Independent filmmaker Ansel Faraj started young, and he still is young. The writer/director just turned 29, but you wouldn’t know that looking at his resumé, which already is into double digits on directorial credits. His latest outing, Loon Lake, which is now available on Blu-ray and video on demand, is a horror-thriller based on an…
The year 2020 hasn’t been gentle on anyone, and that includes Gastrodia agnicellus. For years, the orchid was simply minding its business, living and dying in the shade of Madagascar’s evergreens, with bamboo and ficus for neighbors. Flanked by moss and tucked under a damp blanket of leaf litter, its days are subdued until a…
Nestled along the banks of the Yukon River Dawson City stands as if frozen in time, preserving for the world the colorful legacy of the Klondike Gold Rush of the late 19th-century. Read moreA Guide to The Perfect Bong Joon-ho MarathonThis history is chronicled in the Dawson City Museum, a testament to life in Dawson and…
“Who cares about what they think? This is about me. This is about my life. This is me.” As 2020 comes to an end, looking back at this year there’s been so much hardship, so many challenges, so much tragedy, so much upheaval, it’s tough to think about movies. But despite all of these challenges,…
Korean Cinema is having its moment. The industry has been pumping out fantastic movies for more than 20 years now, but since Parasite won Best Picture at the Oscars, the American film community has finally started to embrace Korea’s output of interesting mid-budget entertainers. I’ve seen a good number of Korean films over the past…
It’s truly remarkable that for over half a century, the remains of a tragic military jet crash still resides at this location despite the many visitors. Read moreA Guide to The Perfect Bong Joon-ho MarathonOut of respect for the pilots that perished, the memorial reminds hikers “do not take anything.” The humid, short summers in…
★★★★ Directed by: Travis White Read moreA Guide to The Perfect Bong Joon-ho MarathonWritten by: Travis White Starring: Lee Eddy, Lukas King Read moreRobert Stack Finally Solves a Mystery in ‘The Strange and Deadly Occurrence’Film Review by: Jason Knight A woman finds herself alone in a car park, with limited lighting and the security camera…
The Identity Politics mob will come after you for any number of offenses. Starting a restaurant serving food from a culture that isn’t technically yours Using the wrong pronoun on purpose or accidentally Saying an effort to erase white people on campus for a day Turns out falsely embracing an ethnicity for years, and years,…
Cornelius Low was a wealthy local merchant of Dutch descent. Around 1730, Low settled in the burgeoning port community of Raritan Landing, made up of roughly 100 residents and located across the Raritan River from New Brunswick. Goods from “The Landing,” flowed to New York City and New Brunswick. Read moreA Guide to The Perfect…
Whether you know it or not, you’ve heard a James Newton Howard score. Howard has composed music for over a hundred films, collecting a whopping eight Oscar nominations along the way. His scores are as versatile as they are austere; he’s as comfortable with the delicate strings and rhythms of something like Terrence Malick’s “A…
A teen tries to make sense of the world in Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets, the latest from writer/director Yaniv Raz. Based on the book of the same name by Evan Roskos, the film follows James Whitman, a sixteen-year-old with plenty of insecurities and problems. First off his sister has disappeared, and as much as…
The name “Kingston” gives some indication about the historical importance of this Thames-side town, located just southwest of the hustle and bustle of London. This small enclave has a unique royal connection. Read moreA Guide to The Perfect Bong Joon-ho MarathonTowards the end of the 10th-century, the town sat near the border of the ancient…
The town of Hakone has attracted visitors for centuries, serving as the entrance to Tokyo for those making their way from the cities of Kyoto or Nara. Naturally, Hakone had many inns and teahouses, which thrived by catering to travelers. Read moreA Guide to The Perfect Bong Joon-ho MarathonThe Amazake-chaya Tea House is one such…
One of acclaimed French New Wave director Agnes Varda‘s lesser-known films documents the summer of 1968 in Oakland, California. Less than thirty minutes long, Black Panthers shows the resistance group through the words of its own members and the curious eyes of a visitor. Its directorial humility makes it a valuable firsthand source of the…
Castle Freak, directed by Tate Steinsiek and written by Kathy Charles, updates the story built from bits and pieces of Lovecraft‘s The Outsider and The Rats in the Walls for Stuart Gordon‘s 1995 film. This remake strives in its Lovecraftian lore, updates to the central story, and visual effects, but the film had the potential…
“Don’t act all poetic.” An excellent, intimate short film to feature just before 2020 ends. Yulia & Juliet is an 11-minute short film made by Dutch filmmaker Zara Dwinger. This originally premiered in 2018 and won tons of awards at festivals, now it’s finally online to watch. Yulia and Juliet, both 16, are locked up…
★★★ Directed by: #RosieWesthoff Read moreA Guide to The Perfect Bong Joon-ho MarathonWritten by: #AprilKelley Starring: #AprilKelley, #AriAnderson, #AlexParker, #JonathanMatthewWilson Read moreRobert Stack Finally Solves a Mystery in ‘The Strange and Deadly Occurrence’Short Film Review by: #TomWilmot The short film Treacle is directed by Rosie Westhoff and written by April Kelley, who also stars in…
We can all admit that 2020 has been one hell of a year. An unrelenting boxing match that seemed to never waver, each punch more gut-wrenching and strenuous than the last. Yet, as we look onto the hope of a new year, a vaccine that could return normalcy and a changed perspective, we can also…
Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Godfather Part III” was the most anticipated film of 1990 and quickly became its most divisive. The dismissal of Coppola’s film was always a gross miscalculation, brought on by several factors: Its belated arrival (some 16 years after “The Godfather Part II”) Complaints about the casting of Sofia Coppola (more on…
This article is part of our 2020 Rewind. Follow along as we explore the best and most interesting movies, shows, performances, and more from this very strange year. In this entry, we’re listening to the best movie score soundtracks of 2020. I don’t need to tell you how tough 2020 has been for all of us, but one…
“It’s easier to risk your life when you know you’re supported by millions, even if they don’t the truth or understand…” Take a look at this! An English-dubbed trailer has debuted for a crazy insanely epic Russian sci-fi spectacle called Cosmoball, made by famed producer Dzhanik Fayzi. An enormous spaceship hovers over Earth – this…