Franchise Fatigue Possesses ‘THE CONJURING: THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT’

June 1, 2021 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, Horror, Julian Hilliard, Michael Chaves, Out in Theaters, Patrick Wilson, Reviews, Ruairi O’Connor, The Conjuring, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, Vera Farmiga 1 Comment

The Conjuring extended universe is one of the – if not the most – preeminent examples of a modern horror franchise done correctly. Expansive, with spin-offs shooting off into this direction or that, and an absolute box office powerhouse (with almost two billion dollars in worldwide gross), The Conjuring’s terrifying rein is vast. And yet with three separate offshoots, including a full-fledged Annabelle trilogy, and more on the way, the haunting force of the series that began in 2013 comes sputtering to a decidedly indifferent halt with The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. Read More

Mo’ Monsters, Mo’ Problems in Moronic ‘GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS’

May 29, 2019 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Bradley Whitford, Charles Dance, Godzilla, Godzilla: King of the Monsters, Ken Watanbe, Kyle Chandler, Michael Dougherty, Millie Bobby Brown, O’Shea Jackson, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Sally Hawkins, Thomas Middleditch, Vera Farmiga, Zach Shields 2 Comments

One of the chief complaints regarding the 2014 Gareth Evans-directed Godzilla reboot was the lack of screen time for the titular monster. The character for which the film was named famously only appeared on screen for about 8 minutes and some fans felt they got the short end of the stick when they plopped in their theater seats expecting all-out-monster mayhem. In the timeless tradition of cinematic call and response, Godzilla: King of the Monsters, as directed by Michael Dougherty of Trick ‘r Treat and Krampus fame, takes that complaint baton and sprints blindly the other direction, delivering a movie that is packed to the gills with fussy monsters and cityscape destruction porn but remains an exhausting and brain-numbing eyesore nonetheless. 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

Out in Theaters: ‘THE COMMUTER’

January 10, 2018 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Byron Willinger, Jaume Collet-Serra, Jonathan Banks, Liam Neeson, Philip de Blasi, Ryan Engle., The Commuter, Vera Farmiga Leave a comment

Danny Glover’s Murtaugh famously opined in Richard Donner’s classic American buddy cop flick Lethal Weapon, “I’m too old for this shit.” He was 41 at the time. Liam Neeson, age 65 (full benefit retirement age for US citizens), is way too old for this shit. And in a humdrum action-thriller like The Commuter, it shows. Had this Taken on a Train redux a good shake more intelligence and a portion less generic action hero fisticuffs, casting Neeson as down-on-his-luck ex-cop turned insurance-hawking family man Michael MacCauley would make perfect sense. As it stands, The Commuter is just another forgettable notch in Neeson’s geriatric action movie phase defined by jarring editing and risible action that can’t strike a passable balance between taking itself seriously and being utterly ridiculous. Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘THE CONJURING 2’

June 9, 2016 by Matt Oakes Posted in Out in Theaters Tagged Benjamin Haigh, Frances O’Connor, Horror, James Wan, Joseph Bishara, Lauren Esposito, Madison Wolfe, Out in Theaters, Patrick McAuley, Patrick Wilson, Reviews, Simon McBurney, The Conjuring 2, Vera Farmiga 1 Comment

Horror sequels have an unfortunate tendency to exude contempt for their audience. More often than not, the same formula is conscripted, wrangling selfsame plot lines (often in a new location or with new characters) that encompass similar beats and familiar frights. 9 Nightmare on Elm Street movies, 10 Halloween films and 12 Friday the 13th flicks can speak to the process. Rinse, repeat, rank in the cash. And while there’s nothing distinctively different to James Wan’s approach this second time around the Conjuring fairgrounds (save for a somewhat unnecessary additional 20 minutes pumped into the runtime), The Conjuring 2 remains a massively effective instrument for scaring the living shit out of oneself. Read More