Dark Phoenix finds the X-Men fighting each other as they try to save Jean Grey — and the world — from herself 30-second review: There’s something off about nearly every element of Dark Phoenix. The dialogue is overly-written to the point that you can predict a line before it’s said, the performances are unmotivated, the story…
Rocketman follows the meteoric launch and the explosive fall of one of music's most iconic artists, Elton John. 90-second review: Let's get the Bohemian Rhapsody comparison out of the way early. Rocketman is the better film. Not only is it competently made, it's not just a paint-by-the-numbers biopic that plugs in the right plot points…
John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum finds John in his most precarious situation yet — and that's bad news for anyone that gets in his way. 30-second review: The reason the unlikely John Wick franchise works is because it understands its audience and, more importantly, trusts them. John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum mercifully leaves…
Unicorn Store marks the directorial debut of Oscar-winner Brie Larson, who also stars in the Netflix Original. 30-second review: Unicorn Store has so much going for it — an original premise, terrific cast, directorial debut of one of the best actors working today — but the magic falls flat. That's no fault of Brie Larson, whose endearing…
Plus One follows two best friends — and potential love interests — as they try to survive a dreaded summer full of weddings. The romantic-comedy works best when it's character-driven and has a fresh perspective, both of which Plus One has. However, it also helps that the movie is so incredibly funny and filled with sharp…
Our Time Machine is a funny and moving documentary about an artist's attempt to cope with his father's illness by literally and metaphorically creating a time machine. Directed by Yang Sun & S. Leo Chiang Written by S. Leo Chiang & Bob Lee Synopsis When artist Maleonn realizes that his father suffers from Alzheimer’s disease, he creates “Papa’s…
Avengers: Endgame is an epic, emotional, spectacle-driven farewell to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as we know it — and it's perfect in every way. 30-second review: Avengers: Endgame is an epic, emotional, spectacle-driven farewell to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as we know it. And the fact that it is so clearly an end is part of…
Little Woods, Nia DaCosta's directorial debut, finds two sisters going up against a system that doesn't want them to succeed in One sentence review: Little Woods is a quiet, well-directed character-driven drama that features a powerhouse emotional performance by Tessa Thompson. One paragraph review: Though it may be on the nose at times, Little Woods is a tense and emotional look at…
Pet Sematary, a remake of the 1989 film, follows a young family struck by disaster and the lengths they'll go to undo it 30-second review: Pet Sematary is appropriately creepy and tense, but with a weak screenplay and direction to match, this horror movie remake is dead on arrival. There are moments in where you can appreciate…
This is the state of the 2020 Oscars race. At the end of every month, I'm going to take a look at the state of the Oscars race — breaking down the contenders that made a splash, those that fizzled out, and the ones to come.
317 days until the 2020 Oscars
Oscar contenders that were released this month
By this time last year, three Oscar-nominated films had premiered — Best Picture nominee Black Panther, Best Animated Feature nominee Isle of Dogs, and Best Visual Effects nominee Ready Player One.
Most notably, it was the second year in a row that a best picture nominee was released in the first quarter of the year — Get Out was released in February 2017. And what do Get Out and Black Panther have in common? They were both massive hits at the box office. It makes sense considering it takes a lot for a voter to remember your film almost a year later.
2019 has been notably slow at the box office, but there have been two massive hits that could be in the Oscar conversation. Funny enough, they both have connections to past early Oscar contenders:
Continue reading “2020 Oscars Update #1: Are ‘Us' or ‘Captain Marvel' contenders?”
