Share: Attempting to breathe new life into the slasher subgenre in 2024 is a little like trying to kill Michael Myers. No matter how strong or creative you may be, you’re probably going to wind up having to take another stab at it in the sequel. Or, in the case of veteran horror director Chris Nash’s most recent film, “In A Violent Nature,” deliver another swing of the ax. At first glance, the plot of the film is relatively straightforward and follows the slasher formula …
‘Hit Man’ psychs itself out of doing more than perfecting the rom-com
Share: Before he was a hotshot in “Top Gun: Maverick” or a hunk opposite Sydney Sweeney in “Anyone But You,” Glen Powell appeared in director Richard Linklater’s “Fast Food Nation” as Paul Dano’s character’s classmate almost 20 years ago. Although “Fast Food Nation” was a lackluster effort for Linklater and far from a star vehicle for Powell, their fourth collaboration, “Hit Man,” makes up for lost time by aiming higher than most rom-coms. Loosely based on a 2001 article from Texas Monthly, “Hit Man” follows …
‘The Acolyte’ actualizes the promise unfulfilled by Disney+ ‘Star Wars’
Share: While newly-minted chief creative officer Dave Filoni smashes his action figures together and creates nonsense like “Ahsoka,” newest kid on the block Leslye Headland has delivered “The Acolyte,” one of the most narratively interesting “Star Wars” projects in a long time. From the offset, this show sets itself apart from the same old same old in the galaxy far, far away and focuses on an era of “Star Wars” that has, until now, been relegated to external media: the High Republic. The era overall …
‘Furiosa’: A slow burn that sparks a glorious odyssey
Share: Amidst a sea of unnecessary sequels and remakes that are being overwhelmingly released this year, director and co-writer George Miller returns to the dunes of the Wasteland with “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” a prequel to the 2015 film, “Mad Max: Fury Road.” Despite the newest installation in the “Mad Max” franchise not hitting as hard as its predecessor, “Furiosa” is a brilliant exploration of the titular character while providing a larger scope of the world in this series and delivering jaw-dropping moments sprinkled …
Gunna focuses and refines his skills on ‘One of Wun’
Share: Gunna has always excelled in his own lane of gliding over smooth melodic beats and he unveils his worth again on his newest project ‘One of Wun.’ Filled with songs that will quickly climb the ranks on playlists, this album gives listeners plenty of opportunities to improve their auxiliary credibility when picking songs to impress their crew. No time is wasted as the album starts with a confident and potent baseline on “collage” giving Gunna the space to effortlessly slide on the beat. He …
‘I Saw the TV Glow’ dims profound allegory behind spellbinding screen
Share: When it comes to A24 movies, there’s an unconvincing justification conveniently awaiting any negative thoughts over the inherent weirdness of most of their releases: you just don’t get it. With “I Saw the TV Glow,” a visually spectacular whirlwind of creativity from writer-director Jane Schoenbrun, the message is there but collapses under a convoluted narrative best described as an overstretched short film. The movie, spanning the late 90s to mid-2000s, takes place through the unreliable perspective of Owen (Justice Smith), who looks back on …
‘Tortured Poets’ succeeds with emotional story of two heartbreaks
Share: For the average person, releasing a double album after a year filled with a record-breaking tour and movie combo, and a triage of high-profile relationships ending and beginning sounds like hell on earth, but not if you’re Taylor Swift. Swift’s latest whopping 31-track release “The Tortured Poets Department” and its sister “The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology” highlight a new but also not-so-new stage of her stardom, the double breakup album. Coming out just under two years after her last big release “Midnights” (which …
‘Abigail’ sinks teeth into vampire genre with hilariously hammy bloodbath
Share: Finally freed from the clutches of Ghostface and the “Scream” franchise, Radio Silence is back to deliver bloody goodness to the big screen with their latest release “Abigail.” Moving on from slashers the team has tackled the tried and true vampire genre of horror to a perfectly hilarious and gory effect. This movie’s set-up starts out fairly simply and involves a group of criminals, given code names based on the rat pack, who kidnap a girl (the titular Abigail) who is the daughter of …
‘Civil War’ avoids real conversation of America’s dangerous divide
Share: What kind of American are you? How would you answer that with a gun to your head? Is that something that we should be asking ourselves? A24’s newest movie “Civil War” tries to answer the question with a gun to the head, but at the same time, it doesn’t and instead replaces those questions with jarring and often disturbing visuals which gloss over the real questions like how our nation got to that point. Don’t come into this movie expecting anything or wanting your …
What’s the big deal, it’s just the tip?
Share: To tip or not to tip that is the question. Does the server have to do anything specific to get your money or is it wraps from the jump and there’s no tip regardless of what they do? When the IPad does more work than the cashier should you still tip that 20%? Are you thinking about the employees in the back of the kitchen? These are just some of the questions that a lot of people, especially college students, think of when entering …