Toronto 2020: One Night In Miami…

In her first turn as a feature film director, Oscar-winning actress Regina King hits a home run on the first try with One Night In Miami… A more than brief prologue sets the tone of the film before we ever see the title on screen.  One by one, we’re introduced to the major players Muhammad Ali (Eli Goree), Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir), Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge), and Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.).  The main action…

"Toronto 2020: One Night In Miami…"

Toronto 2020: David Byrne’s American Utopia

David Byrne’s American Utopia is an absolute joy to watch no matter how familiar you are with Byrne or the Talking Heads. Before I go any further with my review, please make sure to watch the concert film to the very end. Thanks to the joys of technology, it took three attempts to watch this concert film.  After crashing twice on Thursday morning, I decided to make another attempt in the evening.  Rather than continue…

"Toronto 2020: David Byrne’s American Utopia"

Toronto 2020: I Care A Lot

J Blakeson’s I Care A Lot blends a mix of comedy and thrills to deliver a satire with another strong performance from actress Rosamund Pike. Marla Grayson (Rosamund Pike) is a legal guardian and is the type who will take advantage of any loophole in the system.  If it means paying doctors off to have another ward of the state, so be it.  Marla is the type of woman who will rob her clients and…

"Toronto 2020: I Care A Lot"

Toronto 2020: Akilla’s Escape

Akilla’s Escape weaves together two different timelines in Brooklyn and Toronto while tackling social issues that remain in the limelight. During a drug trade-gone-bad, Akilla Brown (Saul Williams) captures a teenage and mute Jamaican boy, Sheppard (Thamela Mpulmwana).  His youth comes back to him when Akilla learns that Sheppard is a affiliated with the Garrison Army.  It just so happens that Akilla’s grandfather founded the Jamaican crime syndicate.  Akilla left the life some time ago…

"Toronto 2020: Akilla’s Escape"

Toronto 2020: No Ordinary Man

No Ordinary Man isn’t so much a documentary of musician Billy Tipton but a major contribution to the history of trans-masculinity. For me, the most important moment in the film came when activist Jamison Green meets Billy Tipton Jr.  It’s during this meeting that Green tells the musician’s son that nobody is alone in going through this.  For a long time, Tipton Jr. thought he was the only one with such a history. But again,…

"Toronto 2020: No Ordinary Man"

Toronto 2020: The Way I See It

The Way I See It goes behind the scenes through White House photographer Pete Souza’s eyes during the Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama administrations. How many people can say they worked at the White House for both Presidents Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama.  Not many, I would assume.  However, Pete Souza could very well be the only one.  Souza comments in the film that if you thought he would work for both the most iconic…

"Toronto 2020: The Way I See It"

Nicole Riegel and Jessica Barden talk Holler

Nicole Riegel and Jessica Barden spoke with Solzy at the Movies for nearly half an hour over Zoom on Thursday about Holler. Holler was originally supposed to premiere this past March during SXSW in Austin. The film screened for the first time in front of an audience during the Deauville Film Festival in France. Tomorrow, Holler will screen for industry attendees during the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival in the Industry Selects program. Holler is…

"Nicole Riegel and Jessica Barden talk Holler"

Paul Feig talks Holler, Zoey’s, Love Life, and More

Paul Feig spoke with Solzy at the Movies about a wide array of subjects including Holler, Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist, and Love Life. Feig is also working on a new film for Netflix, which is expected to be in front of cameras in the spring. In the meantime, Holler–written and directed by Nicole Riegel–premiered today at the Deauville Film Festival in France. Tomorrow, the film will be available to screen for attending industry during the 2020…

"Paul Feig talks Holler, Zoey’s, Love Life, and More"

Holler: Jessica Barden Shines In Nicole Riegel’s Feature Debut

Holler, starring Jessica Barden, marks an impressive feature debut for writer-director Nicole Riegel in the Southern Ohio-set production. It’s no lie that manufacturing towns are among the first towns to take a hit when the economy takes a downturn.  Jackson, Ohio is certainly no exception.  For Ruth Avery (Jessica Barden), she’s willing to do whatever it takes to go to college and have a better future.  Working with her brother Blaze (Gus Halper), Ruth soon…

"Holler: Jessica Barden Shines In Nicole Riegel’s Feature Debut"

Outfest 2020: Shiva Baby

Writer-director Emma Seligman‘s stupendous feature debut, Shiva Baby, expands on the 2018 short film in one of the most Jewish films to grace the screen. Shiva is a seven-day mourning period in the Jewish religion.  This period traditionally starts following the burial.  Mourners stay home during this period while family and friends come over to offer condolences.  A minyan will usually gather in the afternoon and evening in order for mourners to recite Mourner’s Kaddish…

"Outfest 2020: Shiva Baby"