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4/5
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Godzilla Minus One
(2023)
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Jana Monji
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Writer/director Takashi Yamazaki places Godzilla back on the throne as kaiju king and one of Japan's most infamous exports. Yet for all the big-scale destruction, Yamazaki also brings out a touching emotional story of post-World War II Japan.
Posted Dec 02, 2023
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5/5
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Perfect Days
(2023)
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Jana Monji
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German director Wim Wender has co-written with Takuma Takasaki that feels essentially Japanese. It made me contemplate: What is a perfect day? Have I had a perfect day? Kōji Yakusho's character is quiet, but always watchable.
Posted Nov 22, 2023
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2/5
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Wish
(2023)
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Jana Monji
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This particular animated feature seems to pander both to diversity and to Disney's centennial celebration. The results are some good visuals, costumes that are definitely cosplay-worthy, but a story that fails to be emotionally moving.
Posted Nov 22, 2023
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5/5
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Suzume
(2022)
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Jana Monji
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In a land of always under the threat of earthquakes, this film gives a comforting concept of how they might be controlled by releasing nostalgia for places that only exist in our memories.
Posted Nov 08, 2023
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4/5
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Killers of the Flower Moon
(2023)
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Jana Monji
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Scorsese's film is a cinematically poetic well-told tale of toxic masculinity partially shaped by racism but the complicated racism in Oklahoma is only hinted at.
Posted Nov 08, 2023
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4/5
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Evil Does Not Exist
(2023)
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Jana Monji
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This film is a contemplation on our relationship with nature and the ecology of a forest as seen in the small rural village in Japan. Don't expect a tidy package; this drama isn't wrapped up to be pleasing, but unsettling.
Posted Nov 08, 2023
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2/5
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The Marvels
(2023)
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Jana Monji
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While this film is a win for diversity, the plot is not particularly interesting and under director Nia DaCosta the tonal shifts fail and the comedic timing is off.
Posted Nov 08, 2023
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2/5
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The Creator
(2023)
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Jana Monji
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This science fiction adventure is a visually beautiful film about the ugliness of war but also unfortunately carries forward the American Black Savior trope. Asia is a background for American adventures but the Asians seem powerless against America.
Posted Sep 26, 2023
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3/5
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Haunted Mansion
(2023)
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Jana Monji
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While there's a modern twist and a less than rosy view of the world in the beginning, there's a happy ending to this tale of a paranormal tour guide while teams up with a psychic, a priest and a historian to help the hapless owner of the titular house.
Posted Sep 25, 2023
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4/5
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Weathering With You
(2019)
|
Jana Monji
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This Japanese anime takes the every day concept and builds a relationship between two teenagers yet to fully understand this film you need a little knowledge of Japan and its culture.
Posted Sep 25, 2023
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3/5
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A Haunting in Venice
(2023)
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Jana Monji
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Kenneth Branagh is not my ideal Hercule Poirot, but this film features an engaging cast and there's something delightful in this casual diversity casting. Also, loved the 1947 era costumes.
Posted Sep 25, 2023
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2/5
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The Wind & the Reckoning
(2022)
|
Jana Monji
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This seems to be one of the first Hawaiian language film with international distribution, but while it tells a story worth knowing, the acting is uneven and there are other questionable choices made by this production.
Posted Sep 25, 2023
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3/5
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Peter Pan
(2000)
|
Jana Monji
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Cathy Rigby won a Tony for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical and her portrayal is youthful and energetic. You really believe she can fly. There are some problems with the production though, making me favor the Mary Martin TV movie.
Posted Sep 25, 2023
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3/5
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Hunt
(2022)
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Jana Monji
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Director and star Lee Jung-jae mixes action with espionage but serves neither as well as it could, but this film opens an opportunity to learn more about the two Koreas in modern history.
Posted Sep 25, 2023
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3/5
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The Deer King
(2021)
|
Jana Monji
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This is an interesting tale that is an adaptation of a manga series that was published after a different pandemic, but this film came out during the COVID-19 pandemic with a lot of thoughtful observations.
Posted Sep 25, 2023
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5/5
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Princess Mononoke
(1997)
|
Jana Monji
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When you watch this film, you need to think: "Where are the Japanese wolves?" If you don't, you'll miss the full impact of Hayao Miyazaki's environmental theme. Japan isn't the land of Bambi or the Big Bad Wolf.
Posted Sep 25, 2023
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2/5
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Oppenheimer
(2023)
|
Jana Monji
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This film is a White-Jewish male compartmentalized view of history that blinds us to the truth of the world that J. Robert Oppenheimer worked in.
Posted Aug 01, 2023
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5/5
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Barbie
(2023)
|
Jana Monji
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Can Barbie prevent a Ken-tastrophe and shoot down the patriarchy? This Barbie-cue of Mattel's eternally young miss is lovingly done with fuchsia-infused feminism. Margot Robbie is stereotypically Barbie-licious and Ryan Gosling has the right Kenergy.
Posted Jul 19, 2023
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3/5
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The Flash
(2023)
|
Jana Monji
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More smiles per hour than expected and the cameos quickly become one of this film's highlights. Ezra Miller acquits himself well as the troubled young man who goes back in time to save his mother and meets a carefree version of himself.
Posted Jun 06, 2023
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3/5
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Shortcomings
(2023)
|
Jana Monji
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This film is about flawed people finding their way through life in a messy, tangled world where there is hope, but not necessarily happy endings. As director Randall Park has a good eye and rhythm, making this film a promising directorial debut.
Posted Apr 14, 2023
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4/5
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Air
(2023)
|
Jana Monji
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If you're shoe-obsessed or sports obsessed, this humorous and often witty film is a must-see. If you want to understand the change in an economic system that exploited athletes, you'll want to see this film.
Posted Apr 14, 2023
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2/5
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Sakra
(2023)
|
Jana Monji
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This film sinks under the bland sameness and is likely best as something you can stream or you can just wait until someone puts the best action sequences online.
Posted Apr 14, 2023
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4/5
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Renfield
(2023)
|
Jana Monji
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If you can put history aside, this film is gorrific fun. This is a deeply and densely pop psychological battle between darkness and light, dependency and narcissism
Posted Apr 14, 2023
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3/5
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Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
(2023)
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Jana Monji
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As Monjilla the Dragon Lady, I loved the dragon, but am doubtful about the Black and White diversity. Note that early on, the thieves pass a yurt to steal horses yet the presence of East Asians is low--one villain with few lines.
Posted Apr 02, 2023
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3/5
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John Wick: Chapter 3 -- Parabellum
(2019)
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Jana Monji
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This film is about the consequences of breaking High Table rules and there's something comical about a man in a black suit and narrow tie roaming Casablanca. For action fans and dog lovers, the scenes with Halle Berry and the Malinois are exceptional.
Posted Apr 02, 2023
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3/5
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John Wick: Chapter 2
(2017)
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Jana Monji
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This sequel builds the world of the highly organized and codified High Table that John Wick had left, but now is forced to re-enter. The film answers the question: Is there honor among thieves? It's bloody, but no dog dies.
Posted Apr 02, 2023
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3/5
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John Wick
(2014)
|
Jana Monji
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As you would expect from former stunt coordinators, the action scenes are dynamic and that might be enough, but the emotional thread that motivates Chapter One is exceptionally constructed, justifying much of the rage and murder.
Posted Apr 02, 2023
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4/5
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John Wick: Chapter 4
(2023)
|
Jana Monji
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This installment of the series offers nearly three hours of action, humor (a 4DX bonus), and sweeping landscapes. All come with high kill and diversity scores. There's also an Easter egg for East Asians.
Posted Apr 02, 2023
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2/5
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Rocky III
(1982)
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Jana Monji
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The Survivor song, "Eye of the Tiger," might be the best thing about this film which has Rocky going against Mr. T as Rocky's adversary.
Posted Mar 08, 2023
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2/5
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Rocky II
(1979)
|
Jana Monji
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This film is a predictable workhorse of a film with few surprises but an ending that will leave you satisfied.
Posted Mar 08, 2023
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4/5
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Rocky
(1976)
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Jana Monji
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This film sparked a decades long saga and has iconic music and scenes that you need to see to understand some aspects of US culture (like the "Rocky Stairs"). Scrappy Rocky Balboa gets a chance to fight a world champ.
Posted Mar 08, 2023
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3/5
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Creed
(2015)
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Jana Monji
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Just when you were thinking: How long can Rocky keep fighting, this detour that introduces a new character, the illegitimate son of Apollo Creed, Adonis Creed, and brings fresh blood to stain the ring. A good transition for this boxing saga.
Posted Mar 08, 2023
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2/3
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Creed II
(2018)
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Jana Monji
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This film is the return of a Ford Mustang and a grudge match between Adonis Creed with the son of the man who killed his father, Viktor Drago, is predictable and you wonder if these two would be in the same division.
Posted Mar 08, 2023
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3/5
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Creed III
(2023)
|
Jana Monji
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This is a respectable though predictable addition to the Rocky-Creed saga, but there is a moment that parents of kids may find cringy. This is star Michael B. Jordan's first outing as a feature film director and he does a solid job.
Posted Mar 08, 2023
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2/5
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Magic Mike's Last Dance
(2023)
|
Jana Monji
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This film has lusty moves, but the production quality is uneven and the sexy humor quotient low. The journey is not worth the predictable road to the end.
Posted Feb 11, 2023
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2/5
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The Volcano: Rescue From Whakaari
(2022)
|
Jana Monji
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After watching this documentary and realizing there were Asian Indian Americans and a Chinese residents of Australia who were not interviewed, I had to really question why all the interviewees, with the exception of one Māori, were White.
Posted Dec 26, 2022
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2/5
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The Fire Within: A Requiem for Katia and Maurice Krafft
(2022)
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Jana Monji
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This documentary did a better job of acknowledging that there were Japanese who died with the Kraffts that 'Love of Fire,' but doesn't consult with Japanese volcanologist or witnesse even though they died in Japan.
Posted Dec 26, 2022
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2/5
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Fire of Love
(2022)
|
Jana Monji
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Watching this gave me the weird sensation that the world was a stage for White people and the local non-white people are just background players. The Kraffts died in Japan but no Japanese voices are heard and no Japanese volcanologist died.
Posted Dec 26, 2022
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2/5
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Avatar: The Way of Water
(2022)
|
Jana Monji
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There are definite problems of logic and lechery despite gorgeous visuals. That's without addressing the problems of the White Savior narrative.
Posted Dec 26, 2022
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3/5
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Violent Night
(2022)
|
Jana Monji
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This film is a welcome visual vacation away from the usual saccharine holiday fare. It doesn't glory in the gore; director Tommy Wirkola keeps the action flowing and balances the brutality with "Yes, Virginia" innocent's pure belief in Santa.
Posted Nov 30, 2022
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4/5
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Summer Ghost
(2021)
|
Jana Monji
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This animated short is about life and death and three people at the crossroads who band together and seek a rumored apparition and learn something about life.
Posted Nov 23, 2022
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4/5
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She Said
(2022)
|
Jana Monji
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While not everyone will read the book this is based on, everyone, especially journalists and journalism students, should see this film which clearly shows the importance of women in the workplace and going on the record.
Posted Nov 23, 2022
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4/5
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Strange World
(2022)
|
Jana Monji
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This amusing 3D animated feature avoids the traps of colonialism and imperialism of the Lost World genre for a family-friendly adventure with a cooperative environmentalism theme.
Posted Nov 23, 2022
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2/5
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Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
(2022)
|
Jana Monji
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Is Black supremacy better than White supremacy? And then there's a bit of worrisome cultural appropriation and questionable ascension issues.
Posted Nov 11, 2022
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3/5
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The Son
(2022)
|
Jana Monji
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This film suffers in comparison with the director's debut film, but is a sensitive portrayal of tragic family dynamics and features strong performances by Hugh Jackman and Laura Dern as ex-spouses dealing with their troubled teenage son.
Posted Nov 04, 2022
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2/5
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Black Adam
(2022)
|
Jana Monji
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While The Rock over-represents AAPI diversity in films, he represents a miscasting of a hero who should be from the underrepresented MENA population. Also problematic are questionable themes of justifiable violence and poor control of tonal shifts.
Posted Nov 04, 2022
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4/5
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Good Night Oppy
(2022)
|
Jana Monji
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This film uses the CGI supplied by Industrial Light & Magic, to capture a beautifully detailed scientifically-based reality of the first two Mars rovers.
Posted Nov 04, 2022
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3/5
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Till
(2022)
|
Jana Monji
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The film feels overlong and the portrait of Mamie Till-Mobley strays into adulation, but go to see Danielle Deadwyler's powerful performance.
Posted Oct 14, 2022
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3/5
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Amsterdam
(2022)
|
Jana Monji
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This murder mystery is a curious history lesson that comes without expecting us to know the dates or names, but exposing what we did and didn't learn and that might be the biggest mystery of all.
Posted Oct 14, 2022
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Bullet Train
(2022)
|
Jana Monji
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The question is: How can you have a film set in Japan and have the central characters be White or Black? The catastrophic casting is unfortunate because this could have been a good action film if one didn't care about the larger issues.
Posted Aug 05, 2022
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