Sundance ‘24: Buzzy and Mind-Bending ‘IT’S WHAT’S INSIDE’ Pulls Off a Terrific Magic Trick

January 20, 2024 by Matt Oakes Posted in Festival Reviews, Most Popular Tagged Alycia Debnam-Carey, Brittany O'Grady, David Thompson, Gavin Leatherwood, Greg Jardin, Horror, It's What's Inside, James Morosini, Madison Davenport, Nina Bloomgarden, Reina Hardesty, Sundance, Sundance 2024 10 Comments

Eight former college friends reunite the evening before their friend’s wedding to play a heady game with far-reaching consequences. Such is the set-up for Greg Jardin’s utterly transfixing debut feature, a precisely-constructed explosion of creativity that smashes together the college reunion comedy, puzzle box thrillers, and a Shane Carruth-esque level of science-fiction precision. Skillfully paced to snatch your attention early on and never lose it for a moment, experiencing It’s What’s Inside is like watching a flawlessly executed magic trick for the very first time. Read More

FEAR THE WALKING DEAD ‘Cobalt’ Review

September 29, 2015 by J Simpson Posted in Reviews, Television, TV Reviews Tagged Alycia Debnam-Carey, Fear The Walking Dead, Kim Dickens, Lorenzo James Henrie, Rubén Blades, Shawn Hatosy, TV Reviews, What Is Cobalt? 2 Comments

In which difficult choices are made; some “good guys” are not so good; some other “good guys” remain the same; things get smashed; and a mysterious new character is introduced. Things are coming to a head, as Fear The Walking Dead reaches its culmination. We’ve left the rules behind as the morality of this world are becoming a thing of the past; the ensemble is introduced to a new world of brutality. We’ll also find out what our characters are really made of and what the Army is really up to. Read More

FEAR THE WALKING DEAD “Not Fade Away” Review

September 22, 2015 by J Simpson Posted in Television, TV Reviews, Uncategorized Tagged Alycia Debnam-Carey, Cliff Curtis, Fear The Walking Dead, Frank Dillane, Jamie McShane, Kim Dickens, Patricia Reyes Spíndola, Rubén Blades, TV Recaps, TV Reviews 2 Comments

The action heats up and starts to boil up on “Not Fade Away”, despite the calm on the surface and a decided dearth of Walkers.

Fear The Walking Dead has been a slow burn, thus far, taking the time to develop characters and establish the tension that ultimately makes it so successful. While many have criticized Fear The Walking Dead for being a “family drama with zombies”, that’s exactly what the creators were going for. It provides a necessary emotional subtext to really feel the onset of Armageddon. Read More

FEAR THE WALKING DEAD “So Close, Yet So Far” Recap/Review

August 31, 2015 by J Simpson Posted in TV Reviews Tagged Alycia Debnam-Carey, Cliff Curtis, Elizabeth Rodriguez, Fear The Walking Dead, Frank Dillane, Kim Dickens, TV Recaps, Zombies 3 Comments

“Can I have my knife back now?” – Tobias

The action heats up quick, like a saucepan full of nitroglycerin on the stovetop, as the contagion begin to spread. And we haven’t seen anything yet. “So Close, Yet So Far” leaves behind the family melodrama of “Pilot”, or rather, it imports it into this new world that is beginning to form as the old one decays, both with a bang and a whimper. Read More

FEAR THE WALKING DEAD, Episode 1 ‘Pilot’ Recap/Review

August 24, 2015 by J Simpson Posted in Reviews, Television, TV Reviews Tagged Alycia Debnam-Carey, AMC, Cliff Curtis, Fear The Walking Dead, Frank Dillane, Horror, Kim Dickens, The Walking Dead, TV Recaps, Zombies 5 Comments

“What the hell is going on?” – Madison
“I have no idea.” – Travis
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Imagine waking up in some unfamiliar place, dazed and disoriented. You stumble downstairs to a charnel house of cadavers, finding one of your good friends chewing off another friend’s face. What would you do? This cognitive dissonance, this mammalian panic terror is the core of what makes Fear The Walking Dead so deadly effective, as well as what separates it from its mothership. Read More