaiman (Stardust, Good Omens, American Gods), wrote what many justifiably consider an unequalled masterpiece of serialized comic-book storytelling and a standard-resetting, genre-redefining work of dark fantasy, The Sandman. Well before...
Review: PREY Bleeds Profusely
Amber Midthunder stars in director Dan Trachtenberg's newest entry in the Predator franchise.
4K Review: Paramount's EVENT HORIZON
It’s hard to believe it’s been 25 years since Event Horizon was unleashed in theaters. To commemorate this milestone, Paramount Home Entertainment is releasing this sci-fi horror suckerpunch next week (August 9th) in North America. This 4K/Blu-ray combo release (with...
Review: LUCK and Its Many Consequences
Eva Noblezada, Simon Pegg, Whoopi Goldberg and Jane Fonda star in an animated adventure, directed by Peggy Holmes, debuting globally on Apple TV+.
Review: BULLET TRAIN, Tarantinoesque Thrills Mix With John Wickian Action to Middling, Modest Results
With a generic title like Bullet Train, it’s fair to assume that all or mostly all of the action in film called Bullet Train will either unfold on a said bullet train (Shinkansen) or a bullet train will play a...
Review: PAPER GIRLS, Your Delivery Will Be Delayed
Riley Lai Nelet, Sofia Rosinsky, Camryn Jones, and Fina Strazza star in the time-travel series, alongside Ali Wong, Sekai Abeni, Adina Porter and Nate Corddry, debuting globally on Prime Video.
Review: VENGEANCE, Sporadically Promising Feature Debut
Not to be confused with the literally hundreds of films sharing the same generic title, including at least one or two others this year alone, Vengeance, the big-screen, feature-length debut of The Office veteran B.J. Novak, is far from the...
Review: THIRTEEN LIVES, Thai Cave Rescue Dramatized With Respect and Reverence
A twist on the “if it bleeds, it leads” credo of local news coverage, national and international cable news thrives on spectacle: Disaster definitely sells; impending and/or drawn-out disaster sells even better. It can hold viewer engagement across hours, days,...
Review: SURFACE, Plunging Into Pools of Mystery
Gugu Mbatha-Raw stars in a sterling series, created by Veronica West, debuting globally on Apple TV+.
Neo-Noir DEVIL IN A BLUE DRESS Slinks It's Way to Criterion
Los Angeles, 1948. The war is over and we won. That, though, is past. Victory euphoria? Fading, fading quickly. For some, particularly the alienated veterans of classic Film Noir, they’ve survived the fire only to have landed in an altogether different frying pan. What’s the opposite...
Review: NOPE, Contemplative Sci-FI Extravaganza
Nope, director Jordan Peele's latest science-fiction/horror offering, finds the filmmaker attempting to balance his trademark penchant for social commentary with a much grander visual spectacle than he's ever attempted. While he's pretty solidly successful in the latter, the former is...
Review: A DARK, DARK MAN, Strangely Addictive, Nihilistic Crime and Corruption
Directed by Adilkhan Yerzhanov, the detective story from Kazakhstan paints a bleak picture of police work in the rurals. Now streaming on MHz Choice.
Review: WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING, Overly Faithful, Reverent Adaptation Never Quite Soars
Daisy Edgar-Jones stars in an adaptation of a popular mystery novel, opening in movie theaters this week.
4K Review: THE VIRGIN SUICIDES
Sophia Coppola’s debut feature, The Virgin Suicides, has been given the 4K restoration treatment by the discerning folks at The Criterion Collection. Released last week here in North America, this release also comes with a combo Blu-ray with supplements and...
Now Streaming: BLACK BIRD, With a Friend Like This
Taron Egerton, Paul Walter Hauser, Greg Kinnear, Sepideh Moafi, and Ray Liotta star in a searing suspense drama from Dennis Lehane, premiering globally on Apple TV+.
Review: THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER, One of the MCU's Best Franchises Gets Even Better
More than a decade ago, audiences around the world lost their collective minds at the mention of two words, “Avengers Initiative,” by SHIELD under-boss Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), seconds before Iron Man, the first entry in the ever-sprawling, metastasizing...
Now Streaming: THE PRINCESS Knows What's Up
Joey King, Veronica Ngo, and Dominic Cooper star in an action movie directed by Le-Van Kiet, now streaming on Hulu.
Now Streaming: THE TERMINAL LIST Glories In Its Self-Righteous Repugnance
Chris Pratt, Constance Wu and Taylor Kirsch star in an action-thriller series that taps into an ugly vein in military politics, debuting on Prime Video.
Review: THE BLACK PHONE, Another Excellent Supernatural Horror From The SINISTER Team
It’s 1978 and someone is abducting teenage boys in the suburbs of Denver. The police have no leads, no bodies, and no hope. When Finney (Mason Thames) disappears, he finds out what’s been happening to all of those kids, but...
Blu-ray Review: THE TALES OF HOFFMAN, A Majestic Opera Gets Majestic Release
Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger were one of the best directing duos of the 20th century; their varied output included comedies, drama, war stories, and a few musicals. Though none was quite so extravegant, rich, and ambitious as The Tales...
