SXSW 2019: Villains

Villains is a comedic action thriller that somehow manages to find a way to blur the lines in the craziest kind of way possible. The only thing worse than a pair of ill-prepared robbers is a pair of ill-prepared robbers that break into the home of the worst couple in history of the world.  This is exactly what happens to Mickey (Bill Skarsgård) and Jules (Maika Monroe).  If you’re going to rob a gas station,…

"SXSW 2019: Villains"

SXSW 2019: The Shorts Program

The 2019 SXSW Film Festival had no shortage of laughs, thrills or outright drama when it comes to the shorts screening during the fest. Narrative Shorts Stepdaddy sees a reunion between Patricia (Lauren Blumenfeld) and Wyatt (Max Jenkins).  The quick backstory is that the two of them did a work study for the same professor during their senior year.  Anyway, Patricia brings wine so she’s more than a bit drunk.  All the while, Wyatt is…

"SXSW 2019: The Shorts Program"

Greta: This Film is All Kinds of Bonkers

Greta is a bonkers thriller that will lead viewers to think twice when it comes to returning the items they find on the subway. When Frances McCullen (Chloë Grace Moretz) sees a purse sitting on a subway chair, she acts like any Good Samaritan would.  She looks up the owner and naturally, she returns the bag.  What Frances doesn’t expect is that this woman, Greta Hideg (Isabelle Huppert) would decide to stick around her like glue.  The…

"Greta: This Film is All Kinds of Bonkers"

Sundance 2019: Honey Boy

Premiering at Sundance, Honey Boy is an extremely personal film for actor-screenwriter Shia LaBeouf in telling a fictionalized version of his life story. Noah Jupe and Lucas Hedges portray Otis Lort a decade apart at 12 and 22 years old, respectively.  This leads to back and forth storytelling that takes place in 1995 and 2005.  When we first meet Otis, he’s doing stunt work on a film that is likely a stand-in for the first Transformers film. …

"Sundance 2019: Honey Boy"

After Everything is no Nicholas Sparks film

Even though a health crisis is at the center of this relationship-driven dramedy, After Everything is as far from a Nicholas Sparks film as it gets. Elliott (Jeremy Allen White) works behind a sandwich counter with his roommate and best friend, Nico (DeRon Horton).  It’s all fun and games for the two of them–drinking or getting high–until Elliott learns he is suffering from a rare diagnosis of Ewing’s sarcoma.  There’s a lot of nitty-gritty detail…

"After Everything is no Nicholas Sparks film"

CCFF 2018: After Everything (formerly Shotgun)

Even though a health crisis is at the center of this relationship-driven dramedy, Shotgun is as far from a Nicholas Sparks film as it gets. Elliott (Jeremy Allen White) works behind a sandwich counter with his roommate and best friend, Nico (DeRon Horton).  It’s all fun and games for the two of them–drinking or getting high–until Elliott learns he is suffering from a rare diagnosis of Ewing’s sarcoma.  There’s a lot of nitty-gritty detail about…

"CCFF 2018: After Everything (formerly Shotgun)"