Film
Bill and Ted: Face the Music Brings an Excellent Reunion But a Bogus Story: Review
The Pitch: It’s been decades since William “Bill” S. Preston Esq. (Alex Winter) and Theodore “Ted” Logan (Keanu Reeves) triumphed over Hell and defeated gym-teacher-turned-terrorist Chuck De Nomolos. Sadly, the Wyld Stallyns have seen better days, and the two world renown rockers have been reduced to garage band has-beens. With their rock and roll destiny in turmoil, the entire universe begins to crumble, leaving Bill and Ted exactly 78 minutes to face the music and save the world once again. Strange Things are Afoot: The beauty of the Bill and Ted franchise has always been its brazen imagination. It’s an ’80s slacker daydream fueled by the very slushees and sugary snacks our two heroes grab at the Circle K. Creators Chris Matheson and Ed Solomon have long been self-aware of that fact...
Bette Midler Goes After Melania Trump: “Get That Illegal Alien Off the Stage”
Bette Midler vs. Melania Trump As to be expected, the Republican National Convention this week has been nothing but a dumpster fire filled with blatant lies and outlandish behavior possibly fueled by cocaine. There’s been plenty to pick apart and dismiss, but Bette Midler might have gone too far with her criticism. Last night, the actress and performer took to Twitter to skewer Melania Trump’s RNC keynote address. Rather than focus on the substance of her speech, though, Midler simply spouted racist and xenophobic comments. “#beBest is back! A UGE bore! She can speak several words in a few languages,” Midler wrote. “Get that illegal alien off the stage!” The 74-year-old actress/singer later tweeted, “Oh, God. She still can’t speak English.” #beBest is back! A UGE bore! She can speak s...
I’m Thinking of Ending Things Will Crush You: Review
The Pitch: A young woman (Jessie Buckley) travels with her boyfriend of six weeks, Jake (Jesse Plemons), for a long snowy drive to meet his parents for the first time. She’s not sure about this guy; he’s nice, but insecure, a bit of a know-it-all. She’s thinking of ending things. But something’s off about the whole affair as soon as she arrives at the farmhouse where Jake grew up. His father (David Thewlis) and mother (Toni Collette) are giddy to see her — almost a little too giddy. She sees herself in pictures of Jake as a boy. The dog won’t stop shaking itself dry. She sees Jake’s parents as older, and older, and older, and younger. What is happening? Who is Jake? Who is she? Many a New Day: And now, dear reader, the unenviable burden of unpacking and explicating a Charlie...
Christopher Nolan’s Tenet Is a Technical Marvel But a Narrative Dud: Review
Pitch: For months, Christopher Nolan’s Tenet has been promoted more as a canary in a coal mine than an actual film. With every shifted release date, the reality of the dangers surrounding COVID-19 only increased, all while the film flirted with those same hazards. Nolan had hoped his blockbuster would bring back theaters, but that dream still feels fanciful — even as the blockbuster nears its questionable release. Given his insistence for the theater experience, Nolan’s reputation has likely taken a hit, but his rank as a cinematic puzzlemaker remains intact. Mirroring the film’s perplexing route to release, Tenet is a murky globetrotting spy thriller, elevated by cinema-changing set pieces, and yet lowered by a classic case of visual ambition thwarting basic storytelling. The Past: To des...
The 25 Most Anticipated Movies of Fall 2020
“New year, new decade, new films, right?” That was January, back when we were still looking ahead at 2020 with blind optimism and ill-fated excitement. Sigh, hindsight is 20/20 they say, right? Who knew. At the time, we had 50 exciting new titles we were anticipating, most of which have since been either postponed, dumped to VOD, or relegated to a limbo state. It’s been an unnerving year for the film industry, to say the least. A year fraught with shutdowns, furloughs, layoffs, bankruptcies, and re-evaluations. All of that change has prompted a seismic shift in how everything’s run across the media landscape, and no one truly has a grip on things just yet. Odds are they won’t for quite some time. Because of this, anticipating anything right now — let alone anything in pop culture — seems l...
Unearth Is a Slow Burn Metaphor for Parasitic Capitalism: Fantasia Fest Review
This review is part of our Fantasia Festival 2020 coverage. The Pitch: Kathryn Dolan (Adrienne Barbeau) and George Lomack (Marc Blucas) head neighboring rural families struggling to make ends meet in a crumbling economy. Tensions arise when one family signs a contract allowing fracking on their land, but their fates intertwine when this decision inadvertently releases a parasite previously locked within the earth. John C. Lyons and Dorota Swies’ tale of economic horror presents a compelling if uneven picture of the devil’s bargains working class people are often forced to make in order to survive. Parallel Parasites: Unearth is a timely metaphor in the midst of a pandemic which has crippled the US economy. We meet both families when they’re tottering on the edge of financial ruin and ...
Martin Shkreli’s Purchase of Wu-Tang Clan’s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin to Become Netflix Film
The relatively short history of Wu-Tang Clan’s seventh studio album, 2015’s one-of-a-kind Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, is already something of a legend. It’s a weird, wild tale involving pharmadouche Martin Shkreli, $2 million auctions, diss tracks, and federal forfeitures. Now, the whole sordid story will be told in a new Netflix film. The announcement of the project was tucked into a press release about screenwriter Ian Edelman’s new movie, American Sole (starring Pete Davidson and O’Shea Jackson Jr.). As Collider reports, Brittany Runs a Marathon director Paul Downs Colaizzo will helm the project, with Wu-Tang’s own RZA producing alongside Brad Pitt’s Plan B. Edelman will be working off Colaizzo’s original draft of the script. For those who don’t know, the Wu-Tang Clan only produced one...
Millie Bobby Brown Is on the Case in Netflix’s Enola Holmes Trailer: Watch
The classic Sherlock Holmes mythos are getting a dose of Girl Power in Netflix’s new action comedy Enola Holmes. Based on Nancy Springer’s The Enola Holmes Mysteries book series, the movie stars Millie Bobby Brown in the title role, and the latest trailer finds her taking on her first case. When the Holmes’ mother, Eudoria (Helena Bonham Carter) goes missing, Enola calls on her brothers, the famous detective Sherlock (Henry Cavill) and government official Mycroft (Sam Claflin). However, instead of helping her track down mommy dearest, Mycroft is determined to turn Enola into a proper lady of the world. Too bad for him she’s a badass, butt-kicking, clue-cracking woman of her own design who can even stay a step ahead of the great Sherlock. She sets off to find her mother with the help of a k...
A Reboot of The Nutty Professor is in the Works
Hold onto your beakers, the 1963 original version of The Nutty Professor, starring comedy legend Jerry Lewis, is getting a reboot. According to Deadline, the forthcoming film will be produced by the same team behind Scream 5 — that’s Project X folks James Vanderbilt, William Sherak, and Paul Neinstein. As of now, no directors or actors are attached to the project yet. In the 1963 sci-fi comedy, Lewis played the role of nerdy chemistry professor Julius Kelp, who, thanks to a magic potion, is transformed into a Casanova-like character named Buddy Love. The original flick was envisioned as a parody of the Robert Louis Stevenson classic Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. Lewis directed The Nutty Professor, as well as co-wrote the script. It’s been long considered one of Lewis’ best movies, and th...
Spike Lee Shares First Teaser for David Byrne’s American Utopia: Watch
Spike Lee has revealed the first teaser trailer for David Byrne’s American Utopia. The HBO production premieres Saturday, October 17th. Lee’s latest joint is based on Byrne’s 2019 Broadway show of the same name, which is itself inspire by Byrne’s most recent album American Utopia. The trailer shows off Lee’s kinetic camera work, capturing the movement of the 11 singers, dancers, and musicians accompanying Byrne. Choreography was provided by Annie-B Parson, and Lee portrays her movements from every angle — front, sides, above, and even behind, taking in the rears of the cast and the faces of the live audience. Check out the trailer below. Byrne had hoped to get in a second run of shows on Brodaway, but that’s been pushed back since the Great White Way went dark in response to the ongoi...
Chris Cornell’s Estate Denounces Unauthorized Biopic
Chris Cornell lived one hell of a life as the frontperson of Soundgarden, and someday his story will be told with all the detail, depth, and accuracy it deserves. Unfortunately, it won’t be the upcoming biopic Black Days that does so. Allegedly the movie is “about the last days in the life of grunge music icon Chris Cornell,” but the rocker’s estate has formally denounced the film, issuing a statement to Pitchfork that says the biopic is “not sanctioned or approved by the estate.” A casting call for Black Days on Backstage reveals that production on the film is already underway, with shooting kicking off in Los Angeles next month. Road Rage Films LLC and Amerifilms LLC, which apparently are run by actor and musician Johnny Holiday, are listed as the companies helming the project. As Pitchf...
Björk Joins All-Star Cast of Robert Eggers’ The Northman
Hold on to your swan dress, Björk is returning to the silver screen for the first time since 2000’s Dancer in the Dark. The Icelandic queen joins the star-studded cast of Robert Eggers‘ new film The Northman, and best of all, her character has been given the evocative name “The Slav Witch”. As if that weren’t enough, her real-life daughter Ísadóra Barney has also joined The Northman and will be making her cinematic debut. Until yesterday, the casting news was a closely-guarded secret, and it seems to have been revealed accidentally. Eric Higgins, best known for a short arc on the TV series Vikings, posted a video of the casting board that included his own headshot. “There are only two times in life when your profile pic is on a wall,” he wrote, “1) You’re a wanted criminal ...
