Review: ‘Knock at the Cabin’ is a Good Thriller but a Watered-Down Adaptation

M. Night Shyamalan releases are interesting. His early career is lined with amazing films with crazy twists that shift your perspective of the film, and then he released The Last Airbender and a couple other flushers, and his career has been shaky since. A lot of people really liked Split, a solid horror movie with a rising star in Anya Taylor-Joy. Then Glass became the movie people regretted was ever made, and Old was just, it wasn’t great. So, coming into Knock at the Cabin, most had the same coin flip mentality as I did: will this be something great, or will this be something that is simply there? I am here to say, I don’t know. Knock at the Cabin is an interesting film in many respects, yet also a boring film in many other respects.

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Review: ‘Glass Onion’ Has Layers

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (dir. Rian Johnson) is a murder-mystery film that follows famed detective, Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig), in his career after the events of Knives Out (2019). Though none of the other characters are the same, the centrality of Blanc’s character breeds cohesivity between the films.

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Review: ‘The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special’ Brings Home the Bacon

Tacking the words “Holiday Special” onto the end of a beloved franchise is guaranteed to raise some eyebrows regarding a film’s artistic integrity, but, thankfully, The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special has the mind of James Gunn working in its favor. It’s become abundantly clear over the past few years that Gunn is perhaps the most passionate filmmaker within the superhero movie circle, carrying a love for his misfit characters that makes all of his projects stand out amongst the never-ending output of superhero media in pop culture. So, when James Gunn wants to do an idea as inherently stupid as a Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, he’s earned enough goodwill to convince audiences that the story serves some kind of purpose beyond profit. Although, granted, the project certainly wouldn’t have been greenlit if “Christmas Tree Groot” merchandise didn’t sell itself.

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Review: ‘Dune’ is a Good Movie on its Own, But a Mediocre ‘Dune’ Movie

When David Lynch released his adaptation of Frank Herbert’s Dune in 1984, reviewers believed it was almost impossible to follow, leading to a theory of Herbert’s iconic 1965 sci-fi novel being “unadaptable.” 40 years later, Denis Villeneuve’s attempt at “recreating” Dune is earning the exact same reactions.

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Review: ‘Army of the Dead’ May Be Zack Snyder’s Most Fun Film

In the opening credits of Zack Snyder’s newest feature Army of the Dead, you can nearly feel the director’s giddy smile stretching across the hedonistic melee. In Las Vegas, flesh-eating zombies are beginning to outnumber the casinos. And they’re consuming unsuspecting tourists just as quickly. Cannibalistic showgirls prowl for prey. Slot-machine junkies bundling up their remaining pittance dodge the newly infected. A dimwitted Elvis impersonator, wig askew, looks blankly over the carnage as the real Elvis Presley’s “Viva Las Vegas” plays in the background the zany bloodshed. It’s the rare instance where a film’s climax occurs in the first few minutes.

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Review: ‘My Spy’ is Fun Enough for Your Self-Quarantine

It seems like every Hollywood fighter-turned-actor is getting their own kid-team-up movie. The Rock had The Game Plan, Arnold Schwarzenegger had Kindergarten Cop, Hulk Hogan had Mr. Nanny, Jackie Chan had The Spy Next Door, John Cena had Playing With Fire, and now Dave Bautista has My Spy. There’s just something appealing to directors about seeing these macho movie heroes paired with an adorable kid – it’s the kind of film that would appeal to a more general audience, not just those who love violence and explosions. Continue reading “Review: ‘My Spy’ is Fun Enough for Your Self-Quarantine” →

Review: The Glass is Half Full with Marvel’s Avengers: Infinity War

Like with our Star Wars Reviews, the first half of this review will be spoiler free, and the end will have a spoiler section that better develops the critiques in the first half.

Is the glass half full or half empty?

Well folks, they did it. After ten years and *checks note sheet, raises eyebrows* 18 films, Marvel Studios has reached the first half of their master plan. Avengers Infinity War represents the finish line of a project that had never been achieved before and the culmination of years of work.

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