Multiplex Madness
⭐️⭐️
Genre: Drama
Director: Damian Harris
Starring: Jared Harris, Nicholas Hamilton, Jamie Harris, Sasha Bhasin, Will Edward Price, Kimberly S. Fairbanks
Angel Studios latest is a joint venture of the Harris Brothers, sons of the great Richard Harris. Directed by Damian Harris, Jared Harris stars as a teacher who takes a troubled teen into his own home, where he patiently tries to build bridges with him through understanding and compassion. It's an all-well-and-good heartwarming story that's based on true events, but there is little to the movie to differentiate from other films of this type (other than Angel Studios' signature move of directing to a charity website at the end, with a talking head addressing the importance of the film's subject). Brave the Dark is a rather bland salute to the importance of teachers. It seems to have a solid idea of how teachers can inspire their students, but unfortunately it has little idea of how to inspire the audience. The movie is flat and lifeless, and while performances are capable enough, the drama just doesn't launch because it's delivered through hackneyed means. Brave the Dark is one of those movies that wants to make a difference, but the problem is that it's made for an audience that strictly watches movies exactly like this. If your method of spreading the word involves preaching to the choir, you're doing something wrong. That being said, of all the movies I've seen from Angel Studios, this one might be the best. Kudos for achieving mediocrity. Now let's see if you can break that ceiling.
⭐️⭐️
Genre: Thriller
Director: Mel Gibson
Starring: Mark Whalberg, Michelle Dockery, Topher Grace
Michelle Dockery got tired of playing posh on Downton Abbey, so she decided to give action hero a try in this thriller, where she plays a U.S. Marshall escorting stool pigeon Topher Grace to witness protection, only to discover that their pilot, Mark Whalberg, was sent to kill them. Fundamentally, there is very little wrong with Flight Risk, as everyone performs their roles admirably and the pacing is efficient enough. The film feels like the only piece missing from it is that someone forgot to make it exciting. I'm not sure if Mel Gibson is used to directing a film like this. Flight Risk has the lowest budget of any film he has made, including debut drama The Man Without a Face (which was made thirty years ago, so inflation makes the gap even wider). Since then, Gibson got used to large-scale epics after taking home box office and award glory in Braveheart, and in some way, by going this small, he seems a little out of his comfort zone. The film's premise seems bulletproof, by setting a closed-space thriller on a single set, taking the audience on a real-time ride as the characters try to land their plane. Gibson doesn't take advantage of the set for claustrophobic tension, while there is futher action that is implied to be happening at ground level that we only hear as exposition over communications. The premise is giving Gibson in-roads on how to make itself an edge-of-your-seat experience, yet he curiously ignores most of them. Flight Risk turns into a flat watch that barely requires attention.
⭐️⭐️
Genre: Thriller
Director: Neil Burger
Starring: Phoebe Dynevor, Rhys Ifans
Another posh player going into thriller territory, Bridgerton's Phoebe Dynevor stars in this chase movie as the daughter of Rhys Ifans, who is kidnapped in Egypt and the kidnappers are insisting on her retrieving a mysterious drive in India for his safe return. The film is more basic than its twists and turns would have you believe, as the twists themselves are rather basic in general. The movie almost feels intentionally low-key because the film is more about technological experimentation rather than plot, as it's one of the new wave of films that are shot entirely on an iPhone, the most large-scale of which is coming in a few months with Danny Boyle's long-awaited horror sequel 28 Years Later. I tuned out of the story pretty early on (though I had little trouble following it because of its simplicity) and started studying what the chosen camera offered the movie. Most noticeably, the film was mostly done in long singular takes, which is actually impressive in its own way, because those are very hard on the actors. Dynevor and Ifans deserve credit for working with that and still coming through with pretty solid performances. Second, the mobility is more active than I'm used to from a film, as the camera can fit in tight spaces and circle the actors for greater immersion, showing off that everything is filmed on location with no crew in sight. There are a few caveats to this, as the film succumbs to motion blurring quite a bit, which is an issue when you're basically stylizing in handheld shaky cam. The audio also seems to suffer, but I'm also not sure how they recorded for this movie (I imagine they didn't entirely rely on the phone for that).
As for the movie itself, it's fine. It's not terribly exciting and it's very predictable, but it's an okay diversion if you just want a simple, empty calory thriller, and it's probably a better option for that audience than Flight Risk. There's even a car chase halfway through that is pretty solid. What I think is more interesting about this movie is that it's an indication that it's opening a door, and the idea that anybody who owns an iPhone could potentially be a filmmaker. That's exciting to me. I guarantee you we'll see a lot of garbage from this, but the gems that result would make it all worthwhile.
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Oscars Nominated: Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay
Genre: Drama
Director: RaMell Ross
Starring: Ethan Herisse, Brandon Wilson, Hamish Linklater, Fred Heschinger, Daveed Diggs, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor
It's Oscar season, which means it's crunch time! It's time to take a look at the movies that passed me by this last year that the Academy is telling me I need to take a U-turn for. In the case of Nickel Boys, I had seen trailers for it, but it never opened in my neck-of-the-woods. Even my arthouse didn't carry it. Post Oscar nomination, it was seemingly dumped in my theater with little fanfare to satisfy the curious. It through my schedule for a loop this weekend, because I didn't know it was playing until I was literally in the theater, but I made the screening work.
Based on the novel by Colson Whitehead, Nickel Boys sees two Black teenagers being held in a reform school called Nickel Academy throughout the 60's. The duo depend on each other during the dark days, as the staff mistreat and abuse the children under their watch. The film is presented in first-person perspective, literally offering us a look through the eyes of young Black teenagers as the camera substitutes itself into their point of view, interchanging throughout the course of the film. The intention of this seems to be to insert an audience-member into the shoes of these characters, offering up the perspective of what it's like to be a Black kid growing up in a hostile environment. Nickel Boys has lofty ambitions of immersion, though I'm not entirely convinced it pulls it off. The film's dreamlike tone makes it feel emotionally distant, while the more aspects it tosses into its narrative flow, the more it starts to feel chaotic. I feel like the film successfully shows us through a character's eyes, but it never feels like we're in their head. The experimentation has just enough flavor to it to be worth the effort, even if it doesn't always hit the way it wants to. Other than that, the movie is an efficient drama, giving us a tale that is bound to make the compassionate angry, while making us glow with the bonds being formed. It's unfortunate that is the gimmick doesn't work for an audience member, then it will stunt the emotion of the piece. Unfortunately, I found myself in that group, but I still found the film admirable.
⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Director: Stephen Soderbergh
Starring: Lucy Liu, Chris Sullivan, Callina Liang, Eddie Maday, West Mulholland
Steven Soderbergh plays with the spookums in this supernatural drama, which sees a family with strained relationships move into a house, only to be gradually aware that there is omnipresent being watching over them. The cinematography is the star of the show, as the film is presented in a first-person point-of-view from the specter watching over them. The camerawork echoes the voyeuristic ambition of a film like Zone of Interest but takes the next step in allowing the camera to be an extra player in the movie. It works beautifully, as it can often bring unease in what we don't know about its motivation while also conveying sadness, as it's actions seem beneviolent and harmless, spending most of its time hiding in a teenage girl's closet. David Koepp's script is solid and efficient, although it holds me back in just how glowing I feel about this movie, as certain plot elements are vague and dwindle while dialogue can be overscripted. The ghost story aspect also falls to the wayside pretty easily at times, with only sudden camera flourishes to remind us what the actual story of the movie is. I'd argue that the movie also struggles to stick the landing, opting for an ending that is abrupt and poetic over full resolution. Horror fans may want to be warned that the movie isn't really horror, with more of a tragic drama presentation than anything thrilling. But there is something special at the heart of this movie if one is willing to see it, and it could very well go down as one of the greatest haunted house movies of all time.
⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Oscars Nominated: Best Actor - Coleman Domingo, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Song - "Like a Bird"
Director: Greg Kwedar
Starring: Colman Domingo, Clarence "Divine Eye" Maclin, Sean San Jose, Paul Raci, David "Dap" Giraudy, Patrick "Preme" Griffin, Jon-Adrian "J.J." Valezquez, Sean "Dino" Johnson
I'm very happy that Colman Domingo is getting the recognition he deserves. He's been on my radar for a while now and has yet to give a performance I've seen that hasn't popped straight off the screen. This is his second year in a row where he has earned a Best Actor Oscar nomination. He's not going to win, because Adrian Brody, Ralph Fiennes, and Sebastian Stan are brutal powerhouses to be reckoned with, but at least he can sleep well at night knowing his performance in Sing Sing was less vanilla that Timothy Chalamet's in A Complete Unknown.
Based on true life experiences, Domingo stars as an incarcerated man at Sing Sing Correctional Facility, who fulfills his time behind bars by throwing himself entirely into the facility's theater group. What's interesting about this film is that it is produced and performed by former Sing Sing inmates, who each play themselves in the movie, relating how much this rehabilitation program meant to them during their time spent in prison. They're pretty good actors, as well, lending both authenticity and skill to a heartfelt production. This movie is so tender, taking archetypes known for their hardened exterior and allowing them to be soft, open, and joyful. It's a rousing and cheerful examination of life for those who are confined, learning to live for something more than just their mistakes. It's a beautiful movie.
Netflix & Chill
⭐1/2
Streaming On: Paramount+
Genre: Science Fiction, Action, Adventure
Director: Olatunde Osunsanmi
Starring: Michelle Yeoh, Omari Hardwick, Kacey Rohl, Sam Richardson, Sven Ryugrok, Robert Kazinsky, Humberly González, James Hiroyuki Liao, Joe Pingue
Paramount is still evolving what today's version of the Star Trek franchise looks like. In some ways, it's very exciting, because what we get is more-often-than-not very new and different. However, for some, there is comfort in Star Trek's familiarity, which makes the new cold and scary. This is probably why Strange New Worlds is easily the most digestible of the new Star Trek line, because it takes the familiar and created something fresh out of it. Now, Paramount is offering up the proposal that maybe direct-to-streaming films could be an exciting new venture for this cash cow, all the while I've been clamoring for Lower Decks: The Motion Picture. Instead, they gave us Star Trek: Section 31, a Star Trek: Discovery spin-off that was reformatted into a VOD movie because Michelle Yeoh became far too expensive for a weekly TV series now that she has an Oscar.
The film catches us up with Philippa Georgiou, the former Terran Emperor from the Mirror Universe, now trapped in the mainline Star Trek universe by the Discovery crew, only to join the Federation's Section 31 black ops division before being flung nine-hundred years into the future then spit back out nine-hundred years earlier again by the Guardian of Forever because Yeoh left the series (this is a long story, but it's basically the first three seasons of Discovery in a nutshell). Now back at the time she started (give or take a decade), Section 31 catches up with Georgiou and re-recruits her, as they go off on a mission to protect the universe from a dangerous weapon before it can be used. Rapid-fire editing and action setpieces ensue.
Section 31 is an excellent idea for a Star Trek spin-off because it's something we know about this universe that has yet to be fully explored. The division was introduced in the shadows on Deep Space Nine, and slightly re-emerged on Enterprise, but our best look at them yet came on Discovery when Georgiou joined their ranks. Now we're going deeper into this organization of individuals who get their hands dirty so Starfleet officers like James Kirk and Jean-Luc Picard can keep them clean. Some Star Trek fans don't like it when Star Trek explores the darker side of utopia, but my view of Star Trek is that it isn't exactly utopian, but rather that it's a message that utopia can't actually be obtained but must always be strived for. There is no light without darkness, so I am fully invested in whatever story this universe might hold. Sadly, the Section 31 movie fulfills very little of what potential a Section 31 spin-off could promise.
Throughout the film I was mostly reminded of ensemble action films like The Expendables, The Losers, or Suicide Squad, just with a science fiction setting. That's not entirely unappealing, because movies like that can be a lot of fun. Section 31 flails around as it starts throwing out concepts with very little purpose to them other than for its own personal quirk or so it can hit the ground running for the next scene. The film is largely plotless noise, barreling through a crash-course of settings for our characters to either bicker or fight their way through. Usually, Star Trek movies are driven by character choices within conflict. Section 31 is conflict whirlwinding the characters. What's off-putting about this is that it makes the movie kind of trashy. Star Trek has explored trashy quadrants of its own galaxy before, but it has never been trashy itself. Even when it's mocking itself (like Lower Decks) or when it's targeting children (like Prodigy) or even when playing itself up as hardboiled or edgy (like Deep Space Nine, the Kelvin films, Discovery, or Picard), Star Trek has always presented itself with grace. Section 31 does not.
There are slivers of fun to be had. The action, while not really above what you'd normally see on each TV series every week, is pretty good (Michelle Yeoh always brings her A-game to choreography). There are a lot of fun tidbits and deep cuts in the movie as well, including Kacey Rohl as Michelle Garrett, future captain of the Enterprise (as seen in the Next Generation episode Yesterday's Enterprise). But like most of the characters here, she is more of a caricature than an actual character. The movie's lack of detail really hurts both its characterization and its story, as the movie feels more-often-than-not like a TV pilot that wasn't picked up because little about it clicked. Section 31 is dragged kicking and screaming into being a one-off, but it doesn't work as one. It might be an indicator that these Star Trek event films were dead before they even got started. That's a shame, but if Section 31 is them running out the gate with their guns blazing, maybe they shouldn't bother.
Oscar's Trash Can
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Oscars Nominated: Best Documentary Feature Film
Genre: Documentary
Director: Shiori Itō
Starring: Shiori Itō
Japanese journalist Shiori Itō chronicles her endeavor to expose sexual assault after her public accusation of fellow journalist Noriyuki Yamaguchi, who she claimed raped her in 2015. Itō faces backlash publicly, which leads her to publishing her book Black Box, where she writes about her experiences and the state of Japanese patriarchy on related laws. The film further chronicles the subsequent lawsuit that Yamaguchi filed against her, and her perseverance in telling her story. The film is mostly a bunch of filmed meetings, but the ambition is clear that words have power, and the truth is a power that needs to be fought for. Itō is a very compelling person to center such a film around because she is very strong, yet soft and vulnerable. She puts on a brave face and faces her backlash head-on, known in her country as "the girl who was raped," but she'll also break down into tears when she inevitably receives support because she spends a lot of her journey fighting alone. It's hard not to feel for her. I could nitpick the film's pacing, as the film just lays itself out flatly with events as they transpire, but even if that were an issue, it doesn't change how powerful the film is. It's a tough and frustrating watch, while also courageous and inspiring. Itō transcends being a victim and becomes a symbol of taking back one's power. Itō ends the piece assuring that, despite her success, her experience will still haunt her, but we all hope she regained a little bit of peace through this work.
⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Oscars Nominated: Best International Feature Film, Best Animated Feature Film
Genre: Adventure
Director: Gints Zilbalodis
Starring: KITTY!
A group of mismatched animals take refuge in a boat as the sea level in their area rapidly rises in this pantomime fairy tale from Latvia. Beautifully animated like a storybook, the film is very deftly crafted with a loving hand by multitasking director Gints Zilbalodis. Through his eye, we are shown a eye-popping adventure of a group of misfit creatures who become an unlikely family in the confined of a single space with a shared goal of survival. Animated stories that take place in nature are a dime a dozen, though most feel the need to anthropomorphisize the animals in each movie by some method in order to better communicate with the audience. Flow takes a riskier approach in not wanting to do that, choosing to let the animals of this film act like actual animals (mostly). There is a keen attention to detail in the way they behave and the way they move, lending authenticity to such a fantastical tale. And it even goes the extra mile on selling the friendship of the beasts by making the main lens of the movie be the eyes of a small cat, one of the most paranoid and distrusting creatures you can name. As the cat softens to its fellow travelers, we start to believe in their comradery. If there is one detail that soils the illusion of the movie, it's that the movie can't keep the charade of animals being the main characters up for its entire duration, sometimes accelerating too hard into human attributes after long patches of subtlety. It's enough to snap me out of the movie, but not enough to keep me from admiring it as a work of art.
Movies Still Playing At My Theater
Babygirl ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Brutalist ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A Complete Unknown ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Gladiator II ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Moana 2 ⭐️⭐️
Mufasa: The Lion King ⭐️⭐️1/2
Nosferatu ⭐️⭐️⭐️
One of Them Days ⭐️⭐️1/2
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 ⭐️⭐️1/2
Wicked Part I ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Wolf Man ⭐️⭐️
New To Digital
The Damned ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Nosferatu ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 ⭐️⭐️1/2
New To Physical
Elevation ⭐️⭐️
Here ⭐️⭐️
Heretic ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Rumours ⭐️⭐️
Smile 2 ⭐️⭐️1/2
The Substance ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Oscar Nominations
A Lien (N/A)
Alien: Romulus ⭐️⭐️1/2
Anora ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2Anuja (N/A)
The Apprentice ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Beautiful Men (N/A)
Better Man ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Black Box Diaries ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Brutalist ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A Complete Unknown ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Conclave ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Death by Numbers (N/A)
A Different Man ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Dune Part Two ⭐️⭐️1/2
Elton John: Never Too Late (N/A)
Emilia Pérez (N/A)
Flow ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
The Girl with the Needle (N/A)
Gladiator II ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I Am Ready, Warden (N/A)
I'm Not a Robot (N/A)
I'm Still Here (N/A)
Incident (N/A)
Inside Out 2 ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Instruments of a Beating Heart (N/A)
In the Shadow of the Cypress (N/A)
The Last Ranger (N/A)
Magic Candles (N/A)
The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent (N/A)
Maria (N/A)
Memoir of a Snail (N/A)
Nickel Boys ⭐️⭐️⭐️
No Other Land (N/A)
Nosferatu ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Only Girl in the Orchestra (N/A)
Porcelain War (N/A)
A Real Pain ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Seed of the Sacred Fig (N/A)
September 5 (N/A)
Sing Sing ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
The Six Triple Eight (N/A)
Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat (N/A)
The Substance ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Sugarcane (N/A)
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl (N/A)
Wander to Wonder (N/A)
Wicked Part I ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
The Wild Robot ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Yuck! (N/A)
Coming Soon!