A hobby blog dedicated to movie nerdom, cinematic escapism, nostalgia, a touch of empathy, and finding the next groundbreaker (oh, and the occasional horror flick for good measure). Comments and dialogue are encouraged. Reely Bernie Horror Fest Begins September, 15th!
Origin/Director: United Kingdom/Matthew Holness Viewings Tally: This is my first viewing! I wanted to review a relatively new horror movie, and, once again, my Letterboxd cohorts made the recommendation. Synopsis: A disgraced children’s puppeteer returns to his childhood home and is forced to confront his wicked stepfather and the secrets that have tortured him his... Continue Reading →
A friend of mine suggested an interesting notion for Christopher Nolan to consider: What about just writing the screenplay and leaving the artistic decisions to a different director? Would the never-ending 150 minutes go by faster? Would the main characters possess a heart and earn viewer empathy? Finally, would Nolan’s astounding time warp perplexities include... Continue Reading →
Back to the movie theatre, back to the popcorn (we ended up just getting Twizzlers to be safe), back to the big screen in the dark, and Back to the Future. For me, Back to the Future (1985) is more innate than nostalgic, but nothing beats watching it in the most nostalgic of places. I’m... Continue Reading →
No CGI-infested, Jack Nicholson-spectacled, comic book-possessed entry of the Batman filmography can ever top the mastery behind Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight (2008). When it was first released, this masterpiece with wings had three audiences: One for the sequel of Nolan's Batman Begins (2005), one for another interpretation of what was the sixth Batman-related... Continue Reading →
With a misspelled title, extremely revisionist writing on World War II, and a wallop of violence and twisted humor, Inglourious Basterds (2009) may be the most divisive of the Quentin Tarantino canon. The title pays homage to an overlooked 1978 Italian exploitation war flick (with the correct spelling of Inglorious and Bastards) and refers to... Continue Reading →
Rather than constantly panning mainstream banalities, good film critics need to find hidden treasures unheard of by most of the public. So, when I unearth a black-and-white animated movie about a young woman coming of age in Iran during the Islamic revolution, I hope you keep reading! I, myself, had never neither heard of nor... Continue Reading →
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) perfected the adventure movie and broke new ground on the relic hunting culture we see on our screens today. Let’s face it: Without Raiders, there would be no Dora the Explorer, National Treasure, Nathan Drake, or even Animal Crossing! The hunt for the holy relic is in our blood,... Continue Reading →
Quarantine. Lockdown. Shelter in place. No one would have guessed such dystopian, sci-fi concepts would become a reality for the last three months of our lives. L.B. “Jeff” Jefferies could empathize. He broke his leg and has been wheelchair-ridden in his small, quaint New York City apartment for six weeks. The once renowned freelance photojournalist... Continue Reading →
One of the most effective ways to write a movie review is to apply the movie’s theme to the world today. Whether it be political, social, spiritual, or philosophical, the question to pursue is: What is going on in this movie that directly relates to my experience right now? Through the lens of the camera... Continue Reading →
I am so excited to teach a five-week online "mini course" on film criticism through my high school this summer! We provide this opportunity for our students as a way to "sustain connection with our school community during this unprecedented time." These mini courses are free of cost and an ideal way to keep our... Continue Reading →
I revisited Mission: Impossible (1996) after seeing De Palma (2015), the documentary on Director Brian De Palma, who worked beside but more so under the shadows of Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, and Francis Ford Coppola back in the prime of American filmmaking – the 70s. To me, De Palma has always been an intensely average... Continue Reading →
I love my unique first name. Even with its immediate connection to the presidential race dropout, Senator Bernie Sanders, I find my Bernie identity special. Heck, I’m the second youngest Bernie I know! Before Sanders, people used to associate my name to the comedy, Weekend at Bernie’s (1989), in which the titular character’s murdered body... Continue Reading →
It’s the summer of ‘94 in my best friend’s basement, and we’re watching MTV music videos at full blast. Soon, we see three skinny, pale guys dressed in ‘70s era undercover cop garbs with fake mustaches running wild through alleyways. Their hideous striped ties and shaggy wigs fly in their faces. The music behind the... Continue Reading →
There’s a twisted part of me that recognizes Fargo (1996) as a comedy. I don’t think the Coen Brothers would contest this. In fact, I think they were going for comedy all along. Internet Movie Database (imdb.com) and Letterboxd have Fargo labeled under the genres of Drama, Crime, and Thriller. But, when I first... Continue Reading →
One of the best Romantic Comedy title sequences out there (just follow the helicopter to the mug): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KP9CxbFwX-E For me, So I Married an Axe Murderer is everything 1990s. It is the self-conscious Mike Myers schtick from Saturday Night Live, it is San Francisco embraced, and it is the best darn soundtrack for lifting your... Continue Reading →
Nothing can ever replace my experience of seeing Interstellar for the first time in the theatre. The perplexities of time warp in galaxial black holes, Hans Zimmer’s glorious pipe organ-centered score, and the state-of-the-art cinematography both on a dust bowl dying Earth and a gravity defying galaxy were truly extraordinary encounters embedded forever in my... Continue Reading →
I thought I'd give Prime Video Cinema a try since we're not allowed to leave our homes (and the theatres are closed). I'm not gonna lie, the two "In-Theatre" purchases I made were expensive. But, one of these movies was so good that I won't just see it again on my couch, I'll list it... Continue Reading →
As much as I want to discuss the ending to Magnolia, I am also ecstatic for the human being who has yet to see this remarkable film (and that extraordinary ending). I promise I am not giving anything away when I say that the ending has a lot to do with what is happening to... Continue Reading →
Although this Steven Soderbergh thriller is a bit dated, its subject matter couldn’t be any more timely. As the Coronavirus continues to make headlines and possibly touch the lives of people we know, a sense of fear is expected. For me, the manufactured fear found in movies is a necessary antidote. Contagion suffices (for now).... Continue Reading →
Take it from Alan Alda in Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989) when he says, “If it bends, it’s funny. If it breaks, it’s not funny.” The same can be said about thrillers and horrors where suspension of disbelief is so fragile, the moment you push the otherworldly button too soon or too forcefully, you break the... Continue Reading →
