‘Batman: Dying Is Easy‘ is a short fan film directed and co-produced by Sean Schoenke and Aaron Schoenke. The latter wrote it and Nikolay Zamkovoy co-produced it. The funds for the film were raised through a successful crowdfunding campaign. Batman (Kevin Porter) meets with Detective Bullock (Michael Madsen) after rescuing a hostage from the Mad…
‘Porco Rosso‘ is a 1992 anime Studio Ghibli film directed by Hayao Miyazaki, who also wrote the screenplay. He based it on his manga Hikōtei Jidai (“The Age of the Flying Boat”). In 1930s Adriatic Sea, Marco “Porco” Russo (Michael Keaton) is an ace-pilot who defected from the Italian Air Force after Mussolini’s regime took…
‘Sentinelle’ is a French action flick directed and produced by Julien Leclercq, who also co-wrote the screenplay. It was made by Labyrinthe Cinéma and Umedia before being released onto Netflix. Klara (Olga Kurylenko) is a French Army veteran returning home to Nice, France to live with her mother Maria (Antonia Malinova) and her sister Tania…
Released in cinemas and on HBO Max simultaneously, ‘Godzilla vs. Kong‘ is the latest entry in Legendary Pictures and Warner Media’s MonsterVerse film series. It is directed by Adam Wingard. Five years after the previous film, Kong is being isolated on Skull Island by Monarch. Using a young deaf Iwi girl named Jia (Kaylee Hottle)…
Written and directed by Anna Elizabeth James, ‘Deadly Illusions‘ purports to be a psychological thriller that was made by Voltage Pictures and released on Netflix. Mary Morrison (Kristen Davis) is a successful author of a series of thrillers who declines an offer to write another novel by her publisher, but changes her mind after her…
‘Allen v. Farrow‘ is a four-part documentary streaming on HBO Max that details the disturbing allegations against movie director Woody Allen. It is directed by Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering. Mia Farrow, her adopted daughter Dylan Farrow, adopted son Ronan Farrow, and several of her other children discuss the allegations that Mia’s longtime partner, film…
‘Locked Down‘ and ‘Songbird‘ are movies that riff off the COVID-19 lockdown. The former is about a London couple about to break-up that get caught in shelter together. The second presents a future where the quarantine is ongoing. The question is, which one does it better? I break down both films and which one I…
‘Songbird‘ is a 2020 movie that takes inspiration from the Covid-19 virus and subsequent pandemic lockdown. It is directed by Adam Mason and produced by Michael Bay. In the year 2024, the Covid-19 virus has evolved into another, more deadly strain Covid-23 that kills within twenty-four hours. The country is on perpetual lockdown, requiring every…
‘Your Name‘ is a 2016 anime fantasy romantic film directed by Makoto Shinkai. Known as ‘Kimi no Na wa‘ in Japan, it was produced by CoMix Wave Films and dubbed via Madman Entertainment. Toho and Funimation distributed it in Japan and the United States respectively. Mitsuha Miyamizu (Stephanie Sheh) is a high school student living…
‘The Mechanic‘ is a 1972 action thriller directed by Michael Winner and written by Lewis John Carlino. It was produced by Robert Chartoff and Irwin Winkler. It was released through United Artists. Arthur Bishop (Charles Bronson) is a “mechanic,” a hitman who works for the Mafia and pays a call girl (Jill Ireland) to pretend…
‘Space Cowboys‘ is a 2000 science fiction adventure film directed by and co-produced by Clint Eastwood, who also stars in the film. It was made by Village Roadshow Pictures and released via Warner Brothers. NASA project manager Bob Gerson (James Cromwell) calls on retired pilot Colonel Francis D. “Frank” Corvin (Clint Eastwood) to pilot a…
Alfred Hitchcock directs another masterpiece with ‘Dial M For Murder,’ a murder mystery written by Frederick Knott, who also wrote the stageplay for which it is based. It was released by Warner Bros. in 1954. Tony Wendice (Ray Milland) is a retired pro-tennis player whose beautiful socialite Margot (Grace Kelly) is in love with American…
‘Boss Level‘ is a science fiction action film directed by Joe Carnahan, who also co-wrote it and co-produced it along with Frank Grillo and a handful of others. It was released by Entertainment Studios Motion Pictures and streamed exclusively through Hulu. Retired Delta Force soldier Roy Pulver (Frank Grillo) has a problem. He keeps waking…
Mennan Yapo directs the 2007 supernatural psychological thriller ‘Premonition.’ The film was ridiculed by the mainstream critics when it was originally released and audiences seemed to be ambivalent about it as well. Linda Hanson’s (Sandra Bullock) relationship with her husband Jim (Julian McMahon) is drifting apart as he prepares to go to an interview for…
Anthony Waller directs the 2000 crime film ‘The Guilty,’ released through J&M Entertainment. It was produced by Thomas Hedman and Lisa Richardson with William Davies and Simon Burke serving as writers. Callum Crane (Bill Pullman) is a shark attorney who is up for a federal judgeship, but days before he gets the news, he rapes…
‘The Map of Tiny Perfect Things‘ is directed by Ian Samuels and based on a screenplay by Lev Grossman, who also wrote the fictional novel that the film is based on. It was released exclusively on Amazon Prime. Mark (Kyle Allen) is a high school junior stuck in a time loop, reliving the same day…
‘Below Zero‘ is a Spanish action thriller film directed by Lluís Quílez who also co-wrote it. The feature is known as ‘Bajocero‘ in Spain and was produced by Morena Films. It had its premiere in the United States on Netflix. Martin (Javier Gutiérrez) is a rookie police officer with a wife and kid. His first…
‘I Care a Lot‘ made its premiere at the 2020 at the Toronto International Film Festival before being picked up by Netflix for a 2021 release on their streaming service. it is written and directed by J Blakeson. Marla Grayson (Rosamund Pike) is a con artist who uses the shady doctor Karen Amos (Alicia Witt)…
‘Eye See You‘ is a 2002 psychological thriller directed by Jim Gillespie and is written by Howard Swindle, who also wrote the novel it is based on ‘Jitter Joint.’ It was originally titled ‘D-Tox‘ before being released in the United States. FBI Agent Jake Malloy (Sylvester Stallone) is seeking a serial killer that only targets…
David Fincher directs the 2014 psychological thriller ‘Gone Girl,’ based on the similarly titled novel by Gillian Flynn, who also penned the screenplay. Reese Witherspoon served as a co-producer. Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) is a college professor living in Missouri with his wife Amy (Rosamund Pike), a minor celebrity whose parents have written the “Amazing…
Mike Cahill writes and directs the science fiction drama ‘Bliss.’ It was produced by James D. Stern who made it with Endgame Entertainment and released via Amazon Prime. Greg Whittle (Owen Wilson) is a daydreaming pencil pusher recently divorced. He sketches a strange coastal house and fakes a shoulder injury to take painkillers. When his…
‘Judas and the Black Messiah‘ is a biopic directed and produced by Shaka King, who also co-wrote the screenplay. Movie director Ryan Coogler also co-produced it. It was released exclusively on HBO Max for streaming. At the tail end of the 1960s, Agent Roy Mitchell (Jesse Plemons) is working under orders from FBI Director J.…
‘Inside The Circle‘ is a quirky romantic comedy directed by Javier Colón. It was written and co-produced by one of the film’s stars Omar Mora, and released his media company Moras Productions. Business attorney Rocio (Stefy Garcia) meets app developer Giancarlo (Omar Mora) during an awkward exchange, but it is clear there are sparks. However,…
Paul Haggis writes and directs ‘The Next Three Days‘ a 2010 action-thriller produced by Lionsgate. It is a remake of the 2008 French film ‘Pour elle‘ (‘Anything for Her’), which I have not seen. College professor John Brennan (Russell Crowe) and his wife Lara (Elizabeth Banks) are living a normal life with their young son…
Matt Green directs, co-writes, and co-produces ‘The Man From Nowhere,’ an indie drama co-written by Chris Dowling and produced by John Sullivan. It also features music by Grant Fonda. California attorney Jake (Seth Bowling) is a shark who only sees dollar signs when it comes to a case. However, his alcoholism angers his partners who…
