Few horror creators know how to craft a weird and fun tale like James Wan. The director of Saw, The Conjuring, Furious 7, and Aquaman returned to horror in 2021. His hit, Malignant scored a cult following that continues to grow. This year, Wan worked with Jason Blum and Blumhouse to develop an idea he … Continue reading Review: ‘M3GAN’ Kicks Off the New Year with A Legit Horror Comedy
Franchise Rewind: A Second Look at Style Over Substance of ‘Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom’
Coming off the revitalization can be tricky for any filmmaker. Working off another's script can be even more difficult. Yet the task assigned to J.A. Bayona appeared to be a strong match on paper. During my initial viewings, I quickly soured on the film. In the name of fairness, I revisited Bayona's dino adventure, scripted by Colin … Continue reading Franchise Rewind: A Second Look at Style Over Substance of ‘Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom’
Franchise Rewind: ‘Jurassic World’ Thrives as a B-Movie But Stumbles When Reaches For a Point
Seven years after Jurassic World revived the franchise, we are approaching the end of Colin Trevorrow's trilogy. With that in mind, we're rewinding the tape to look back over the franchise. The new trilogy has introduced dozens of new characters of questionable quality, but the undeniable success of Jurassic World brought audiences back to Isla Nublar. The action-adventure … Continue reading Franchise Rewind: ‘Jurassic World’ Thrives as a B-Movie But Stumbles When Reaches For a Point
Review: ‘Us’ Moves Jordan Peele Up the Director Ladder with a Frightening, Layered Story
For months after the release of Get Out, audiences discussed the nuanced ways it discussed race in America. One of the first pieces I wrote for this site was about the film and how it challenged me as a critic, writer, and person. It created a culture moment and entered the public consciousness in a huge … Continue reading Review: ‘Us’ Moves Jordan Peele Up the Director Ladder with a Frightening, Layered Story
Review: ‘How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World’ Puts the Franchise to New Heights
Like most people, I saw the first How to Train Your Dragon movie way after I should have. Dreamworks Animation had mostly become a stay away for me after a run of Shrek films and Shark Tale's had left me burnt time and time again. While some of the stories worked, most did not. With my future wife, we … Continue reading Review: ‘How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World’ Puts the Franchise to New Heights