Film Reviews – Cliff’s Notes: Rotted & Relatable Reviews

MEAN GIRLS (2024)

On Wednesdays we step ball change. I expected to be writing a hit piece. From the word on the street I fully expected this to be a hate watch of a foolish and fumbly attempt at a film to stage back to film messy mess. But y’all…I loved it! Not a remake, it’s more aContinue reading “MEAN GIRLS (2024)”

BARBIE

An excellent summer blockbuster filled with gutbusting giggles and gobs and gobs of gratuitous girl power. Barbie isn’t for boys. I don’t know if anyone ever implicitly stated this to me as a child but it was as intrinsically understood as the earth being round and the sky being blue. While this is an egregiousContinue reading “BARBIE”

THE LITTLE MERMAID (2023)

Little mermaid, big voice. I know these Disney remakes get more than their fair share of hate and it’s not completely unwarranted. But I come from the world of theatre where remakes, revivals and redos are the name of the game. I’ve seen Fiddler on the Roof eight times, I’ve been in Evita four andContinue reading “THE LITTLE MERMAID (2023)”

RENFIELD

Promising premise peters out quickly in this mangled genre mix n’ match. I was looking forward to this movie enough that I caught the first showing in my area. The premise of centering Dracula’s familiar Renfield as the protagonist in his own story seemed ripe for creativity and humor. Boy was I disappointed. It wasn’tContinue reading “RENFIELD”

THROWBACK: Practical Magic

Marvelous performances, magic and a little murder make this movie a major mood. Few movies transport me back in time like Practical Magic. Every time I watch I’m right back in Sophomore Year at Millsaps College popping in the VHS before bed for the millionth time. It is, as the kids say, a vibe andContinue reading “THROWBACK: Practical Magic”

THROWBACK: The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!

If gut-busting laughter is what you’re after give this gun a shot. Jim Abrams & The Zucker Brothers didn’t invent the spoof genre but man did they perfect it. The genius of their earliest and most successful films lie in their faithful adherence to comedy’s more tried and true and most basic conventions. Wordplay, tabooContinue reading “THROWBACK: The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!”

THE MENU

Cuisine is a weapon in this sharp as a butcher knife gourmet horror comedy. You know you’re in for it when Lord Voldemort is your host. In The Menu the audience and the unassuming patrons of Hawthorn, the finest of fine dining restaurants, are treated to a haute cuisine meal that’s every course is filledContinue reading “THE MENU”

FALL

An acrophobic adventure filled with silly thrills. I thought I only had one worst nightmare. Being stranded in shark infested water. Period. I couldn’t imagine anything more terrifying than that. Until today. Thanks a lot Fall. Now as easy as it is to avoid shark infested waters it is even easier to avoid the nightmareContinue reading “FALL”

KNOCK AT THE CABIN

Nothing new in this snoozy M. Night Shyamalacolypse. Are there any real M. Night Shyamalan fans left out there or are we all doing some form of hate watching at this point? Even when the twists are mildly entertaining, as is the case with Knock at the Cabin, they’re so on the nose and inelegantlyContinue reading “KNOCK AT THE CABIN”

THROWBACK: Raising Arizona

Early Coen Brothers classic proves they had the knack from way back. The Coen brothers are the modern arbiter of the tall tale. Only rather than superhumans like Paul Bunyan or Johnny Appleseed the Coen’s have chosen petty criminals, assorted crooks, and small town cops as their protagonists to tell the story of today’s America.Continue reading “THROWBACK: Raising Arizona”