‘WAKE UP DEAD MAN’ is A Holy Mystery a Few Beads Short of a Full Rosary

November 17, 2025 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Andrew Scott, Cailee Spaeny, Daniel Craig, Glenn Close, Jeremy Renner, Josh Brolin, Josh O’Connor, Kerry Washington, Knives Out, Mila Kunis, Rian Johnson, Thomas Haden Church, Wake Up Dead Man, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery 3 Comments

Detective Benoit Blanc is back for the third edition of Rian Johnson’s irreverently charming neo-noir Netflix mystery series, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery. This time knives (and, of course, a murder most foul) are indeed involved, but so is an unholy whodunnit that defies the logic of the material world: a locked-closet killing and an apparent resurrection used as profane misdirection when a slaying at an isolated church leaves everyone scratching their heads and praying to god for answers. The effect is another breezy, well-laid-out puzzle box from Johnson that spins its duplicitous webs, though it falls short of greatness due to an over-reliance on confessional exposition and an underdeveloped ensemble cast. Read More

Sunny ‘THE PEANUT BUTTER FALCON’ a Ray of Hope in Otherwise Bleak Times

August 20, 2019 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Bruce Dern, Dakota Johnson, John Hawkes, Michael Schwartz, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Shia LeBeouf, The Peanut Butter Falcon, Thomas Haden Church, Tyler Wilson, Zack Gottsagen Leave a comment

In the era of an American president who openly mocks disabled people, Tyler Wilson and Michael Schwartz’s The Peanut Butter Falcon is a defiantly feel-good revelation, one that dares to celebrate the differently-abled amongst us in a story whose behind-the-scenes drama is just as heartwarming as what lays on the page. The saga involves an aspiring actor with Down Syndrome, two homeless wanna-be filmmakers living out of a tent and a Hail Mary DM to Josh Brolin. And that’s all before the movie even gets started. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘DADDY’S HOME’

December 24, 2015 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters, Uncategorized Tagged Bobby Cannavale, Daddy's Home, Hannibal Buress, John Cena, Linda Cardellini, Mark Wahlberg, Out in Theaters, Owen Vaccaro, Reviews, Scarlett Estevez, Thomas Haden Church, Will Ferrell Leave a comment

There was an age of Will Ferrell where just about anything the slapstick buffoon did would conjure a hearty laugh from me. His performances in Anchorman, as the verbose, showboating newsman Ron Burgundy, and Step Brothers, as perma-man-child Brendan Huff, send me into a goofy rage of hacking cough fits to this day. But it’s been a hot minute since Ferrell has been able to lock himself and his signature non-sequitors into a winning project and Daddy’s Home continues that losing streak. Read More

Out in Theaters: MAX

June 25, 2015 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Boaz Yakin, Josh Wiggins, Max, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Robbie Amell, Thomas Haden Church Leave a comment

Obviously Max, the Air Bud of Middle ‘Murica ethics, is no good. A fly-over state moral play coached in Christian values and wartime oorah, Boaz Yakin’s family-friendly wag of the tail falters connecting with non-faith audience members but, worse still, fails to coalesce into a meaningful, cogent piece of cinema in its own right. Character motivations are thinner than a newspaper page with the stumbling centerpiece performances coming off as nothing short of tacky. That being the case, the titular dog Max gave one might performance; ’twas the most convincing one of the film. Read More