If you’re just about numb to comic book films these days, then allow this quaint Italian picture to cleanse your palette. The debut feature-length effort from from Gabriele Mainetti seems like a fresh yet familiar take on this type of film; it also reminds once how much fun this type of story can be sans all the machismo and infighting. They Call Me Jeeg Robot is an impressive piece of work, with violence to spare, but it doesn’t glamorize heroes or villains. That’s an important thing to note because it also earns points for originality even if the story is of the passé “hero born of toxic waste” variety. It’s rare to pair the words “origin…
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[Fantastic Fest Review]…A Dark Song
At Fantastic Fest, the largest genre film festival in the United States, you tend to get two types of films. First, there’s the wacky, chimerical, excess-for-the-sake-of-it, ratings-be-damned insanity. Then you get the very pensive, David Fincher- or David Lynch-type narratives. A Dark Song, the debut effort from Irish film director Liam Gavin, is very much the latter. An expertly constructed film, and one that moves at a snail’s pace, asks you to not just have the patience of the main character, Sophia (Catherine Walker), but also have faith that the payoff is worth all the prep. A Dark Song is a claustrophobic picture about a woman who, following the traumatic loss of her son, has…
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[Fantastic Fest Review]…Terry Teo
Four years ago, Danger 5 screened at Fantastic Fest to a welcome response. In 2014, Wastelander Panda was met with similar acclaim. Now, a similarly entertaining and fairly wacky television show arrives, this time from Housebound writer/director Gerard Johnstone no less. We’d like to introduce Terry Teo. Whether you’re familiar with book series that inspired this (and the popular ’80s children’s television series it spawned) is irrelevant. In less than 60 seconds, we learn a whole lot about Terry, the teenage cat burglar, as soon as he opens his mouth. After entering a property that is clearly not his dwelling, Terry takes off his shoes and proclaims, “I know I’m robbing the place, but that’s no reason to be disrespectful.” And so…
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[Fantastic Fest Review]…Dearest Sister
People say that there is art through adversity. As such, to begin, it’s worth stating that Mattie Do‘s latest feature is the 13th film to come out of Laos… in its history. Furthermore, it is worth noting that she is a female filmmaker in a Marxist state. So while the country is fraught with local censorship, Do is able to deliver quality films in a place where there is no film industry or infrastructure for that kind of entertainment. Creative struggles are one thing, but judging the finished product, Dearest Sister is an admittedly hard film to review. The premise seems straightforward, yet vague enough to pique your interest: “After moving to the city, a poor…
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Off the Shelf…’Captain America: Civil War’
While we were not entirely fond of the previous installments in this series, Captain America: Civil War is a vast improvement in terms of dramatic storytelling. This third entry is much more sophisticated, and capable of handling multiple characters as opposed to the sluggish blur that was Avengers: Age of Ultron. The most memorable part of this (you can thank the Civil War comic series) is that there is motivation – true, legitimate impetus and consequences – for each character taking a stance. It’s easy to see why each character is so resolute, but don’t feel bad if you can’t easily take a side. Really, neither one is wrong. It’s amazing how…
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Off the Shelf…’The Jungle Book’
Everybody loves The Jungle Book, or, at least, a great deal of people claim to love the 1967 film. Truth is, whether or not you have nostalgic leanings towards it, it’s not that great a picture. Now, faults aside, there are some redeeming and rather endearing qualities. But on the whole, it’s not one of the studio’s best efforts. Further, just because something is old, it doesn’t exactly make it good – take that hilarious “Honest Trailer” for instance which really sends up the film. So now that Disney is on this live-action kick, Jon Favreau has taken the helm of this 2016 adaptation. His undying love for the original aside, this…
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Exclusive: Interview…David Harbour Talks Hats, Homages, and Jim Hopper in Netflix’s ‘Stranger Things’
We hope by now you have been able to check out the Netflix show, Stranger Things. An exceptional production, and even as a throwback yarn, it is far more than just the sum of its superficial ’80s parts. Aside from the story, and how expertly this is told, the characters truly grab you (check out our glowing review of it here). And if you’ve already seen it, you know all the hype is justified. Of the many things the show has going for it, acting is probably the most noteworthy. Top of that list of talking points is, without a doubt, seasoned character actor, David Harbour. You might not realize it right now,…
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G-S-T Review…Suicide Squad
It’s depressing when you look at a film and think how it could have been done better. In short, Suicide Squad is hyper-styled, over-produced, and yet very underwhelming. But one must realize that what we see on screen doesn’t just happen. These productions have a lot more hands in the pot than you might comprehend, especially considering a studio with clout like Warner Bros. Pictures. Even a competent director like David Ayer probably had his hand forced in a number of situations which recalls that saying that goes, “what is a camel? It’s a horse designed by a committee.”. Looking past the colorfully gritty versions of some of DC’s darkest…
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Off the Netflix Queue…’Stranger Things’
If you want one good example why television and long-format stories are continually trumping modern cinematic endeavors, look no further than The Duffer Brothers‘ Netflix series, Stranger Things. When thinking of all the positive and glowing attributes this tiny show encapsulates, it’s almost too much to put into words. The feelings and emotions you’ll have experiencing this exceptional show cannot easily be transcribed (hence this lengthy review). That may not make sense, but don’t worry about it too much; once you’ve seen the show, you will more than likely know what we mean. In just eight episodes, Stranger Things tells a perfectly paced story, replete with a wonderful ensemble cast…
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Off the Shelf…Hollywood in Vienna: The World of James Horner
To anyone even remotely interested in film or film music, James Horner should be more than a household name. With over 130 original compositions for a variety of film and television productions, Horner has put an indelible stamp on the entertainment world and, as a result, pop culture in general. Horner’s work became so essential to the project that he was not merely a consultant to each production, it was the narrative, characters, and editing that needed to keep pace with and adapt to what he’d written. That’s an exaggeration, sure, but to film fans, it sure feels that way. Arguably the poster child for the profession, John Williams, will be remembered…
