Eileen December 7, 2023 By: Button Tyler Banark More than any year in recent memory, 2023 has been a time for the great debate of when a long movie becomes too long. With three-hour feats like Oppenheimer , Killers of the Flower Moon , and Beau is Afraid taking up the big screen, runtimes and pacing have been common topics for dissection and discussion. On paper, Eileen should have nothing to do with those already mentioned on account of its 100-minute runtime and tiny cast. And yet, it feels even longer than those, seemingly a three-hour movie stuck in the body of a ninety-minute one. Based on the 2015 crime novel of the same name, Eileen follows the titular character (Thomasin McKenzie) as she works at a juvenile detention center in 1960s Boston. She’s a quiet young woman who isn’t in love with her job (or much of anything for that matter), but it does provide an escape from her miserable home life, where she takes care of her widowed, deadbeat alcoholic father (Shea Whigham). Her life becomes anything but quiet when she meets a new co-worker at the prison, Rebecca (Anne Hathaway), the free-spirited doctor who takes Eileen under her wing. Things are good at first, flirty even. But the more time they spend together, the more Eileen becomes roped into something that Rebecca is hiding under the surface. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otDHCJcdN34 Again, on paper, that’s a simple synopsis I can enjoy rather quickly. The result ends up being the exact opposite, as everything that unfolds either feels out of place or is an attempt at a mind-blowing plot twist. Take a scene where Eileen and Rebecca are approached by a couple of men while at a bar. Rebecca turns to Eileen and asks her if she wants to dance, calling Eileen by her name instead as an act of seeming playfulness. It’s a moment that doesn’t get brought up afterward, nor does the movie care to explain why this happened. Pacing is another one of the biggest reasons Eileen doesn’t work. Scenes are rushed or cut down right as things are about to go somewhere, while others test patience. The first half hour features a moment when Eileen fantasizes about an encounter with a young correctional officer. But right as the temperature starts to climb, it cuts to the next scene. Fast forward to the last half hour, and you’ve got Eileen and Rebecca getting involved in a lethargically paced dark situation. Although McKenzie and Hathaway are the prominent stars, their performances feel shallow. McKenzie, in particular, has left me confused these past few years. She’s previously given standout performances, most notably in 2019’s Jojo Rabbit and 2021’s Last Night in Soho . At the same time, there’s stuff like M. Night Shyamalan’s Old, where she’s out of place with her American accent and line deliveries that seem to come off a cue card. Eileen falls similarly to Old , leaving her unable to adapt to the environment while donning an unconvincing Boston accent. Hathaway isn’t unlocking anything new or exciting, with Rebecca feeling somewhat familiar to her previous showy roles. It’s a shame that she and McKenzie do have chemistry and play it up, yet it’s never satisfyingly explored beyond the titillating surface. The same treatment goes to Whigham, whose character’s inherent complexity from alcoholism and dejection is reduced to just a string of drunken mumbles. Adding insult to injury for these dull characters are dull visuals. Ari Wegner’s cinematography displays poor lighting and uninspired camera work, with the kaleidoscopic shots prominently sold in the trailer left either underutilized to the point of total absence. Also featured is a weighted score by Richard Reed Parry, most notably known as a core member of Arcade Fire. There’s a tonal imbalance between gritty noir and modern thriller, something reflected in director William Oldroyd’s handling of the material. With its bothersome pacing and unfulfilling performances from its talented cast, Eileen is undoubtedly one of the worst of the year. I don’t think McKenzie or Hathaway have been in a movie as bad as this, one that has its sights set on undermining their talent at every turn until they have nothing left. That’s all Eileen really is: a whole lot of nothing. Neon will release Eileen in select theaters on December 01st. More Reviews Primetime September 22, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Unabomber September 24, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Look Back September 16, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Elsinore September 14, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Hunter Friesen

Smile 2 October 16, 2024 By: Button Hunter Friesen It’s crazy that Smile 2 so casually assumes that you haven’t seen Smile , the $200 million smash hit and global marketing sensation. How else could one explain the gumption that writer/director Parker Finn has to repeat all of the beats of his previous film, even down to the exact same twists and explanations for what is going on? There could be a slight excuse if this was released several years later and given a semicolon title like Smile: Rebirth or Smile: A New Chapter . But no, this is literally Smile 2, and it’s only been two years (or one day for someone like me who watched the first film in preparation), so we’re all left to experience déjà vu. Finn is a talented craftsman, engineering some decent setpieces through brilliant camerawork and sound design. His use of creeping camera pans is commendable, stirring up the tension as he allows our minds to create temporarily unseen terror. The opening sequence exemplifies all of this, taking place almost immediately after the ending of the first film. Joel (Kyle Gallner) is afflicted with the curse that besieged Rose, needing to rid himself of it through either murder or suicide. He attempts one of those options in an extended long take that traverses in and out of a drug house, capped with the other option. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HY6QFlBzUY Time goes by, and the location changes, but the circumstances remain the same. Skye Riley (Naomi Scott) is your average pop star attempting to make a comeback world tour after a falling out with drugs and alcohol. She still has a drug dealer, but only for Vicodin to help with her back pain caused by a car accident that killed her then-boyfriend. What begins as a suspected bad drug trip turns into something much more sinister once the dealer sports an eerie smile and bashes his face in with a barbell plate. The chain of haunting ensues, ranging from terrible visions to… well, pretty much just visions. If you were to list all of the terrible things that happened to Skye in this film, the majority of them didn’t actually happen. The stakes get increasingly lowered each time something gets interrupted by Skye jolting awake, only to realize it was all just a dream. It’s no different than the age-old complaint of the Marvel movies undercutting every emotional moment with a joke. But even in those dreams, the scares aren’t conveyed as effectively as they were the first time. For as much as Finn knows how to set something up, he opts for the balloon-popping jumpscare nearly every time. If you listen for the silencing audio cue, you can guess when it’s going to come without fail. It takes a lot of skill to scare people, and a whole lot less to startle them. Finn has what it takes to truly scare you, and there were several moments here where I could almost taste it. There are inklings of other themes outside of the well-worn topic of trauma that the first film embraced so enthusiastically. The pressures of fame compress Skye at every moment, with hundreds of people depending on her at every moment. She never smiles outside of performing, hoping that faking it will eventually lead her to making it. The increased production budget, most likely supplied through the blatant product placement of Voss Water, allows for some of those intricately choreographed stage shows to highlight the physical and mental demands placed on those just looking to entertain us. Of course, if you want to see the total unraveling of a popstar due to the metaphysical darkness that lurks behind every corner, you’re better off with Vox Lux , which should be all the rage now with the director’s new film, The Brutalist , making waves on the festival circuit. Smile 2 saves its best idea and single shot for the absolute end, presenting a unique idea for what could be in store for Smile 3 . If only Finn had decided to expedite that process and save us the two tedious hours to get there. Paramount Pictures will release Smile 2 in theaters nationwide on October 18th. More Reviews Primetime September 22, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Unabomber September 24, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Look Back September 16, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Elsinore September 14, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Hunter Friesen

After Yang March 7, 2022 By: Button Hunter Friesen What does it mean to be human? It’s a question that has baffled the greatest minds for thousands of years. There is no single answer, and just about every possible answer produces another exponential round of questions. But despite the daunting task set upon by any sedulous searcher, 2021 and 2022 have seen several filmmakers offer their own opinion on the matter. Revered master Apichatpong Weerasethakul gave us Memoria , a film with a meditative atmosphere that not so much answers questions, but leads the viewer down their path of contemplation. Through the process of human cloning, Benjamin Cleary’s Swan Song begged the question, can human identity be passed on and perfectly emulated by inorganic beings? Through the use of two brilliant Mahershala Ali performances, Cleary’s delicate parable of lost love showed the power of interconnectedness. And now, debuting before and after the previously mentioned films with its early Cannes world premiere and its U.S. premiere at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival, comes After Yang , a mixture of reality and poetry that breathes through its slow-brew atmosphere. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kwp32zLc08c The second half of the title comes from the name of the perfectly human-like android within the multi-racial household of father Jake (Colin Farrell), mother Kyra (Jodie Turner-Smith), and child Mika (Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja). Yang was brought into the fold at the same time as Mika was adopted from China as a way to connect her to her ancestral roots. For years, life has gone by as planned with Jake overseeing his tea shop, and Yang acting as Mika’s main point of contact for her identity crises. One day, that peaceful cycle breaks down when Yang enters a catatonic state. As they attempt to bring him back, Jake and Kyra learn more about Yang’s deeper connection to their daughter and the memories he harbored in a life outside his family. Writer/director Kogonada started out in video essays examining the themes of some of cinema's greatest auteurs, such as Alfred Hitchcock, Yasujirō Ozu, and Ingmar Bergman. And now, with only two films to his name, Kogonada is already entering the conversation as one of the best humanistic directors of the modern era. His previous feature, Columbus , made use of precise visuals that synchronized with the gentle storytelling. It was a high-wire act of writing and directing made to look remarkably simple. After Yang maintains that same level of stillness as it transplants its setting from modern Indiana to the distant future, where all of humanity has melded into a semi-perfect homogenous society. Production designer Alexandra Schaller takes an East Asian inspiration for the architecture, complete with straight lines, tranquil gardens, and minimalist spaces. The stillness transfers to the performances as well, with Farrell at his most introspective and compelling. It harkens back a bit to his work with Yorgos Lanthimos in The Lobster and The Killing of a Sacred Deer , with the dialed-back emotions and an everyman disposition. He serves as a perfect gateway into this strange, new world. The parts where the film reaches its peak are the sequences where Jake accesses Yang’s memories. In those moments, everything within the film seemingly comes together, as Kogonada (also serving as his own editor) leans into the humanistic side of Alexander Weinstein’s 2016 short story. From his memories, Jake sees the empathy and compassion that Yang experienced and shared over time, and how he passed them on to Mika through everyday lessons. The string-filled music of ASKA brings overwhelming emotional power when it gets paired with heartbreaking visuals. After Yang is full of grace and compassion, with a touch of melancholy to make it a truly reflective experience of the human soul. It merges American sci-fi with the softer side of independent cinema, which makes it a perfect project to be under the A24 umbrella. An official release date has yet to be announced, which has justifiably angered cinephiles who have been left out in the cold. But when the day comes that this gem is opened for all to see, that patience will be greatly rewarded. A24 and Showtime will release After Yang simultaneously in select theaters and on streaming on March 04th. More Reviews Primetime September 22, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Unabomber September 24, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Look Back September 16, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Elsinore September 14, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Hunter Friesen

The Holdovers September 12, 2023 By: Button Hunter Friesen Between its retro production titles, popping sound, dissolved editing, and grainy cinematography, Alexander Payne’s The Holdovers is not just a film that is set in 1970; it looks and feels like it was made during that time. The Omaha-born writer/director (only directing in this outing) returns from a six-year hiatus after the disappointing Downsizing , delivering one of his best films through a great story and equally great characters. The titular band of misfits at Barton Academy are those who have been left behind during the two-week holiday break. They’re the ones who can’t go home to their families, either because they don’t have one or they’re not welcome. The curmudgeonly history teacher Paul Hunham (Paul Giamatti) presides over them. He’s been handed this shit detail because none of the other teachers like him (the students share that sentiment), and because he’s also all alone. The worst of his troublemaking leftovers is Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa). He has a supernatural talent for getting into trouble and pushing Paul’s buttons. But he’s also a very gifted student, consistently getting the top score in class, a nearly impossible feat due to the rigors of the course and Paul’s torturous teaching style. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhKLpJmHhIg Also left with Paul and Angus is the school’s cook Mary. She’s decided to stay put to be with the memory of her son, as he was enrolled in the school before being drafted and killed in Vietnam a few months back. These three unlikely companions form a holiday family, going on misadventures together and learning something about each other and themselves. Nothing about writer David Hemingson’s past indicated that he would make such a bitingly funny and introspective script, let alone on the first try, at least in the realm of feature films. He’s written for a couple of television shows, none too noteworthy except for the short-lived Kitchen Confidential starring pre-fame Bradley Cooper. Paul’s insulting Latin phrases and general disregard for his students’ confidence put up a tough exterior, one that will take a large tool and persistence to crack. Giamatti is masterful with his barbs, getting under your skin with ease as you consistently plead, “Why can’t you just be nice?” Yet he’s always likable, with the later sections of the movie interestingly pulling back the layers of his past. Much of that later warmth also comes from Sessa and Randolph’s performances. Sessa delivers an astounding debut performance, overcoming many of the rookie tropes. The pain of Randolph’s character is felt in every scene, but she refuses to make it her whole personality. She’s hilarious when she checks Giamatti’s callousness and provides the warmth Angus needs at this difficult time. I expect and fully support Oscar campaigns for each of these performers. Through his directorial choices, Payne makes The Holdovers into a Christmas classic for adults. The cinematography glows like a warm fire and the relaxed pacing allows these characters to breathe. This is a melancholic film, with Payne knowing that the holidays are not full of yuletide cheer for everyone. But there are still seasons' greetings to be had, just enough to make you want to be a better person and stay close to those that matter most. What more could you ask for in times like these? This review was originally published from the international premiere at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival. Focus Features will release The Holdovers in select theaters on October 27th, followed by a nationwide expansion on November 10th. More Reviews Primetime September 22, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Unabomber September 24, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Look Back September 16, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Elsinore September 14, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Hunter Friesen

Sometimes I Think About Dying January 26, 2023 By: Button Hunter Friesen Those who have worked in an office setting will find plenty to admire and shudder about in Sometimes I Think About Dying , director Rachel Lambert’s adaptation of the 2019 short film of the same name. Lambert essentially sticks a camera within a small office on the Oregon coast, acting as a fly on the wall as a group of strangers fills their ho-hum days with small talk and routine socializing. Except there’s one person in the office who seems incapable of engaging in that sort of mindless thing. Fran (Daisy Ridley), always dressed in plain clothes and found sitting at her desk adjusting spreadsheets, can go for days without talking to anyone. This prolonged silence isn’t because she dislikes her coworkers, but more of a defense mechanism to keep people from finding out what’s underneath. Things change suddenly when a new employee, Robert, comes to town. He seems to be a translator between Fran and the rest of the world, slowly pulling her out of her shell. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idtCErzXixE One of the things revealed early on comes from the name of the film, which is that Fran sometimes drifts off into space during the day. But she doesn’t fantasize about romantic endeavors or if they forget to turn the stove off. No, she thinks about all the different ways she could die, such as hanging from the large crane outside her office window or being consumed by insects in the nearby forest. Lambert, collaborating with cinematographer Dustin Lane and production designer Robert Brekco, stages these fantasies with surreal beauty. They may only be brief glimpses, but they stick with you long after. Lane’s camera never moves, often keeping the background out of focus as Fran eavesdrops on her coworkers. These moments can go on for extended periods, acting as a way to slowly enter the world of Fran. But it also feels like there’s not a ton on the page like it needs to be stretched in order to fit within the required feature runtime. Ridley does deliver one of her best performances as Fran, ditching the movie star swagger of the Star Wars films in favor of an extremely stripped-down inhabitation of a character. She speaks maybe five lines within the first thirty minutes, yet you’re endlessly fascinated with learning more about her. It is unfortunate that later on, those simple questions aren’t answered, leaving you just as unsatisfied as when you started. Sometimes I Think About Dying is a small movie with a small scope, buoyed by some intriguing visuals and a standout performance from an actress who looks ready to take on this new side of her career. As a twelve-minute short film, it’s a bit too short. And as a ninety-minute feature film, it's a bit too long. Somewhere out there is a perfect 45-60 minute version of this story. But it’s not here right now, which is a shame. This review was originally published from the world premiere at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Oscilloscope will release Sometimes I Think About Dying in select theaters on January 26th. More Reviews Primetime September 22, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Unabomber September 24, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Look Back September 16, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Elsinore September 14, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Hunter Friesen

Bad Behaviour January 28, 2023 By: Button Hunter Friesen “Never give in to hope. Just be,” says Ben Whishaw’s mysterious spiritual self-help guru to a group of strangers who have gathered to solve their deepest and darkest problems. That Yoda-esque saying was primarily aimed towards Lucy (Jennifer Connelly), a former child actress who feels ashamed that she still lives a comfortable life from the money she earned from a trashy television series that was more interested in her body than her character. Attaining fame at an early age affects both the relationships in her past and future, namely with her parents, who clung onto her as a meal ticket, and her now-adult daughter, Dylan, who entered the film industry by being a stunt performer. It’s an extremely difficult tightrope walk to create unlikable and complicated characters that make you want to learn more about them and sympathize with their troubles. Only a single false action may tip the scales in the wrong direction, robbing the audience of an interesting study of the human experience. Unfortunately for writer/director/star Alice Englert, she doesn't make just one wrong move; she makes several over the course of this exponentially grating film about broken relationships. Englert, daughter of famed filmmaker and most recent winner of the Academy Award for Best Director, Jane Campion, packs a lot of ideas within Bad Behaviour , yet none of them come to fruition. Lucy is riddled with generational trauma passed down by her parents, who also made her feel like she wasn’t good enough. That abusive relationship instilled a deep depression, leading to a neglectful relationship with her daughter later on in life. Englert doesn’t provide much detail into the mother-daughter relationship, save for a few awkward phone calls and a tedious exposition dump later on. Many of the potentially intriguing ideas within her script follow that same trajectory. We’re told more than shown, with the telling coming across as a cop-out. Connelly acts her heart out in the central role, but not in the most positive way. Her eccentric mannerisms and ticking-time-bomb attitude are always front and center, serving as a constant reminder of the artificiality of this character. Things only get worse as the narrative leans more into the absurd near the latter half, with implausible story beats and wild directorial flourishes taking away from any authentic emotion that could have been mined from this situation. Bad Behaviour would at least be tolerable if the problems it had were interesting. But mostly it comes across as tedious and frustrating, making it far worse than it has any right to be on paper. This review was originally published from the world premiere at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Gravitas Ventures will release Bad Behaviour in select theaters on June 18th. More Reviews Primetime September 22, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Unabomber September 24, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Look Back September 16, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Elsinore September 14, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Hunter Friesen

You People January 25, 2023 By: Button Hunter Friesen In a recent interview she did with Indiewire centered around the world of You Hurt My Feelings at the ongoing Sundance Film Festival, star Julia Louis-Dreyfus had an astute observation about the power of film editing: “...when it comes to timing, both for drama and comedy, but specifically for comedy, if it’s not in place, it can be a butchery. It can be total nails on a chalkboard if you’re not with the right person.” If only she had shared that wisdom sooner with You People editor Jamie Nelsen and director Kenya Barris… Barris, co-writing with star Jonah Hill, makes his feature directorial debut with this film. He’s already spent years on television as the creator of the hit ABC sitcom Black-ish (along with its subsequent spin-offs Mixed-ish and Grown-ish ), as well as the Netflix series #BlackAF . Much of that sitcom energy spills into You People , with almost all of the scenes playing out as individual components that are awkwardly stitched together to deliver a less-than-compelling narrative. You People is essentially an unofficial remake of 1967’s Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner , except with none of the seriousness and intention to actually make a difference. The story, while believable in concept, is delivered with such simplicity that it might as well be titled You People Have Got to be Kidding Me?!?!? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCMHc-IFAB0 Things start sweetly as the white, Jewish Ezra (Jonah Hill) and the black, Muslim Amira (Lauren London) fall in love despite their many outward differences. Standing in the way of their love fully blossoming into marriage are their parents, namely Ezra’s mother (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and Amira’s father (Eddie Murphy), who both can’t get over the fact that their child is marrying someone of a different race. Much of the “humor” within You People is that the characters don’t want to outwardly offend others by bringing up what they're really thinking, so they dance around the subject with endless rambling. It’s as if you’re binging five episodes of Curb Your Enthusiasm where Larry David gets himself into a bad situation and makes it worse by trying to talk his way out of it. Except here there are no Larrys as Barris and Hill don’t outwardly vilify their characters, keeping the conflicts superficial. All you get is an excessive amount of second-hand embarrassment and little first-rate sense of stakes or personal investment. If any of the characters sat down for more than five minutes and talked honestly, then none of this would be a problem. It seems like that was the intention that Barris and Hill had with their script: to show that all these racial problems could be solved with some understanding and truthfulness. But if Green Book erroneously taught us anything a few years ago, it’s that this problem doesn’t just go away with a quick heart-to-heart as it does here. Even Eddie Murphy, who can usually be depended on to spin comedy gold out of straw, can’t salvage what he’s given here. He’s given a movie star entrance as James Brown plays overhead, but then just sits back and bemoans Ezra being white for the next ninety minutes. Louis-Dreyfus is probably worse served as she’s forced to recycle the same “older white woman who’s not in touch with today’s racial climate” bit on and on until it almost becomes offensive to comedy. You People tries way too hard to do way too little, becoming a “film for everyone” that no one will enjoy. Barris abruptly exited his $100 million multi-year deal with Netflix in 2021 for another lucrative pact over at Paramount. Somewhere in a Hollywood bar right now, there are two executives, one from Netflix and the other from Paramount, drinking together, except one is downing shots much happier than the other. Netflix will release You People in select theaters on January 20th, followed by its streaming premiere on January 27th. More Reviews Primetime September 22, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Unabomber September 24, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Look Back September 16, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Elsinore September 14, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Hunter Friesen

TIFF24 Dispatch #1 September 14, 2024 By: Button Hunter Friesen All of the films were screened at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). Click here for additional full reviews and dispatches. Select films below will receive separate full-length reviews at a later date, most likely in connection to their public releases. Better Man If you squint hard enough into this picture, you can identity the gimmick that director Michael Gracey and Robbie Williams were going for with a biopic on the pop star’s life. And if you can’t make it out, I’ll just spoil it for you (don’t worry, there’s no way Paramount will be able to avoid this revelation once they start marketing it): Williams is played by a CGI monkey using the same technology as the modern Planet of the Apes films. It’s a motif that never distracts from the proceeding action, yet never gets above its surface-level message (He feels different! Do you get it?!?). It’s also the only differentiating factor the film has from every other musical biopic. Gracey recaptures the physical magic of the set pieces from The Greatest Showman , inserting a peppy step into this 131-minute checklist. (3/5) Hard Truths Hard Truths may be Mike Leigh’s return to his trademarked genre of kitchen sink drama, but doesn’t mark his return to the levels that he was regularly clearing. There’s an honesty to this story of a London family dealing with pent-up anger and resentment, with Marianne Jean-Baptiste (reuniting with Leigh for the first time since Secrets & Lies) delivering a powerhouse performance filled with creatively side-splitting insults and pathos. But its message is also a double-edged sword, as it’s also overly familiar to audiences since the conclusion of the pandemic. Even in well-worn genres, such as period pieces and domestic dramas, Leigh has always found a way to provide his own stamp. The only time he starts to unlock a new angle for this story is right as it’s about to end, which is too little, too late. (3/5) I'm Still Here Not to be confused with the Casey Affleck-directed “documentary” on Joaquin Phoenix, Walter Salles examines his crumbling native Brazil, both on the macroeconomic level and within the microcosm of a family. Fernanda Torres, daughter of Fernanda Montenegro, who reunites here with Salles with a small supporting role after 1998’s Central Station , delivers an award-worthy performance as the matriarch of a family caught in the vice that is Brazil’s brutalist regime circa 1971. Salles finds the heart and soul of this family and their house, with love found in every nook and cranny. True heartbreak is felt once everything begins to decay, with the family being left to pick up the pieces and slowly glue them back together in the years to come. (4/5) The Return Director Uberto Pasolini delivers an extremely classical piece of filmmaking, which is both a blessing and a curse. The old-school feel of the production provides an inherent sense of sweep, while the chintzy technicals keep everything outside of believability. Of course, myths aren’t supposed to be real, but this retelling of Odysseus lacks the stamina needed to be special. The two leads, Ralph Fiennes as the title character and Juliette Binoche as Queen Penelope, are unexpectedly fantastic, retaining that romantic touch they shared decades ago in The English Patient . They are stranded, both literally and metaphorically, on an island as the supporting cast ranges from mediocre to embarrassing. Pasolini stated that very few filmmakers have attempted to adapt Homer’s works because it would be impossible to surpass a story with thousands of years of importance placed upon it. It was brave of him to take the leap, but he would have been better off hedging heeding his own warning. (3/5) More Reviews Primetime September 22, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Unabomber September 24, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Look Back September 16, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Elsinore September 14, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Hunter Friesen

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery September 10, 2022 By: Button Hunter Friesen The Last Jedi haters are rolling in their graves, as Rian Johnson has pulled off another incomprehensible feat with Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery . A sequel to 2019’s Knives Out , a great igniter to the revitalization of the whodunit genre, was always going to be a tricky obstacle to overcome. In stepped Netflix, which gave Johnson the necessary blank check to indulge in his wildest fantasies. And because of that, he has crafted a whodunnit that is grander, funnier, stranger, and perhaps better than the original. The Thrombey family has been dealt with, and a whole new cast of characters has been assembled within Glass Onion . None of these people is bound by blood. Instead, they are all old friends who go by the “Disruptors.” The leader of the group is Miles Bron (Edward Norton), whose billion-dollar fortune allows him to live on a private Greek island. Lionel (Leslie Odom Jr.) is the lead scientist at Bron’s company. There’s also Senate candidate and family woman Claire (Kathryn Hahn), airheaded fashion model Birdie (Kate Hudson), gun-toting Duke (Dave Bautista), and his much younger girlfriend Whiskey (Madelyn Cline). The black sheep of the group is Andi (Janelle Monáe), who was excommunicated after she lost a lengthy lawsuit against all of them for stealing her business idea. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gj5ibYSz8C0 Every year, the group (minus Andi) receives a puzzle box invitation for a weekend getaway on Miles’ island. This year, however, invitations have also been sent to Andi and to Mr. Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig), whose mind is turning into mush as the COVID-19 pandemic has him shut inside without a case to crack. As you expect, the fireworks begin to go off once all these characters are assembled in one location. Long-held secrets are spilled, violence is enacted, and everyone is a suspect. As is the location and budget, the mystery here is much larger than in the original film. Double crosses become triple crosses, which then become quadruple crosses. As another testament to his dominance over his genre contemporaries, Johnson’s ability to control the material as both a writer and director is unparalleled. Through slick editing and a tactical sense of pacing, he’s created another murder mystery where the placing of the puzzle pieces is just as satisfying as seeing the whole picture. Monáe takes over the Ana de Armas role from the first Knives Out . She’s Blanc’s intelligence, laying out the details of each of these theory characters, and what motives they may have to harm another. Talking specifically about how she effortlessly overcomes the challenge of her role would require going into spoilers, so you’re just going to have to take me at my word that she’s incredible. The rest of the cast doesn’t have as much pressure on their shoulders, but they still shine when they need to. Norton is his signature smarmy self, complete with a flashback scene of him donning Frank Mackey’s outfit from Magnolia (a decision I can only imagine was explicitly targeted toward me). Hudson gets many of the laugh-out-loud moments, and Hahn chews the scenery as usual. Of course, Craig leads the pack, whose enthusiasm for the role is immediately infectious. Watching an actor known for playing the most serious iteration of James Bond don a pinstripe swimsuit and spew information with a comically overdone Southern accent is such a sight to behold. Luckily, Craig’s relationship with this character is much more positive than Bond's, so the future is bright for further travels around the world. Glass Onion skillfully embraces and overcomes the usual dangers of doing the same thing as the original, just on a bigger scale. As the first of two planned sequels by Netflix, I can only imagine what Johnson is going to serve up next. This review was originally published from the world premiere at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival. Netflix will release Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery in theaters nationwide on November 23rd, followed by its streaming premiere on December 23rd. More Reviews Primetime September 22, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Unabomber September 24, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Look Back September 16, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Elsinore September 14, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Hunter Friesen

Here October 29, 2024 By: Button Hunter Friesen The right concept meets the right creative person in Here , the film that finally breaks Robert Zemeckis from the hellish CGI hole he dug himself with his previous three features of Welcome to Marwen , The Witches , and the Disney+ Pinocchio . I shouldn’t get too ahead of myself, though, as that wish has come true in monkey paw fashion, with Zemeckis veering his sights on the next step in the technological evolutionary cycle: artificial intelligence. It only makes sense that the two words that have invaded every aspect of our lives in such a short time find their way onto the silver screen. And, most surprisingly, it’s only one of a handful of notable gimmicks that run amok in this intergenerational story that will surely be a sweeper at this year’s AARP Movies for Grownups Awards. The rabbit hole concept of place and time is at the heart of this story, itself adapted from the graphic novel of the same name by Richard McGuire. What would you see if you could turn back time on one single spot? Did dinosaurs roam proudly? Did Native Americans hunt and gather on this land? Did the first colonial settlers lay claim to it? All that and more happened in the living room of Richard (Tom Hanks) and Margaret (Robin Wright), a baby boomer couple who serve as the anchor throughout the millennia. Small windows into the past are interspersed throughout: Benjamin Franklin’s son planting his estate on the land, an aviation enthusiast who buys the property at the turn of the twentieth century, the couple who invent the La-Z-Boy recliner in the living room, and a present-day African-American couple dealing with the pandemic and raising a son in politically charged times. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_id-SkGU2k All of this freely flows nonlinearly, the dots of each timeframe being connected by literal rectangular frames that similarly overlap each other to the source material. The camera is fixed in an observational position within one corner of the room, never moving for a moment. It’s a way for Zemeckis and his Forrest Gump writer Eric Roth to zoom out from all the commotion of details and take a big-picture look at how we’re part of the circle of life. It’s a bold concept tangentially akin to Richard Linklater’s Boyhood , although Zemeckis opts for the shortcut of visual effects here. Hanks and Wright first appear in the frame as their characters at seventeen years old, their faces de-aged by artificial intelligence and their bodies slightly animated to hide away all the mileage. It’s certainly a showcase for how far the technology has come over the years, more convincing than what Martin Scorsese tried to do with The Irishman and Ang Lee with Gemini Man , mostly due to Hanks and Wright still carrying a youthful energy. But it’s still an uncanny valley, and at no point can you fully buy famous actors in their sixties playing characters under the legal drinking age. With the implication of imagery and traditional editing stripped away, the actors are forced to pick up the slack. They perform their parts as if they are in a black box theatre production, a scenario that might not have been foreign to them, as the sets often look shoddily digitally created through green screens. Details about their lives and circumstances are announced with such cornily dramatic effect that’d be impossible to forget, which would have probably been a real threat considering such little time is spent with certain characters. How else can Michelle Dockery illustrate an entire chapter in the adult life of her character, the wife of the aviator, in just a few short minutes without overacting? The drubbing of the message doesn’t take away from its effectiveness, especially as Alan Silvestri’s heart-tugging score works overtime. Richard allows his dreams to fall by the wayside due to words like downsizing, taxes, and mortgages. As time flies by, those things seem less and less important, with only the people closest to him and the memories he shared being what’s left behind. Even though we say “Yeah, yeah, I got it,” to every person older than us, insisting that we cherish the time that we have, we never really seem to properly do that. For some people, this might be the wake-up call they’ve always needed. For others, it’s just another hokey life lesson from people that the world has passed by. Even if you think you might fall in line with the latter camp, the concept and potential to be touched by its message is simply too great to nonchalantly pass up. Sony Pictures Releasing will release Here in theaters nationwide on November 01st. More Reviews Primetime September 22, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Unabomber September 24, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Look Back September 16, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Elsinore September 14, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Hunter Friesen

Master Gardener May 17, 2023 By: Button Hunter Friesen Master Gardener , the latest continuation of Paul Schrader’s “tormented souls with a past” series, opens as predictably as one would expect. A black-clothed man sits at his lamp-lit desk, writing down his daily thoughts in a journal while downing a glass of whiskey. The man talks about gardening as “the belief in the future, that the plans you make and execute will come through.” The man, in this case, is Narvel Roth (Joel Edgerton, taking over from Ethan Hawke and Oscar Isaac as Schrader’s lonely, jaded protagonist). He’s the head gardener for Gracewood Gardens, a renowned botanical heaven run by the estate of Norma Haverhill (Sigourney Weaver). Despite being located within the heart of New Orleans, Gracewood feels like it’s cut off from the rest of the world. There’s a stillness in the air as the ritualistic gardening processes are performed year in and year out. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzuJ9tv1eM0 But that sense of serenity begins to waver with the arrival of Norma’s grandniece Maya (Quintessa Swindell, last seen in front of umpteen greenscreens for Black Adam ). Life has not been kind to Maya, nor has she made the right decisions as of late. Norma assigns her as Narvel’s appreciative, in the hopes that the diligence of the master will rub off onto the student. If First Reformed was Schrader’s take on the climate crisis, and The Card Counter was about unregulated military cruelty, then Master Gardener is about the rise of the Alt-Right. Except for Norma, no one knows about Narvel’s past, which can all but be explained with one look at the litany of crosses, iron eagles, and swastikas tattooed all over his body. Narvel may be a completely different person now, but like his tattoos, the sins of his former self will always be with him. Similar to what he did for Oscar Isaac’s character in The Card Counter , Schrader offers glimpses of those bad days with brief flashbacks. But unlike The Card Counter , which delivered those windows through uncanny and inventive filmmaking, Master Gardener spells it all out without much fanfare. There’s an alarming lack of nuance in both the specific beats of the plot and the way Schrader delivers them, always keeping us at an arm's length distance and with a raised eyebrow. The world and its characters feel much shallower this time around, with the “climax” being completely unsubstantiated and unceremonious. Edgerton is more than capable of picking up this slack, especially in the first half as his narration and stoicism command the screen. His interactions with Weaver, who is as enchanting and domineering as the red dress she often dons, are hypnotically enticing. Even the occasional overly flowery (pun intended) line of dialogue (of which there are many) is sold with at least a little bit of authenticity. Just as MCU films can only really be recommended to already-established MCU fans at this point, Master Gardener is a film that I can only recommend to those who have an understanding and appreciation for Schrader’s previous works. And even then, I wouldn’t get my hopes up for much. Magnolia Pictures will release Master Gardener in select theaters on May 19th. More Reviews Primetime September 22, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Unabomber September 24, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Look Back September 16, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Elsinore September 14, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Hunter Friesen

The Worst Cannes Premieres Ever June 30, 2023 By: Hunter Friesen What do Michelangelo Antonioni, Federico Fellini, Martin Scorsese, and Terrence Malick all have in common? Well, along with all being considered some of the greatest filmmakers of all time, they’ve each had one of their movies on the receiving end of some nasty booing at the Cannes Film Festival. The audiences (and critics) on the French Riviera are famous for being extremely vocal about their adoration or hatred of a movie, with some being showered with physically taxing standing ovations ( Pan’s Labyrinth holds the record at 22 minutes), or a deafening amount of boos and whistling. But not every movie that gets booed is created equal. In the case of Martin Scorsese, his 1976 masterpiece Taxi Driver was the victim of a large contingent of vocal detractors. That didn’t stop the jury from awarding the film the Palme d’Or, nor Scorsese from returning to the festival years later (he’ll be back again this year with Killers of the Flower Moon ). This article isn’t going to be an inspiring story about the movies that overcame the negativity. No, the nine movies listed here all received their death sentence within the Grand Théâtre Lumière, either because of the weight of expectations or being of poor quality, or both. The Brown Bunny (2003) Credited as the writer/director/producer/star/cinematographer/editor (as well as about every other craft position), Vincent Gallo solely faced all the backlash in 2003 when he unveiled his much-anticipated follow-up to the indie sensation Buffalo ‘66 . The highly-experimental film caught flack for its glacial pacing and pretentiousness, with particular ire aimed at the unsimulated blowjob scene between Gallo and Chloë Sevigny. Audiences booed and ironically cheered each time Gallo’s name appeared on screen, with Roger Ebert calling it “the worst movie in the history of the Cannes Film Festival.” Gallo didn’t take kindly to Ebert’s words, calling the critic a “fat pig with the physique of a slave trader.” Ebert responded by saying “It is true that I am fat, but one day I will be thin, and he will still be the director of The Brown Bunny .” Surprisingly, the two sides would reconcile, with an edited-down version of the film screening at that year’s Toronto International Film Festival, which Ebert reviewed positively. Southland Tales (2006) Donnie Darko writer/director Richard Kelly thought he was entering the lottery when he submitted a rough cut of his sophomore feature, Southland Tales , for the 2006 festival. To his (and pretty much everyone else's) surprise, the selection committee liked it and invited him into the Official Competition. Kelly leaped at the opportunity, even if it meant he had to rush through the post-production process. That decision backfired badly, as critics lambasted the 160-minute film for being too broad and unfinished. The boos and whistles rattled throughout the Lumière Theater, with Roger Ebert calling the screening “The most disastrous since, yes, The Brown Bunny ." Kelly shared the same sentiments: "It was painful. I just thought, 'Please let it be over.” He went back to the editing room, getting more money from Sony to fix the visual effects in exchange for a reduced runtime. The film wasn’t seen again for another sixteen months, when it got an extremely limited theatrical release, grossing a little over $275,000 (the film was budgeted nearly $25 million). Burnt by the Sun 2 (2010) As the most expensive film in Russian history with a budget of $55 million, Nikita Mikhalkov's long-delayed sequel to his Oscar-winning film had enormous expectations. Cannes even circumvented their “world premieres only” rule by allowing the film into the Official Competition after it was first screened at the Kremlin. But by the time it reached the Lumière Theatre, the World War II film had already been panned by critics from both Russia, who claimed it was inaccurate and revisionist, and the West, who saw it as poorly-made Soviet propaganda. Mikhalkov's supportive stance of Vladimir Putin didn’t make things any better, with the film becoming one of the biggest bombs in the country’s history. Only God Forgives (2013) Between his films and overall demeanor, everything about Nicolas Winding Refn is divisive. So it’s not surprising that 2011’s Drive received one of the lengthiest standing ovations in festival history at 15 minutes, while also receiving a small handful of booing. That same dichotomy happened when Refn returned two years later with Only God Forgives , only this time the roles were reversed, with the boos overwhelming any positivity. Many critics described it as a beautiful painting without any substance, with Refn reaching even further into his pretentiousness. Rumors began to spread that the film was originally supposed to be screened as part of the Midnight Madness sidebar, where it would have potentially benefited from the lessened expectations. But the producers wanted to repeat the success of Drive and demanded a slot in the Official Competition. The negative outcome from that decision crushed any audience anticipation for the film, as it grossed a paltry sum when released a few months later. The Captive (2014) Several eyebrows were raised when it was announced that Ryan Reynolds would be starring in Atom Egoyan’s newest film. But Egoyan’s films ( Exotica, The Sweet Hereafter ) had always been praised for their offbeat nature, so there was still some optimism. But the pairing of one of Canada’s biggest stars and filmmakers went south quickly, as critics panned their film for its confusing nonlinear narrative and exploitative subject matter. American distributor A24, still in their early stages before they would become the festival darlings they are today, released the film on DirecTV’s VOD platform that winter to no fanfare. Even in Canada, where the film was given a theatrical release, the film was quickly buried and forgotten. The Search (2014) While Michel Hazanavicius didn’t become a household name after winning Best Director and Best Picture with The Artist in 2011, you’d still be surprised to know that his follow-up to that movie has still never been released within the United States. Much of the reasoning behind the film’s disappearance comes from its abysmal premiere at Cannes, which had launched The Artist after it was promoted to the competition at the last minute. But now that the lights were brighter, Hazanavicius crumbled, with his preachy and ultra-dreary retelling of the 1999 Chechnya civil war being perceived as exploitative. Hazanavicius has been back to the festival since, but he’s been demoted to just a regular player instead of the star that he seemed destined to become. Grace of Monaco (2014) Cannes has never had much luck when it comes to selecting its opening night film, with 2014’s Grace of Monaco being the biggest of all the offenders. Even by January 2013, Grace Kelly’s family disowned the film and claimed it was inaccurate. Harvey Weinstein, known for his frequent battles with directors among various other unspeakable things, had issues with director Olivier Dahan’s cut of the movie. The movie was pushed from the Fall of 2013 to the next spring so Weinstein could recut it. It was delayed again for a premiere at Cannes in May, where critics claimed it was of lower quality than a Lifetime Original Movie. Both Weinstein and the film’s writer Arash Amel were absent at the press conference after the disastrous screening. Coincidentally, the film bypassed a theatrical release in favor of a television debut on Lifetime a year later. Despite all the overwhelmingly negative reactions, star Nicole Kidman controversially received a SAG nomination, and the film received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Television Movie. The Last Face (2016) Audiences tend to wait until a movie is over before they give out their signature applause and/or boos. But the critics seeing Sean Penn’s refugee drama needed only one minute before letting out the hoots and hollers. The “call to action” love story starring Charlize Theron and Javier Bardem was savaged pretty much the whole way through, with the awful dialogue and white savior narrative being perceived as an insult to those that watched it. Many critics dubbed it as the worst film they’d ever seen at the festival. To make matters worse, the press screening took place in the morning, with the public premiere that night, meaning all those scathing reviews and tweets were out into the world before the cast had even walked the red carpet. The embarrassment from that situation caused the festival to implement embargoes in future years, holding all press reactions until after the evening gala screenings had finished. Mektoub, My Love: Intermezzo Fresh after winning the Palme d’Or for Blue is the Warmest Color , writer/director Abdellatif Kechiche premiered Canto Uno , the supposed first part in his new Mektoub, My Love trilogy, at the Venice Film Festival in 2017. The film received mixed reviews, with most critics complaining about the egregious 180-minute runtime and over-sexualization of the lead actors. Instead of listening to the detractors, Kechiche went in the opposite direction with the sequel, extending the runtime by almost an hour and featuring lengthy unsimulated sex scenes. The large majority of the audience walked out before the film finished, with one person claiming that “if the shots of butts were taken out, I think the film lasts 20 minutes.” Many of the actors claimed that Kechiche got them intoxicated so they would be less resistant to filming the sexually explicit scenes and that he wouldn’t screen the film for them before the premiere. The film has never been seen since that night, with Kechiche having to sell his Palme d’Or to raise funds for post-production after the financiers backed out. As further insult to injury, the final movie in the trilogy, Canto Due , was filmed before Intermezzo premiered, but no editing work has been done due to a lack of funds. Considering the allegations against Kechiche and the vitriolic response to the second part, it’s unlikely either of the final two parts will see the light of day. More Reviews Primetime September 22, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Unabomber September 24, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Look Back September 16, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Elsinore September 14, 2026 By: Hunter Friesen Hunter Friesen