|
|
The Argument
(2020)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
The Argument is the furthest thing from a generic romantic comedy, and I really enjoyed the mesh of the theatrical and cinematic space. Kudos to writer Zac Stanford for the cleverness of this screenplay, and creating something I won't soon forget.
Posted May 15, 2021
|
|
|
Bohemian Rhapsody
(2018)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
The film squandered its opportunity to tell a story worthy of Freddie Mercury. He was magnificent and larger-than-life, and all we got is a plateful of mediocre and average.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Dismissed
(2017)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
Maybe a Mr. Keating type character ("Dead Poets Society") could have salvaged this. Instead I am left to say, treat this film the way its title suggests.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Write When You Get Work
(2018)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
It feels all too convenient and Robin Hood-esque, almost too fantastical for a movie that has dwelled on the realness of life for the bulk of its duration.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Maine
(2018)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
Unfortunately, the film doesn't give enough for the viewer to feel a connection, so there is no investment on our part, just mere detachment and a "Oh, she's back where she started," before the embracing of a blank screen.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
All These Small Moments
(2018)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
It is hard to believe that this is Melissa Miller Costanzo's directorial debut - what magic she stirs, even in the tumultuous, it feels like "a worst fate to look away."
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Out of Blue
(2018)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
The issue here is that surrealism and the detective narrative aren't exactly the most complimentary, especially when it lulls the viewer into a state we call sleep.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Velvet Buzzsaw
(2019)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
There are some fantastic overhead shots of the city at night and in the day, but otherwise, it is so visually dull, which is disappointing given the film's subject matter. There's that word again: Disappointing.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
The Browsing Effect
(2018)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
The Browsing Effect feels like a Tinder date that's been mistakenly swiped right on - something that looked promising at first glance, but after investing one and a half hours, it shows it has no real substance and it's time to move on to the next match.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Isn't It Romantic
(2019)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
[The movie] functions on the complexity level of the grandfather paradox, where the more it tries to not be the usual romantic comedy, the more it satisfies the requirements of being one.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Changeland
(2019)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
...the female characters exist merely for the men to develop relationships with them - none of it comes across as meaningful or life-changing like the movie wants us to believe.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Liam Gallagher: As It Was
(2019)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
It just feels a little empty and pointless, and while the concert footage brings with it some liveliness, not even a cameo from David Beckham can compel me to give Liam Gallagher: As It Was another watch.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Burn
(2019)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
Ultimately, Burn is a movie to watch in the moment and enjoy to some extent, but it's not one due a revisit - for what would be the point?
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
To the Stars
(2019)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
With each other, both [Maggie and Iris] find a space to belong, daring to reach for the stars towards a space beyond this myopic town...
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Top End Wedding
(2019)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
...Top End Wedding is such a welcome breath of fresh air - it tells a love story in a genuinely moving way, with the recognition that weddings aren't about the wedding dress or how good the hors d'oeuvres are.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
The Sunlit Night
(2019)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
...as much as Slate is a vibrant and charismatic force, The Sunlit Night is just too poorly conceived to be taken seriously.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Standing Up, Falling Down
(2019)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
Standing Up, Falling Down does seem to be reaching for a slice of life narrative, à la Paterson, but it reads more like melodrama.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Isabelle
(2018)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
...some of the horror sequences are well done, with some interesting visuals as well, but it is in the handling of grief and mental illness that the movie stumbles.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Feast of the Seven Fishes
(2019)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
Feast of the Seven Fishes is a movie with a lot of heart, swirling with emotion and nostalgia, using the Christmas setting to great advantage.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Tell Me I Love You
(2020)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
Tell Me I Love You is, unsurprisingly, labelled a romantic comedy, but everything about it is so very unromantic and unfunny.
Posted Mar 22, 2021
|
|
|
Glass
(2019)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
The film feels like a guest who has overstayed his welcome and starts to tell another story when asked to leave. It feels much like Shyamalan's cameo in the movie - a gargantuan effort, but one that is kind of awkward.
Posted Feb 04, 2021
|
|
|
Stars Fell on Alabama
(2021)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
...there weren't many stars in Stars Fell on Alabama for me to be dazzled by.
Posted Feb 04, 2021
|
|
|
Piercing
(2018)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
Piercing is all flash and no substance - the end result never taking on any kind of permanence. Rather like it's title, it is brief hint of pain, before the sweet feeling of relief when it's over.
Posted Feb 04, 2021
|
|
|
Hope Gap
(2019)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
Hope Gap isn't afraid to go into darker topics either - that of death and suicide, which are means we contemplate in the darkest, bleakest moments of our lives - and offers a lifeline I never truly thought about.
Posted Jan 29, 2021
|
|
|
Girl
(2020)
|
Natasha Alvar
|
...there isn't enough substance to make Faust's stylish choices mean something, so this thriller comes across as more empty that gratifying.
Posted Jan 29, 2021
|
|
2/5
|
I Still Believe
(2020)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
Although it aims to illustrate savory vibes of an uplifting higher power melodrama, from its pulpit the Erwin brothers simply muster up a sluggish Christian romancer that does not have a prayer.
Posted Apr 01, 2020
|
|
1/5
|
Spenser Confidential
(2020)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
...[a] witless cop caper...this charmless action-comedy suspense piece will result in yet another disposable salt-and-pepper buddy flick aiming for low rent chuckles.
Posted Mar 24, 2020
|
|
4/5
|
Cane River
(1982)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
Rich in resonance and thoroughly revealing in its absolute truth, writer-director Jenkins delivered an absorbing black romancer that delves into the psyche of blackness and belonging.
Posted Feb 29, 2020
|
|
3/4
|
The Assistant
(2019)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
Solidly telling in its methodical truth, Green's film is unassumingly dazzling in its low-key observations. The Assistant is impressively potent without the overstated exclamation of acrimony.
Posted Feb 12, 2020
|
|
3.5/5
|
Jojo Rabbit
(2019)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
Bold, offbeat and borderline blasphemous in its sardonic wit, Jojo Rabbit is at times uneven in its edgy humor, but still manages to pull off its fair share of mixing the absurdity with observational amusement.
Posted Dec 05, 2019
|
|
2/5
|
American Woman
(2018)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
...a powerful observation about troubled femininity and the growth process. All together - with startling revelation - American Woman is affirmation that perceived weakness can morph, through trial and tribulation, into resiliency.
Posted Nov 27, 2019
|
|
|
Charlie's Angels
(2019)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
However, the so-called new and improved take feels like it is trying to flesh out its synthetic soul in an erratic, female empowerment blender of rambunctiousness that is all too familiar.
Posted Nov 19, 2019
|
|
2/4
|
The Sun Is Also a Star
(2019)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
Unfortunately, this astrology-themed showcase of challenged love between a female cynic and male poetic spirit loses its mushy translation in the cosmos.
Posted Jun 11, 2019
|
|
1.5/4
|
The Hustle
(2019)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
However, the nonsensical antics that transpire throughout the movie feels lackluster and limp - ironically the biggest con that the tepid tandem of Hathaway/Wilson pulls off in this quirky, yet deceptive dud.
Posted May 30, 2019
|
|
2/4
|
The Intruder
(2019)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
Beyond Quaid's devilish antagonist, The Intruder exists as a demonstrative dud that regurgitates commonplace clichés found so readily in practically every other home invasion thriller.
Posted May 09, 2019
|
|
3/4
|
Road to the Well
(2016)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
This backwoods story of death, defiance and deception is organically riveting and should be considered a terrorizing treasure as it will undoubtedly be hidden in the shadows of the more promoted and frivolous dramas with half the heart and havoc.
Posted Mar 01, 2019
|
|
3.5/4
|
I Called Him Morgan
(2016)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
There has not been a penetrating and provocative documentary in my recent memory that chronicles with such curiosity, the insight and intimacy into the musical process and romantic partnership disillusionment
Posted Mar 01, 2019
|
|
2.5/4
|
Railroad Tigers
(2016)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
These "Tigers" claw their way into a frivolous lather but whether or not Chan's latest spectacle deserves a boarding pass to enjoy the same blueprint thrills . . . well, hey . . . would you rather see the sequel "Skiptrace 2"? I rest my case . . .
Posted Mar 01, 2019
|
|
2.5/4
|
Love, Kennedy
(2017)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
As a movie, the psychological heft limps a bit, but this should not discount the dignity or remembrance of a remarkable young girl gone too soon before her time.
Posted Mar 01, 2019
|
|
2.5/4
|
Shot
(2017)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
...engrossing and sympathetically realized. However, Shot needed to embrace the gun control pulpit more fully than only scratching its surface and playing it sentimentally safe.
Posted Mar 01, 2019
|
|
3/4
|
The Atoning
(2017)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
Who knew that a well-made, small-scale horror fable could be as cautionary to the human condition as mischievous whispers are to the dark?
Posted Mar 01, 2019
|
|
2.5/4
|
Pearl Jam: Let's Play Two
(2017)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
Pearl Jam: Let's Play Two will bring nothing exploratory or particularly fresh within the realm of concert film documentaries to indifferent outsiders that do not harbor any allegiance to either Pearl Jam or The Chicago Cubs.
Posted Feb 28, 2019
|
|
3/4
|
People's Republic of Desire
(2018)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
...tellingly spry and insightful. Slickly produced, energetic and intrinsically revealing...an intriguing documentary about online entertainment in China.
Posted Feb 27, 2019
|
|
1.5/4
|
Birth of the Dragon
(2016)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
Sadly, Birth of the Dragon does not shed any considerable revelations on the aura of Bruce Lee . There is simply no excuse for any full feature vehicle that aims to echo the magnetism of the boisterous Bruce Lee to come off as flat and flavorless
Posted Feb 11, 2019
|
|
1/4
|
Unfriend
(2016)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
Emotionally empty and highlighted with sophomoric dialogue and lame twitches, denying this Friend Request is the next best thing to embracing an enemy on your Twitter account.
Posted Feb 11, 2019
|
|
3.4
|
Anna and the Apocalypse
(2017)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
Admittedly original for a horrific holiday hoot, McPhail's off-kilter Scottish musical plays a delightful naughty note for those looking to celebrate the end-of-the-year seasonal greetings with an (un)deadly bang.
Posted Jan 20, 2019
|
|
3/4
|
In Fabric
(2018)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
...takes on a whole new meaning to making a startling fashion statement. [Strickland's] sense of warped imagination - meshed with an indescribable styling for extravagant color schemes and sinister tampering - makes for a flashy, flamboyant frightener
Posted Jan 09, 2019
|
|
1.5/4
|
The Space Between Us
(2017)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
However, one is not so convinced that the Young Adult (YA) genre is convincingly elevated by a flimsy frontier sci-fi romancer among the Clearasil crowd. The Space Between Us produces more sappy substance than a row of Vermont trees.
Posted Dec 25, 2018
|
|
2/5
|
Breaking In
(2018)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
Breaking In boorishly fails to break out of norms in the family-in-peril genre and should therefore be left to its own malfunctioning devices.
Posted Dec 22, 2018
|
|
2/5
|
Proud Mary
(2018)
|
Frank Ochieng
|
Proud Mary is shamelessly gimmicky in execution as it halfheartedly attempts to ape an iron woman's anti-hero empowerment. Ultimately, it's banal, drearily conceived and plodding, delivering very little for this Mary to be proud of.
Posted Dec 21, 2018
|
>
