recent releases
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse finds itself immediately in the “best ever” conversation for animated films and Spider-Man films, animated or otherwise. Regarding sequels in the comic book movie genre – really sequels of any kind – this might also be best. That may sound like hyperbole. It is not. The film doubles and triples down on what made the first movie work while expanding the universe incalculably. It’s the comic book film version of “Aliens.” While Miles Morales and Spider-Gwen already occupy sizable space within the comic book entertainment zeitgeist, this film thrusts both characters into household name status through Academy Award level writing/storytelling, groundbreaking visuals, and most importantly, an emphasis on creating relatable leads that anyone with a pulse will care greatly for.
Across the Spider-Verse is a sincere love letter to comic book fans of all ages without a drop of cynicism. Whether you grew up with the first Clone Saga or the second (from the “Ultimate” Marvel line of comics), see Miles Morales as the primary Spider-Man over Peter Parker, or most associate the Spider-Man universe with Tobey Maguire, the film is here for you. For some the comic nerd minutiae of the preceding sentence holds zero meaning. And that’s fine. The film’s consistently bombastic and occasionally dream-like art style is ceaselessly entertaining and a feast for the eyes. It accomplishes something that feels wholly unique by mashing up a dozen distinct animation styles within the same space. Every frame is a work of ludicrously creative art.
Undoubtedly there are some folks out there who can’t get behind animated films for one reason or another and choose to pass on this one as well as the 2018 original. I pity those poor souls as I can’t think of a better way to kick off the warm weather movie season than with Miguel O’Hara (Spider Man 2099), Miles and Gwen. Sadly, I went into this film unaware that it would end on a cliffhanger with Beyond the Spider Verse set to release in 2024 on 29 March. Come that date we may witness a trilogy that could unseat The Dark Knight trilogy as best ever. I’m betting on Miles.
It’s perfectly reasonable to acknowledge the mindless fun to be had with 2018’s Venom. Ditto for Venom: Let There Be Carnage. Make no mistake, neither is a good film. And if you care even a little bit about a comics accurate Venom characterization, stay far, far away. Outside of the admittedly excellent VFX and satisfying yet jarringly inconsistent relationship between Venom and Tom Hardy’s squirrely Eddie Brock, there isn’t much here on which to base a recommendation. The middle of the film offers a head-scratching rave scene (yes, Venom attends a rave) that one can guess was intended to deliver a message about acceptance. It simply doesn’t work. Eddie Brock/Venom is supposed to be threatening and murderous. This Venom is child-like and grating. Venom should never be adorned with glow sticks. Venom isn’t Deadpool. Blessed are those going in without prior awareness of the comics. The film plays slightly better when ignoring how far the uber-profitable franchise strays from the source material. The aforementioned rave scene is one of many baffling shifts in tone and attempts at humor that feel more appropriate for a GEICO commercial than a movie with aspirations of joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe. We expected better from you, Andy Serkis. Speaking of Serkis, nothing about his direction stands out from the original. If anything, the dialogue here is lesser than in Venom. The Eddie Brock character experiences no significant developments unique to this film. Carnage, a character historically lacking in depth, is played passably by Woody Harrelson even if the only discernible motivation of his Cletus Kasady is to marry his girlfriend. The Carnage “love” interest, played by Naomie Harris, feels tacked on and wooden in a film that won’t win any awards for acting. I couldn’t have lower hopes for the all but guaranteed Venom 3.
The on again/off again friendship and rivalry between Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow is the crown jewel of the G.I. Joe universe and the reason a Snake Eyes standalone movie was greenlit ahead of other interesting-in-their-own-right G.I. Joe personalities. Everyone loves a properly set up heel turn and Storm Shadow is one of the original good guys gone bad. Unfortunately, the Robert Schwentke directed Snake Eyes film largely fails to capture the energy and panache of the Storm Shadow/Snake Eyes rivalry until the final act. The last third of the film and its satisfying, sequel bait ending lean enjoyably into G.I. Joe canon. The rest of Snake Eyes is a humorless, low-stakes action romp painfully lacking in consistent tone. The script doesn’t ask much of Harry Golding and his characterization is several orders of magnitude less interesting than co-stars Andrew Koji and Haruka Abe. Golding’s entire arc as Snake Eyes is essentially “revenge is bad” and his performance comes from the Keanu Reeves school of playing every emotion exactly the same. He often just…stares. Golding is likable but lacks the smoldering intensity one would expect from Snake Eyes.
It’s hard to recommend this film to anyone but the most die-hard G.I. Joe fans. Snake Eyes offers little for those not harboring a deep nostalgic connection to these characters. The direction is uneven and features frequently stilted dialogue that would feel at home on a Saturday morning cartoon. Maybe this was intentional? I doubt it. The fight choreography is passable but inconsistent. The bloodless sword fights – you won’t find nary a drop of blood on a sword throughout – are jarring considering that most deaths in the film are by blade. The magical macguffin introduced in the third act feels ripped from an episode of a cartoon and not in a good way. If you go into Snake Eyes expecting a simple live action origin story for Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow, you’ll have a C+ time. Everyone else, beware. The costume designs are admittedly awesome but then again isn’t that 90% of the appeal of characters designed to sell toys?
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Matt Reeves’ The Batman released in theaters a week ago and immediately finds itself in the conversation for best Batman movie ever. This is both impressive and noteworthy considering the ubiquity of the caped crusader and the staggering number of times his vigilantism has appeared on small and large screens. It’s the gift and curse of legacy characters: nearly limitless interest. No one questions or bats an eye at each announcement of the latest Batman project because audiences simply never tire of Batman. Pennyworth, Gotham and recently announced Penguin and Gotham PD The Batman spinoffs don’t even feature the dark knight. Seemingly, it’s enough just to be Batman adjacent. Some see Bruce Wayne/Batman as a wealthy vigilante with a lost grip on reality satisfying his need for vengeance by punching poor people in the face. Others view him more favorably as the square jawed standard bearer for super heroism. Most would agree that his best film is 2008’s The Dark Knight. Does The Batman supplant The Dark Knight as unrivaled crème de la crème of Batman films and the comic book film genre at large? No, but’s it’s very, very close. Pattinson usurps Christian Bale as The QC’s favorite live-action version of Batman. He and Reeves provide a proto “year 2” Batman cut off from normal life and singularly dedicated to striking fear into the hearts of criminals/stalking the streets. It’s hard to recall meaningful sequences in The Batman of Pattinson playing Bruce Wayne, regular human. He wears the cape and cowl for what seems like 75% of the film and if you didn’t know he was rich, you wouldn’t know he was rich. This is a Batman story. The film correctly chooses to have Bruce Wayne, billionaire, largely absent. Reeves skips the origin story/pearl clutching (finally!) and almost immediately gives us Pattinson in a darkly beautiful, heavily armored batsuit that reacts to semi-automatic gunfire like Gotham raindrops. A common interpretation of Batman is he spends his days wearing a Bruce Wayne mask. He becomes this new true self after Bruce thematically perishes with Martha and Thomas Wayne. This is the Batman Pattinson plays. Pattinson’s Batman cares little about philanthropy, keeping up appearances or wearing said Wayne mask. And it totally works. Catwoman, played convincingly and with an omnipresent twang of mournfulness by Zoe Kravitz is also a year one version of the character. The chemistry between Pattinson and Kravitz is blistering. The Batman perfectly captures the comics accurate will-they-won’t-they of the Bat and the Cat/Bruce and Selina – a duo made for one another yet frustratingly unable to truly be together. Vengeance never sleeps. Paul Dano is great as the Riddler and his crusade on behalf of the have-nots against the corrupt haves of Gotham might be the most realistically executed antagonist of any Batman film ever. This Riddler could exist in the real world and that makes him effective and frightening. To say any more would enter spoiler territory. The batmobile feels more like a souped-up muscle car than past gadget heavy interpretations but when it shows up it leaves an impression. The conclusion of the Penguin/Batman car chase was spoiled in the trailer but remains a standout moment in a film packed with standout moments. Bring on The Batman 2. We can’t get enough.
Few harbor an active fear of death itself but most dread getting old. It’s in our nature to increasingly agonize over the aging process as years tick away and our bodies and minds change. Depending on your current age, gender and predisposition towards showing its effects, aging and the insecurities that stem from its slow (for some of us), omnipresent and unavoidable onset can be debilitating. It’s the reason men and women spend billions of dollars on anti-aging products and pay handsome fees to questionable cosmetic surgeons to cut, nip, tuck and freeze their bodies. Old, directed, written and self-financed by M. Night Shyamalan takes the very relatable fear of aging and turns it into something horrifically engaging while providing commentary on how growing old manifests and affects us very differently at each stage of life. Ages 6 through 16 and 60 through 70 contain the same length of time but the implications for those 10 years of aging couldn’t be more different. The film very convincingly portrays aging across the entire spectrum and in a manner that juxtaposes interestingly with the flawlessly beautiful island setting. There’s also a poignant message within Old concerning time and how it both provides us with the perspective necessary to forgive and eventually heals nearly all wounds both psychological and physical. Old may not be M. Night’s best film – time will tell, pun intended – but it hits far more than it misses. The twist of the film is revealed in an exposition heavy epilogue that wraps things up more neatly than was probably needed. The twist is less thought-provoking than the mystery and morbid excitement of experiencing the film and this is a good thing. Too many of Shyamalan’s films live and die by twists that invalidate the entire viewing experience. Not so with Old. I look forward to revisiting the island.
I quite enjoyed 2018’s A Quiet Place even if the universal praise heaped upon it was a bit much. A Quiet Place Part II is superior in every way and represents the (still) somewhat rare sequel that manages to take a great concept and make it even greater. This is no soulless cash grab. Forgive the blasphemous hyperbole of invoking Ellen Ripley, but both Emily Blunt’s Evelyn and Millicent Simmond’s Regan reminded me of the famously courageous heroine. Their dogged commitment to protecting one another at any cost informs the action and is the reason the tension ramps up to eleven whenever the blind beasts appear. Director John Krasinski demonstrates scene after nail-biting scene the oft-overlooked conception that true terror/tension is not borne from gore or creature design, but in fearfulness for the welfare of the characters. The latter must be in place for the former to matter. Speaking of gore, A Quiet Place Part II is a PG-13 horror movie that doesn’t feel neutered or watered down. The star of the show is character and that is the way it should be. Millicent is a rising star. Her portrayal of Regan stands out and I hope she continues to take on roles that showcase her notable talent. It is often stated that most human fear stems from a fear of the unknown. The creatures in A Quiet Place Part II are reflective of this notion as we’re never given a clear reason for why they aggressively and unrelentingly dispatch any humans they should hear. Filling in those blanks with our imagination adds to the frights.
A Quiet Place Part II is a simple horror/thriller film that gets nearly everything right. The pacing, casting, acting and cinematography meld together to create a fantastically entertaining experience. 9/10
Spiral is an excellently paced and nigh-perfectly cast crime procedural that will benefit at the box-office from its association with the Saw franchise even though it would succeed without it. I’d heard from friends that Chris Rock is phenomenal in Fargo but will admit to not taking him terribly seriously as an actor simply because he is Chris Rock. He changed my mind with his performance here. Yes, he once again plays a version of himself but it works due to strength of writing, believability of performances across the board, and electric, pun intended, direction from Darren Lynn Bousman (Bousman also directed Saw II, III and IV). Either Rock hired an acting coach or finally realized that he can’t play every character as Chris Rock. He’s on-screen for 90% of the film and his grounded yet hilarious performance never loses its welcome. I was equal parts curious and jaded when this film was announced as existing in the Saw universe without being a numbered Saw film. I experienced diminishing returns with each Saw entry due to a lack of connection to the carnage. For me, the ingenuity and horror of each deathtrap is tied inexorably to sympathy for the victim. By the fifth and sixth Saw films, the franchise shifted focus from character to Final Destination-like bloodshed where the star of the show is creativity of violence. Spiral uses a simple yet clever plot device to remind us that there are real humans underneath the contraptions. The through-line of the film doesn’t become clear until the very end and to describe it as “ripped from the headlines” would be accurate. It runs the risk of polarizing some but I feel it worked for the story Rock and Bousman wanted to tell. And don’t worry if you’ve never seen a Saw film as you can enjoy Spiral without any pre-existing knowledge. Spiral does make me want to go back and watch Saw though.
Spiral receives a 7.5/10 for general audiences and a 8.5/10 for fans of the Saw franchise. The death contraptions are just a grisly as ever and backed by a tightly paced and gripping story that sets things up nicely for Spiral 2.
According to Kano, all the best artists are a bit twisted. I couldn’t agree more. I also never expected to begin this review of 2021’s Mortal Kombat “reboot” with a sage Kano quote. He’s the most enjoyable thing going in the film and the only character who talks and behaves like a real-life human. Can we get a standalone Kano film? Mortal Kombat has three characters who feel like they are in a film with aspirations of appealing to anyone outside of die-hards who happily gobble up anything new from the franchise: Kano, Sub-Zero and Scorpion. When any of the three are on screen, the film is very good. The first ten minutes are slow, measured and similar in tone to Tom Cruise’s The Last Samurai. The opening re-introduces us to the classic Scorpion/Sub-Zero conflict through a brutally zestful action set-piece that feels dropped in from a better film. Maybe they used all the budget up in the first ten minutes? (Note: that ISN’T what happened). I really thought I was about to experience the Mortal Kombat film I didn’t know I wanted but would happily accept. The film turns out to mostly be an exercise in stilted dialogue, fights without emotional stakes, comically campy exposition, and actors (looking at you, Raiden, Liu-Kang and Kung-Lao) behaving as if they are in a Mortal Kombat video-game cut-scene rather than a big budget blockbuster adaptation. That all said, the visuals are largely excellent, Sub-Zero feels like a horror movie villain whenever he shows up to freeze and dismember and the fight choreography is occasionally excellent. Mortal Kombat is like a fighting game – imagine that – in that your mileage and enjoyment will vary depending on if you can accept a roster, or in this case cast, where several are unfun and unplayable (unwatchable in this metaphor). I watched Mortal Kombat with a close relative recently returned to the US from a tour of duty overseas. I had to apologize to him for hyping it up. I’m still 100% excited for the sequel. Don’t judge me.
Mortal Kombat receives a score of 5/10 for general audiences with a 2-point bump to 7/10 for those, like me, who simply love Mortal Kombat.
Netflix Original film Bad Trip is essentially Jackass with Eric Andre/Lil Rel Howery swapped in for Johnny Knoxville/Steve-O and slightly turned down gross-out humor. If you’re into hidden camera pranks, and really who isn’t, you’ll have a fine time with it. Is it funny? I was certainly laughing through most of its lean 84-minute runtime. There isn’t much story to speak of outside of Andre’s Chris Carey traveling from Florida to New York to track down the love of his life while trying not to annoy or kill best friend Bud Malone (played by Howery). That’s it. Howery actually goes somewhat against type as the straight man. He spends much of the film reacting disapprovingly to Andre’s antics. From start to finish the barely there story exists in order to consistently place Andre, Howery and a scene-stealing Tiffany Haddish in the crosshairs of unsuspecting strangers. In that regard, it succeeds. Any poor, misguided soul going into Bad Trip expecting character arcs and emotionally wrought payoffs will go home (or turn off their fire stick) disappointed. Everyone else will have a few laughs at the notably low price of whatever tier of Netflix you happen to subscribe to. It’s a low-stakes decision. Go for it.
Bad Trip is the type of "film" that hardly requires a ranking (or a review). If I must provide a number I’ll go with 7/10. If Jackass is your jam, give Bad Trip a one point bump.
Godzilla vs. Kong is just as loud, dumb and fun as it looks on the surface. Dig deeper and you’ll only find more surface. Think back to Saturday morning cartoons and the basic format they would use to create conflict: uncomplicated, familiar, blunt instrument set-ups requiring essentially zero thought for young, short attention span audiences. The seemingly benevolent corporation harboring a secret. The quietly empathic child who understands the world better than adults. The well-meaning but quacky scientist with a brilliant yet controversial hypothesis which proves true. The conspiracy theorist who as it turns out was right all along. All are tropes of genre storytelling (and cartoons). Tropes are tropes for a reason. They’re effective. The conceit bringing the two iconic behemoths to come to arms with one another in Godzilla vs. Kong is laid out within the first four minutes and it’s comically simple: the world isn’t big enough for them to coexist. They are destined to clash. It’s Red Sox vs. Yankees in the super-animal kingdom. That all said, is the film exciting and visually interesting? Do the action sequences provide enough thrills to justify the two-hour runtime? More or less, yes. But as with any film qualifying as a live action cartoon, I advise you to first take note that the plot is just a flimsy canvas on which to place a mindless film that happens to have huge international mass appeal (which means money). Godzilla vs. Kong probably plays best in an IMAX theater with your friends, a slurpee, and a tub of buttery popcorn…and there is nothing inherently wrong with that. It’s pop culture on celluloid. I know this particular point was talked about leading up to release, but it was distracting how Kong’s size seemed to radically shift up and down depending on the needs and scale of each sequence.
Godzilla vs. Kong is exactly what you think it is. If that is appealing to you, watch it. It’s a 5/10 in the grand scheme of the overall filmic zeitgeist and a 6/10 in terms of leaning into its own absurdity. I respect the fact that there was a definitive victor in the titular contest.
The Last Blockbuster is a breezy documentary that doubles as a fine time capsule for a forgotten relic of the 80’s and 90’s (and a sliver of the 2000’s). The first half of the film plays out like a cautionary tale for business executives or MBA’s: don’t let current cash flows and present successes distract you from planning for and thinking critically about the long-term path of your business. Looking back, could blockbuster have predicted that physical media would eventually lose some or most of its shine? Should they have foreseen how eliminating late fees would completely disincentivize customers from returning rentals and thus slash revenue by two-thirds overnight? Probably. Even my adolescent business brain way back when had a hard time reconciling the “bring it back whenever you want” business model. We all know the broad strokes of what happened next. Fast forward to 2021 and we are watching blockbusters like Wonder Woman 84 and Zack Snyder’s Justice league upon release on our 75” 4K television sets. The pandemic of 2020-21 (still omnipresent as of this writing) might be the final push to an almost expressly home-based movie-viewing zeitgeist, creating an environment where movie studios can either keep delaying their films, losing money with each day, or push them to streaming. The final act of The Last Blockbuster is a bit underwhelming relative to the first two and consists mostly of shots of Sandi Harding (GM of the last store) sharing the fun and excitement of receiving so much media attention. That being said, who wants to take a road trip to Bend, Oregon? I’m in.
If you grew up with Blockbuster, you should definitely check out The Last Blockbuster. I can already see the case study appearing in a business school e-textbook near you. 7/10.
Only two of the six members of the titular league in Zack Snyder’s Justice League have anything that can be described as a traditional character arc. If a lack of narrative stakes for the majority of the cast outside of “save the world and don’t die trying” doesn’t bother you (and I’m not here to tell you it should), than the film represents a perfectly fine piece of popcorn entertainment. Just don’t go in expecting a genre-breaking film or much nuance. This isn’t Logan and it isn’t trying to be. It plays like a Saturday morning cartoon with broad strokes and sequences designed specifically for maximum impact. Problems are solved by punching them - often in slow motion - while moody music plays in the background. It’s a traditional superhero action romp with great appeal for genre wonks (like myself) and little else for more casual fans. The difference between it and a snooze-fest like Wonder Woman 84 is the unmistakable Snyder direction. His hyper-stylized approach to visual storytelling is adept and unique but also an acquired taste. Much of the proceedings feel like a music video. If you take a step back I think it’s clear that Snyder is a curious choice for adapting the most iconic characters DC has to offer. Curiouser still when you consider that Zack Snyder’s Justice League is tasked with balancing and creating cohesion across the differing tones of 6+ larger than life DC properties that quite literally must stand on their own. The film feels a bit homogenized in terms of characterization. One can’t help but think that DC is making it up as they go (relative to Marvel at least) in leaning so heavily onto a director known for clinging to one specific tone and style at the cost of substantive storytelling. The DC heroes in the film take a backseat to Snyder being Snyder. It’s not a criticism as much as an observation. I still enjoyed the film. That being said I would like to see the DCEU making strides towards matching the consistency of the MCU. I’m not sure that Zack Snyder is the way (and I watch Sucker Punch every year).
Zack Snyder’s Justice League receives a score of 7/10 for general audiences and a 7.5/10 for superhero genre fans. Batman’s costume is sublime.
I was truly excited about the potential for Eddie Murphy’s triumphant return to the iconic Akeem character. I’d prefer to be reporting back to you about how the film recaptures the magic of the 1988 original while updating it just enough to satisfy current generations of movie-watchers (remember when we used to say movie-goers?). Instead, we get Eddie Murphy playing the straight man to an admittedly hilarious Wesley Snipes, a grating Leslie Jones, shallow melodrama and obnoxious product placement. Who asked for this? The movie is fun, incorporates catchy music and it’s obvious the cast are enjoying themselves. But this is supposed to be the sequel to one the greatest hard R comedies of all time. The handful of funny moments belong almost exclusively to characters other than Prince Akeem. Overall, it’s a poorly structured Saturday Night Live sketch with precious little in common with the original. Is it worth a watch? Absolutely. Who's going to NOT watch the Coming to America sequel? But the magic of the original is utterly missing. Perhaps like me you’ll find a kernel of solace in the low-stakes decision to watch a film included with Amazon Prime. That being said, anyone comparing this film favorably to the original is lying to you. You’ll find a handful of smile-inducing moments on the strength of pure nostalgia but otherwise there isn’t much on which to base a recommendation.
Coming 2 America receives a score of 5/10 for general audiences. Its similarities to the original are superficial. Don’t go in expecting a return to past glory.
I grew up in Boston watching, listening to and idolizing a host of east coast lyricists, gravitating towards hardest of hard New York-bred talents Nas, Jay-Z, Jeru the Damaja, Group Home, Mobb Deep, Smif and Wessun and of course, The Notorious B.I.G. I was introduced to B.I.G. through 1994 smash-hit “Juicy” but the song that left the greater impression was b-side track “Unbelievable.” Not to take anything away from “Juicy”, but “Unbelievable” is where I came to understand how B.I.G. was simply different from the assembly line of rappers coming out of NY. He was undoubtedly flossy and his sweaters, jewels and Gucci shades are iconic for good reason. It was all superficial window dressing for his music. His crisp, clear delivery, booming voice and ability to tell a story both melodic and haunting was and remains the reason he is considered the best to ever do it. I went into Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell hoping to learn something new about Biggie Smalls and his path from street hustler to street hustler who raps and finally to King of New York and unquestioned best rapper, dead or alive. In that regard I was disappointed as there isn’t much here I hadn’t heard or read a hundred times before. You should still watch it, especially if you weren’t there to see it all go down in real time. Biggie endures due to his otherworldly talent and honesty. Like many of our most gifted artists he wrestled unceasingly with demons both self-inflicted and environmental. He’s gone on record that the decision to call his debut album “Ready to Die” was a lamentation on his desire to escape street life and not an expression of shallow nihilism. RIP to the GOAT.
When the credits roll you’ll likely get the feeling that the unseen aftermath of 2021 reboot Wrong Turn is equally interesting to the film itself. Some of the ideas presented within it are that strong. The problem with Wrong Turn is it’s masquerading as such for marketing purposes and has little interest in carrying on the spirit of the franchise. It’s an annoyingly sneaky tactic. There’s a moment halfway through where it takes a jarring left away from the premise of the original. From there you can either lambast the bait-and-switch or accept that the films connection to the 2003 slasher/cult classic is tenuous at best and nonexistent at worst. If you are willing to do the latter, there is fun to be had with the admittedly half-baked reimagining. As far as micro-budget horror films go, you could do a lot worse. Your best bet is to forget entirely what came before and think of Wrong Turn as a stand-alone film. Viewed through that lens it’s a perfectly serviceable horror/thriller peppered with a handful of genuinely horrifying moments and plot revelations that spring from a place of real creativity. It’s more slickly produced than the original with surprisingly beautiful cinematography and sweeping establishing shots across the first act that create an overall tone less grime-infested than the 2003 version. That doesn’t mean the film doesn’t have its fair share of scares and head-splatter. It doesn’t reach the b-movie simplicity of purpose and tight pacing of the original and the updates to the mountain men feel like a betrayal to franchise roots, but Wrong Turn is undoubtedly exciting and creates at least two characters (Charlotte Vega’s final girl, Jen, and Bill Sage’s Venable) that leap off the screen for all the right reasons. Fun fact for eagle eyed viewers: the Madrid-born Vega appeared in a recurring role in season one of Netflix’s Warrior Nun as one of the rich pricks. I hope we see more of her moving forward.
Wrong Turn receives a score of 6.5/10 for general audiences and a 7.5/10 if you can ignore the history of the franchise and experience the film for what it is.
There’s a notable demon-monster-thing popping up in the third act of Psycho Goreman that looks suspiciously like a white-walker from Game of Thrones. I’m fairly sure the producers of the film were aware of the similarity but changed the design just enough to avoid a lawsuit. Therein lies the joke. Just about every five minutes Psycho Goreman hits the viewer with a moment that’ll make your internal monologue say “this is equal parts totally nuts and totally awesome.” The Canadian film, written and directed by Steven Kostanski, is a micro-budget science-fiction fantasy horror comedy both bitingly sincere and firmly tongue-in-cheek. It spoofs the aforementioned genres while also penning a thoughtfully written love letter to each. Horror and comedy are hard to mash-up but PG (the nickname for the titular Goreman) strikes a nearly perfect balance between the conflicting elements. That being said, a sense of humor that appreciates and understands broad comedy is required to enjoy the film. Do you like to have fun and not take yourself too seriously? Does the idea of a firmly R-rated mashup of Power Rangers, Wishmaster, The Toxic Avenger and Stranger Things sound appealing to you? If the answer is yes to either than you’ll have an absolute blast with the gleefully wicked PG (especially across the final two acts). Nita-Josee Hanna, our protagonist, is a scene stealer. She gives a hilariously heartfelt depiction of a well-meaning but angry ten-year-old bully commanding a Terminator with the powers of a magical wizard. How’s that for a film premise? If the QC accomplishes one thing in 2021, I hope it’s to help this film find the audience it deserves.
Psycho Goreman receives a 8/10 for general audiences and a 9/10 for being a movie that does so much with so little. Aspiring filmmakers with limited resources, take notice.
Large chunks of Outside the Wire feel like the very best Call of Duty: Modern Warfare cut-scenes. The problem therein is the standards for a video game cut-scene are far lower than that of a Netflix original film starring one of the hottest actors in Hollywood (Anthony Mackie). It’s 2021 and we are still making movies where the central conflict is keeping nukes out of the hands of spooky foreigners? How come we don’t get any explanation as to the development or specifics of the science behind Mackie’s synthetic military officer, Leo? The movie is set in 2036, it’s hardly a foregone conclusion that we’ll have terminators by then. Outside the Wire is like fruitcake: the ingredients are quite appetizing but once you put them all together each element is somehow lessened and the final product looks and sounds a lot better than it actually is. The film presents a bevy of grand ideas on future warfare as well as philosophical psycho-babble on the ethics of utilizing sentient artificial beings for warfare. None of these ideas get fully fleshed out. It’s Terminator, Chappie, Training Day, and Universal Soldier in a blender. You’d be better off watching any of those films instead. That’s not to say I hate Outside the Wire. The action scenes are semi-interesting if a bit rote/uninspired and Anthony Mackie has the screen presence to keep you invested during the dialogue heavy portions. Newcomer Damon Idris as drone pilot Lt. Thomas Harp has a bright future. The film also benefits from being perhaps the first mainstream, big budget film to speak directly to drone warfare and the stark difference between flying a drone into an incursion versus walking into one. Outside the Wire, as with most of the 2020-21 “corona releases” debuting on streaming with little fanfare or marketing budget, is a perfectly fine and forgettable action flick.
Outside the Wire receives a score of 5.5/10 for general audiences and a 6.5 if you like the idea of a Call of Duty video game but just the cut-scenes.