‘STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER’ Blindly Resurrects the Past To Finish The Saga

December 18, 2019 by Matt Oakes Posted in Most Popular, Out in Theaters Tagged Carrie Fisher, Chris Terrio, Daisy Ridley, Harrison Ford, J.J. Abrams, John Boyega, Mark Hamill, Oscar Isaac, Star Wars, Star Wars IX, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Leave a comment

If the central tenet of Rian Johnson’s The Last Jedi was to kill the past to make way for the future, The Rise of Skywalker is all about bringing the dead back to life. After the divisive middle entry to this new Disney-helmed trilogy, The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams was tasked with the Herculean feat of pleasing both the fans and detractors of The Last Jedi and with The Rise of Skywalker decides to just lean into resurrecting and regurgitating the past as much as possible, much like he did his first time out. The most obvious example of this comes in the form of our old pal Sheev, the Senator-turned-Supreme-Chancellor-turned-Emperor, whose appearance was teased to fans from the very first trailer, and his handling is a microcosm of the film’s issues writ large. Read More

FYC Capsule Review: ‘JUST MERCY’

December 17, 2019 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Brie Larson, Destin Daniel Cretton, Jamie Foxx, Just Mercy, Michael B. Jordan, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Tim Blake Nelson Leave a comment

A punched-up Lifetime movie with a laudable cast, Destin Daniel Cretton’s Just Mercy is a courtroom procedural where the message burns brighter than the filmmaking. A predictable affair with limited emotional stopping power, and one that plays by a very familiar rulebook, the third film from the Short Term 12 filmmaker follows a young civil rights defense lawyer played decently by Michael B. Jordan (who may have been a bit miscast here) who comes to the defense of convicted felons on Alabama’s death row. Just Mercy struggles to connect by virtue of its uninspired path-following nature, the movie cruising along on autopilot without ever really justifying what makes this particular story work as a feature film. This kind of filmmaking flourished in the 90s but just feels out of place and rearview mirror-y in 2019. Strong performances from Jamie Foxx and Tim Blake Nelson make the film almost worthwhile, though starlet Brie Larson has little more than a nothing role. All and all, Just Mercy is just meh. (C) Read More

Seattle Film Critics Society Deservingly Awards ‘PARASITE’ Best Picture, ‘UNCUT GEMS’ Takes Two Awards

December 16, 2019 by Matt Oakes Posted in Awards Tagged Awards, Seattle Film Critics Society, SFCS Leave a comment

“PARASITE” NAMED BEST PICTURE OF 2019 BY SEATTLE FILM CRITICS SOCIETY

Seattle, WA – The Seattle Film Critics Society (“SFCS”) announced the winners in 20 categories for the 2019 Seattle Film Critics Society Awards on Monday, December 16, 2019.

Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite proved the big winner this year, landing five awards, including Best Picture of the Year. The South Korean film, which takes a multi-layered look at class and greed in modern-day society, also earned Bong the Best Director award and Best Screenplay, which he shares with co-writer Han Jin-won. Parasite was also named Best Foreign Language Film and the film’s ensemble was honored with the Best Ensemble Cast award. Read More

Tom Cruise is Back to Train the Rookies in ‘TOP GUN: MAVERICK’ Trailer

December 16, 2019 by Matt Oakes Posted in Trailers Tagged Joseph Kosinski, tom cruise, Top Gun: Maverick, Trailers Leave a comment

Of course, Tom Cruise is going to space in the latest trailer for Top Gun: Maverick. Or at least that’s what the final shot strongly implies. Already one of the most anticipated movies of 2020, Top Gun: Maverick returns to the world of the U.S. Air Force and dog fights that Tony Scott popularized in the original 1986 blockbuster, bringing Cruise back into the fold to teach the next generation of pilots. The latest look gives us a clearer idea of what the long-awaited sequel will be about though the trailer is thankfully light on spoilers.

Top Gun: Maverick is directed by Joseph Kosinski (Oblivion, Only the Brave) and co-stars Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Ed Harris, and Miles Teller with Cruise returning as the titular character and Val Kilmer set to appear as Iceman. Read More

Stunningly Mounted ‘1917’ A Towering Technical Achievement

December 11, 2019 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Andrew Scott, Benedict Cumberbatch, Colin Firth, Dean-Charles Chapman, George MacKay, Krysty Wilson-Cairns, Mark Strong, Richard Madden, Roger Deakins, Sam Mendes Leave a comment

Just when you think that there is no new angle for a war movie, English tag-team director Sam Mendes and cinematographer Roger Deakins come and shake the whole thing up. Deakins, who has shot such remarkable-looking films as Blade Runner 2049, Fargo, Skyfall, Sicario, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, and No Country for Old Men among literal countless others, commands the aura of a film in a way that few other cinematographers can and paired with Mendes’ seamless one-take presentation of this WWI epic, 1917 amounts to a striking piece of capital C cinema, and one that presents a unique ground-level take on war. Set against countless wowing technical merits, the WWI epic recounts a powerful personal journey through a hellish war-scape that will leave audiences gasping for breath. Read More

FYC Capsule Review: ‘BOMBSHELL’

December 10, 2019 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Bombshell, Charlize Theron, Margot Robbie, Nicole Kidman, Out in Theaters, Reviews Leave a comment

Like Adam McKay before him, Jay Roach has shifted from the world of comedy to that of the didactic and politically-tinted American drama and with the effective and affecting Bombshell, his transformation is complete. The film follows a number of women working at Fox News under Roger Ailes (John Lithgow) as details emerge about the newsman’s sexual misconduct. With Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman, and Margot Robbie all on the marquee, the acting is the center showpiece here, with Theron in particular embodying controversial conservative reporter Megan Kelly to an almost-frightening degree. The makeup and prosthetic work cannot be underplayed. The film can be challenging to watch as it puts Ailes’ disgusting behavior into hyper-focus and details the emotional fallout inflicted upon his victims, who have to weigh professional aspirations against their emotional well-being. Roach manages to synthesize a message in a bottle film with all the window dressings of a flashy drama and everyone, particularly Fox News devotees, should be forced to take a hard look at what goes on behind these particular curtains. (B)

Seattle Film Critics Society (That’s Me!) Announce 2019 Nominees

December 9, 2019 by Matt Oakes Posted in Awards Tagged Seattle Film Critics Society Leave a comment

MARTIN SCORSESE’S “THE IRISHMAN” EARNS MOST NOMINATIONS FOR THE
2019 SEATTLE FILM CRITICS SOCIETY AWARDS

“The Irishman” scores 10 nominations, while Bong Joon-ho’s acclaimed “Parasite” follows with 9.

‘Twas a year of heavy hitters at this year’s Seattle Film Critics Society with The Irishman, Parasite, and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood scooping up a metric buttload of nominations. Full press release below: Read More

First ‘GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE’ Trailer Pumps Up the Nostalgia

December 9, 2019 by Matt Oakes Posted in Trailers Tagged Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Ivan Reitman, Jason Reitman, Trailers Leave a comment

35 years after Bill Murray, Dan Akroyd, Harold Ramis introduced the world to ectoplasm, Slimer, Proton Packs and the “Ghostbusters” theme song, Ghostbusters: Afterlife is here to capitalize on that sweet sweet nectar of 80s nostalgia all over again. Following in the aftermath of Paul Feig’s financially disappointing female-led Ghostbusters: Answer the Call, Afterlife pivots from an all-female cast to …a cast of mostly kids. If this first look at Afterlife is any indication, the sequel from Jason Reitman seems to take the Stranger Things approach, Finn Wolfhard and all. Read More

Diana Prince Swings Across Lightning Bolts in Flashy ‘WONDER WOMAN 1984’ Trailer

December 8, 2019 by Matt Oakes Posted in Trailers Tagged DC, DCEU, Gal Gadot, Patty Jenkins, Trailers, Wonder Woman 1984 Leave a comment

Two years ago, Wonder Woman proved that a female-led superhero movie was not destined for poor box office returns and critical lashings, the Patty Jenkins-directed big-screen debut becoming the DCEU’s biggest success at the time. Though the film wasn’t perfect, there was plenty to enjoy and fans were eager to see more of Gal Gadot’s version of Diana Prince. With DC’s current film slate in an admittedly confusing jumble of maybe/maybe-not-interconnectedness, their latest approach has seemed to deteether their heroes and if Wonder Woman 1984′s trailer indicates anything, it’s that the title star won’t be worrying about making room for Batman, Aquaman or anything other supermen. Read More

FYC Capsule Review: ‘RICHARD JEWELL’

December 8, 2019 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Clint Eastwood, Out in Theaters, Paul Walter Hauser, Reviews, Richard Jewell, Sam Rockwell Leave a comment

Clint Eastwood can’t hide his absolute disdain for the media in cogent but flat biopic Richard Jewell, which tells the story of a low-rent security guard who stumbles across a bomb. Under the scrutiny of the FBI and media (45’s biggest domestic adversaries), Richard Jewell’s heroic act is twisted to look like the act of a deranged false flagger. The film boasts a few solid performances, especially from the always reliable Sam Rockwell and Paul Walter Hauser in the title role, but features a super problematic depiction of Trump-approved #FakeNews media sources, who are absolutely unscrupulous in their fact reporting and give precisely zero fucks as to the collateral damage of false reporting. Were this all in service of a sturdy biopic, it might be easier to overlook the full-breasted dog-whistling but Richard Jewell remains too hostage to predicability to rise above the troubling political undercurrents raging through Eastwood’s latest. (C) Read More