Karyn Kusama captures Nicole Kidman as we’ve never seen her before in the edgy crime drama, Destroyer. Washed up, jaded and broken LAPD detective Erin Bell (Kidman) confronts her shady past when a dangerous foe from her undercover days sends an ominous message and opens up old wounds. The narrative is enigmatically split between Erin’s present…
Continue reading ➞ ‘Destroyer’ Review
Rupert Everett has been tirelessly trying to make The Happy Prince for the past ten years. He secured Colin Firth and Emily Watson early on, which helped in shopping his sharp script around to different studios. While waiting for finances to pull through, he mastered his brilliant cinematic performance by playing Oscar Wilde on stage for two…
Continue reading ➞ ‘The Happy Prince’ Review
This article was originally published on Film Threat (August 2014). Judy Greer makes her delightful and distinctive directorial debut with the star-studded offbeat comedy, A Happening of Monumental Proportions. Individual crises converge as a diverse cast of characters experience a variety of challenges. In one life-changing day, an illicit office affair is exposed, an overbearing boss…
Continue reading ➞ ‘A Happening of Monumental Proportions’ Review
This article was originally published on Film Threat (June 28, 2018). Shana Feste draws from her personal experience and uses her fascinating father as a muse for her latest film, Boundaries. Laura (Vera Farmiga) is a work in progress and needs to learn how to stand her ground. The film begins in the middle of her therapy session.…
Continue reading ➞ ‘Boundaries’ Review
This article was originally published on Film Threat (May 8, 2018). Measure of a Man is a poignant coming of age dramedy that shows how a bullied teen, Bobby Marks (Blake Cooper), grows into a confident young man with the help of a new mentor, Dr. Kahn (Donald Sutherland). Set in the groovy summer of 1976,…
Continue reading ➞ ‘Measure of a Man’ Review
This article was originally published on Film Threat (April 18, 2018). David and Nathan Zellner wrote, directed, and star in the unconventional and off-beat comedic Western, Damsel. This quirky film is an acquired taste. Viewers enter the theater expecting the unexpected, yet it still manages to be stranger than imagined. Parson Henry stumbles into his new…
Continue reading ➞ ‘Damsel’ Review
This article was originally published on Film Threat (April 18, 2018). The tragic tale of Frankenstein’s Monster is greatly known. There have been several adaptations of the creature’s misunderstood torment over the years. Haifaa Al-Mansour’s Mary Shelley offers a refreshing and relatable take on how the monster mirrors Mary’s (and her similar peers’) struggle. After learning the…
Continue reading ➞ ‘Mary Shelley’ Review
'The Keeping Hours' is a hauntingly beautiful film that leaves a lasting impression. Nearly ten years after his untimely and accidental death, young Jacob’s (Sander Thomas) ghost brings his divorced parents back together by mysteriously appearing in their old family home.
In his surprisingly funny and heartbreakingly honest film, we witness a crucial 24-hour period in Ben’s (Lucas Hedges) life. He is a recovering addict who desperately struggles to make amends, painfully grapples with sobriety, and remorsefully faces the consequences of his tumultuous past. Through all of these challenges, his loving mother, Holly (Julia Roberts), steadfastly remains by his side.
Barry Jenkins’ stunning adaptation of James Baldwin’s novel, If Beale Street Could Talk, is poetry in motion. A gripping narrative and vivid imagery transcends the page and illuminates the big screen as Tish Rivers (KiKi Layne) shares her scattered tale of true love and tackles adversity in 1970s Harlem. Throughout the film, we feel submerged in her world as Jenkin’s artful direction floods viewers with vibrant colors, groovy tunes, and the threat of danger lurking in the dark corners of her neighborhood.
