Insert Coin provides some closure on WMS/Midway over a decade after Midway was forced into bankruptcy and had to close its doors. Arcades may not be a game of the past but the market sure has changed. Just like how the cinema landscape is changing to benefit the consumer, the same has transpired in the video game industry. And yet, here we are on a time machine back to the 1980s and 1990s. It was…
"SXSW 2020: Insert Coin"Category: Movie Reviews
After Truth: Disinformation and the Cost of Fake News isn’t just an examination of “fake news” but a look into the horrifying consequences. I believe it was President Abraham Lincoln who once said that we shouldn’t believe everything we read on the internet. The nation’s 16th president most certainly didn’t say those comments but every now and then, a meme circulates around the internet with Lincoln being credited. However, this film isn’t so much about…
"SXSW 2020: After Truth"
For Madmen Only takes us into the mind of improv guru Del Close–a person whose name is familiar with those who took up the art of improvisation. I’m not going to get into debate behind improvisation because we’d just be here all night. In typical improv fashion, the opening credits state that “the filmmakers hereby accept the blame for everything else about this film.” Make no mistake that Del Close would certainly be proud. It’s…
"SXSW 2020: For Madmen Only"
A college graduate has to re-think his entire post-college plans in Drunk Bus after his girlfriend decides to leave him for an opportunity in New York City. Michael (Charlie Tahan) finds himself in somewhat of a pickle after his girlfriend up and left him. When we first meet him, he’s driving the “drunk bus” on a college campus. Night after night, it’s the same routine for Michael during the late shift. Michael’s girlfriend is probably…
"SXSW 2020: Drunk Bus"
One filmmaker treks across the globe We Don’t Deserve Dogs to see how our four-legged friends are able to improve our daily lives. I’m a dog lover. There were two dogs in my house while I was growing up. Not at the same time, of course. It took quite some time following one’s passing when I was in elementary school. It wouldn’t be until the summer of 2001 when we brought home a border collie/husky…
"SXSW 2020: We Don’t Deserve Dogs"
The Hunt, the latest film from Blumhouse Productions, is the dark satire for our times as the film finally sees a theatrical release. At the heart of The Hunt is a conspiracy theory surrounding Manorgate where the liberal elite are slaughtering deplorables. Those aren’t my words but that in which we hear spoken on screen. Much of the conspiracy theories surrounding the film feel rather realistic to how conservatives are talking today. Maybe not all…
"The Hunt: A Satire For Our Times"
My Darling Vivian offers a new perspective on the life of Johnny Cash’s first wife, Vivian Liberto, through accounts shared by their four children. Take everything you know from Walk the Line and pretend it never happened. Think of the film as a myth with all the illusions now currently shattered in front of your eyes. After viewing this documentary, one cannot watch the film in the same light ever again. It should certainly make…
"SXSW 2020: My Darling Vivian"
Coded Bias explores a researcher’s discovery of facial recognition algorithms and how they aren’t accurate for dark-skinned people. If you’re not familiar with facial racognition software, this film will quickly get you up to speed. It’s all because of MIT Media Lab researcher Joy Buolamwini. Her discovery led to some startling results and in some cases, lack thereof. Despite her best efforts, there is still no federal regulation of facial algorithms. Or at least, this…
"SXSW 2020: Coded Bias"
There is certainly something to be said about the role of the critic when one sits down to watch The Burnt Orange Heresy. “If it is just about telling the truth, anybody can do it,” James Figueras says about being a critic. “My job is to separate the good ones from the bad ones.” Critics are frauds. Or so this is the argument that the film does its best to make. At the same time,…
"The Burnt Orange Heresy Argues About Critics"
Spenser Confidential puts the city of Boston front and center while taking its inspiration from Robert B. Parker’s Wonderland. There’s something in seeing a Mark Wahlberg action film debut not in cinemas but on Netflix. It’s just a little bit weird to be watching a Wahlberg film for the first time on TV during opening weekend. But hey, this is the world we’re currently living in so we may as well start getting used to…
"Spenser Confidential Shows A New Boston"