Like most film festivals, Sundance has a competition section. A lot of festival-goers are also sports enthusiasts, and this gives them something to gamble on. Winning the Grand Jury Prize is a figurative feather in a movie’s metaphorical hat, sure to be mentioned in the film’s marketing and in articles wondering why it didn’t make […]
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“You know, Hollywood has us convinced that it takes a hundred million dollars to make a quality piece of art, and that’s a piece of crap statement. I think you just saw that, right?” As labels for filmmaking styles, movements, or sub-genres go, it’s hard to name one more patronizing than “mumblecore.” Jokingly coined in […]
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If you missed Paddington three years ago, you missed one of the most thoroughly delightful children’s movies in recent memory, about an anthropomorphic Peruvian bear (voiced by Ben Whishaw) who comes to live with a human family in London. Based on Michael Bond’s beloved books (which date back to 1958) and written and directed by Paul […]
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In November 2017, a California film critic named Brennan Huff went viral after posting a controversial essay on acclaimed filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson. Not only did Huff model his piece on Kendrick Lamar’s “DNA” lyrics, but he also posted a profanity-laced video clip to “knock PTA down for an eight-count. A ‘Hard Eight.’” Huff’s essay […]
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Scientists predict that many films will be released in 2018, continuing a trend that has endured since the beginning of cinema, well over 10 years ago. What will some of these movies be? They will be these! Your 2018 Movie Preview 1/12 Paddington 2 — Everyone’s second or third favorite talking bear returns. (Interesting note: […]
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Based on my own research. Additions and corrections welcome (@ me), will update accordingly. Total wide releases (600+ theaters): 155 Sequels, prequels, remakes, reboots, and franchises: 44 Based on novels (or comic books not previously made into films): 25 Based on a true story (BOATS): 30 Wholly original, not based on anything: 55 Documentaries: 1 […]
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When bad numbers happen to good movies. Now, you’ll notice we didn’t say these movies were “flops.” Several of them were on Video on Demand at the same time as their limited theatrical runs and might very well have made millions that way. (Or they might have flopped there, too. No way of knowing, since […]
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You know how half the movies now are based on young-adult novels about adolescent girls in a post-apocalyptic wasteland, and the other half are about zombies? The Girl with All the Gifts is both! It’s a clever improvement on both genres, offering a rare look at what happens after society is decimated by a cannibalism-inducing […]
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Colossal seems destined to become a cult film, one that we’ll look back on and wonder how audiences missed it. Though it received its share of raves upon release last April, it proved (apologies) a colossal flop, earning less than a third of its initial budget. This is a great shame, as writer-director Nacho Vigalondo […]
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What is Girlfriend’s Day? An extended Mr. Show sketch built around a single joke? A genuine film noir with a goofy premise? Or evidence that Netflix will throw money at literally anything in an attempt to appeal to every single niche on the planet? Whatever it is, Girlfriend’s Day is unlike anything else released this […]
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Studio comedies are in a rut: In 2017, we had to contend with such junk as The House, Rough Night, and (shudder) CHIPS, to name a few. Fortunately, the independent world is as vibrant and vital as ever, offering up such excellent films like The Little Hours, written and directed by Jeff Baena. His star, […]
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