SIFF ’18 Capsule Review: ‘EIGHTH GRADE’

May 16, 2018 by Matt Oakes Posted in Festival Reviews Tagged A24, Bo Burnham, Eighth Grade, Elsie Fisher, Josh Hamilton, SIFF 2018 1 Comment

A bighearted DM of awkwardness and warmth, Bo Burnham’s transportive comedic-drama debut Eighth Grade will return audiences to those pimple-pocked middle years; when being cool was synonymous with having no personality and anxiety over self-identity dominated every waking thought. The drama from A24 marries a tender coming-of-age saga with perfectly-layered cringe-comedy in a universal story of finding oneself in the digital age. Compelling use of musical cues and spirited, raw performances from Elsie Fisher and Josh Hamilton characterize this sweet, memorable story about the soul-crushing horror-show that is middle school. (A-) Read More

SIFF ’18 Capsule Review: ‘BOUNDARIES’

May 15, 2018 by Matt Oakes Posted in Festival Reviews Tagged Boundaries, Christopher Plummer, Lewis MacDougall, Shana Feste, Vera Farmiga Leave a comment

Shana Feste’s pot-slinging cross-country road-trip dramedy deals in paternal disappointment and familial reconciliation but remains a bit high on its own supply. Vera Farmiga and Christopher Plummer stand out as a neurotic, animal-rescuing single mother and her laid-back, ne’er-do-well father, an 85-year old who enlists grandson Henry (Lewis MacDougall) to help sell marijuana under her nose. A well-meaning bong-rip of family drama, if a bit meandering and overcooked, Boundaries is definitely not your average stoner film, and works best as an earnest two-hander between the always reliable Plummer and Farmiga. (C) Read More

SIFF ’18 Capsule Review: ‘BLUE MY MIND’

May 11, 2018 by Matt Oakes Posted in Festival Reviews Tagged Blue My Mind, Horror, Lisa Brühlmann, Luna Wedler, SIFF 2018, Yael Meier, Zoë Pastelle Holthuizen Leave a comment

A maybe-mermaid metamorphosis, MDMA, and mean girls combine to make Blue My Mind an unforgettably queasy coming-of-age body horror fantasy. Lisa Brühlmann’s Kafkaesque sexual awakening exists somewhere between Raw, Girlhood and The Fly – a Cronenbergian exploration of feminine maturation that deals in earnest themes of friendship and acceptance, tackling the challenges of life’s transitions through a unique, sexually-charged, and often dangerous lens. This Swiss import boasts the distinction of complicated performances (Luna Wedler’s fire) and a supercharged young talent in Brühlmann, who, mind-blowingly, submitted this as her film-school thesis. Bravo. (B+) Read More

SIFF ’18 Capsule Review: ‘REVENGE’

May 10, 2018 by Matt Oakes Posted in Festival Reviews Tagged Coralie Fargeat, Horror, Matilda Anna Ingrid Lutz, Revenge, SIFF 2018 Leave a comment

Vengeance is a dish served gory in this stylish, brutish bloodbath that updates 70s rape-revenge fantasy exploitation films to the #MeToo era. The bare bones plot leaves Jen (a hypnotic Matilda Lutz) pitted against three male assailants/trophy hunters, stranded in the middle of nowhere with an axe to grind. Hallucinatory camerawork and a throbbing soundscape bring artsy flair to this otherwise stripped-down final girl kill-fest that pops with cringetastic, French New Extremity levels of blood geysers. At nearly 2 hours, the feminist horror crowd-pleaser drags in spots but deeply satisfies nonetheless. (B+) Read More

SIFF ’18 Capsule Review: ‘FIRST REFORMED’

May 9, 2018 by Matt Oakes Posted in Festival Reviews Tagged Amanda Seyfried, Ethan Hawke, First Reformed, Paul Schrader, SIFF 2018 1 Comment

What is it to have faith, Paul Schrader’s haunting, meditative drama asks, luring audiences into a dreamlike spiritual journey in avant-garde exploration of the disharmony between modern religion and biblical teachings. This artful collision of good intentions turned awry and infectious melancholia pulsates with themes of despair, environmentalism, ailment and self-loathing, lead by a naked knockout of a performance from Ethan Hawke. Reminiscent of Taxi Driver (which Schrader wrote), First Reformed is an arthouse miracle of filmmaking and one of the most impactful, poignant, thought-provoking movies about faith ever made. (A) Read More

SIFF ’18 Capsule Review: ‘WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR?’

May 8, 2018 by Matt Oakes Posted in Festival Reviews Tagged Documentaries, Morgan Neville, Mr Rogers, SIFF 2018, Won't You Be My Neighbor 1 Comment

A potpourri of warmth and goodheartedness, ‘Won’t You Be My Neighbor’ explores Mr. Rogers’ overwhelming generosity of spirit and his well-concealed demons through the lens of his radically unfussy television program that ran from 1963 until 2001. Putting the unlikely star back in the spotlight, this heartwarming and tear-duct-attacking documentary from Morgan Neville dazzlingly teaches that we probably never deserved this low-spoken, child-whispering icon and yet his benevolent lessons on acceptance and kindness are more necessary today than ever. A good-natured salve for the soul and inspiring portrait of blinding decency. (A-) Read More

SIFF ’18 Capsule Review: ‘AMERICAN ANIMALS’

May 7, 2018 by Matt Oakes Posted in Festival Reviews Tagged American Animals, Barry Keoghan, Barry Layton, Evan Peters, SIFF 2018 1 Comment

Bart Layton’s audacious feature debut uniquely tacks together documentary and narrative styles to tell the stranger than fiction tale of a notorious art heist gone horribly wrong. Barry Keoghan and Evan Peters are strong as apathetic, bored college students who fall victim to glamorized fables of the perfect crime in Layton’s white-knuckle exploration of young white male entitlement and the dubious nature of truth and memory. This slick caper boasts a unique storytelling approach and gripping moments of high tension but struggles with pacing and periphery character development. (B) Read More

Out in Theaters: ’TULLY’

May 3, 2018 by Matt Oakes Posted in Most Popular, Out in Theaters Tagged Charlize Theron, Diablo Cody, Elaine Tan, Jason Reitman, Mackenzie Davis, Mark Duplass, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Ron Livingston, Tully Leave a comment

Parenting is perpetual sacrifice. Or so says Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody, the directing-writing duo behind poppy cult classic Juno, with their comeback collaboration Tully. A dramatic comedy or comedic drama, depending on how you want to look at it, Tully is a soaring success no matter what box you want to put it in; a well-meaning, deeply felt, irreverently mature exploration of growing pains and adulating. Charlize Theron is a knock-one in this deliriously enjoyable feature that has no short supply of wit, bite and verve with a shot of mindfuck mixed in to boot. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR’

April 24, 2018 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Avengers: Infinity War, Benedict Cumberbatch, Chadwick Boseman, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Pratt, Kevin Feige, Mark Ruffalo, Marvel, Scarlett Johansson 1 Comment

Over the course of 18 films and 10 years, Kevin Feige and his army of Marvel men and women have laid a pretty nifty foundation upon which the Marvel Cinematic Universe rests. What started with humble beginnings with 2008’s Iron Man has since blown up into a cultural and financial supernova with no less than 30 recognizable characters and all that comes to a head with the Russo Brother’s astonishingly ambitious though perfunctorily flawed Avengers: Infinity War. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘THE ENDLESS’

April 23, 2018 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Aaron Scott Moorhead, Horror, Justin Benson, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Sci-Fi, The Endless Leave a comment

Justin Benson and Aaron Scott Moorhead are a tactile duo, crafting thought-provoking, effects-driven, genre-defying features filled with big ideas on a micro-budget. Their last film, Spring, which can only be described as a “romantic body horror” and was a favorite for many who sought it out after its 2014 Toronto Film Festival debut, failed to find much of an audience among the general public but solidified the partnership, who had previously collaborated on 2012’s low-budge horror flick Resolution, as a pair for cinephile’s to keep a close eye on. Rather than pulling in the reins, the creative partners have gone even bigger with The Endless, a heady science-fiction-slash-horror—slash-cult-thriller-slash-sibling-drama that’s ambitious to a fault. Read More