Blockers is an uneven, but hilarious, profound, and progressive take on the American sex comedy The teen sex comedy has been a staple in American cinema for decades with massive hits like American Pie and The 40-Year-Old Virgin anchoring the contemporary era. However, these raunchy gross-out comedies have been due for a refresh for some time.…
Funny, bright, and charming, this younger version the web-slinger in Spider-Man: Homecoming breathes new life into the character and superhero genre. The bright colors, catchy soundtrack, and witty dialogue make this incarnation of Spider-Man the most light-hearted. However, what makes Spider-Man: Homecoming the best movie in the many versions of the character so far is that it's hyper-aware…
Packed with fun musical numbers and flashes of humor, Sing Street is enjoyable on both a superficial and emotional level. John Carney is obsessed with the power of music. It's what his last three films, including Sing Street, are about. Once talks about how music can communicate emotion and is a universal language. Begin Again explores the healing power of music. Carney is…
Michael Fassbender is fascinating as the papier-mâché headed lead singer in Frank, which celebrates weirdness and understands mental illness Frank is just about as quirky and surreal as you’d imagine a movie about an experimental indie band with a lead singer who constantly wears a giant papier-mâché head would be. However, surprisingly, the character of Frank (Michael…
Real life story The Big Sick looks and feels like a romantic comedy, but is so much more thanks to its masterful writing and performances. “So, what’s your stance on 9/11?” Yes, that’s an actual line that’s uttered in the Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon written film The Big Sick. However, in this movie, which…
Dir. by Robert Stromberg It's hard to review Disney's Maleficent without mentioning that the screening I went to ended with a hearty applause. The reason I feel it's necessary to point this out is because despite its clear flaws, this film is an absolute crowd pleaser. The audience bought into the world…
Much Ado About Nothing finds Joss Whedon at his sharpest and most creative I have something to admit. The 1993 film Much Ado About Nothing is one of the movies that made me fall in love with cinema. Partially because it was the first film adaptation of a Shakespeare play that I watched, and partially because…
The most recent installment in the Disney renaissance, Zootopia, is also easily their most timely and political. Basically the movie could be described as "let's talk about racism with animals," but like the best animated movies it mixes social subtext with genuinely hilarious moments and interesting characters. Zootopia starts on an elementary school play starring rabbit…
Anchored by its leads, The Nice Guys is a hilarious take on the buddy cop movie that is sharp and smart If 2016 has been lacking in anything, it’s comedy. There have been few hits, critically and commercially, and seemed that more comedies bombed than anything. However, there has been one gem from this year that should…
Hidden Figures delicately balances a racial drama with a biopic while also telling the story of the space race. The result is one of the most delightful movies of the year. It takes the right kind of movie to get a Thursday night crowd actually cheering in the theater. Well, Hidden Figures is that kind…
