Out of the Blue celebrates the 1997-98 Kentucky Wildcats NCAA championship team but with a running time of under an hour, the documentary is too short. This isn’t to say that there’s not much to love because any Kentucky fan will take whatever opportunity exists to see these guys. Of all the Kentucky Wildcats teams to have won a championship, the 1997-98 squad that was considered the unlikeliest of all teams. Then-Georgia Bulldogs head coach…
"Out of the Blue: The 1998 Kentucky Basketball Documentary"Category: Movie Reviews
While the year 2015 may have ended with a film starring a cisgender male playing a trans women, there were two films that starred transgender women in leading roles and one of those was Sean Baker’s Tangerine. Baker has this mysterious ability at finding unknowns with the potential for on-screen talent. He did it with The Florida Project and this was no different with Tangerine with the casting of newcomers Kitana Kiki Rodriguez and Mya…
"Tangerine: Essential Cinema for 2015"
Mr. Roosevelt is a coming-of-age comedy and depicts what happens when a struggling comedian returns home to Austin to bury her cat. The film marked the directorial debut for Saturday Night Live alumnus Noël Wells. While SNL may not be for everyone, it doesn’t mean that cast members aren’t allowed be successful following a short stint–look at Casey Wilson, for example. Wells’ performances in both The Incredible Jessica James and her work on Mr. Roosevelt shows that…
"Mr. Roosevelt: A Coming-of-Age Comedy"
While it’s no secret that 2017 was a down year for studio comedies, The House was a surprisingly okay film. This isn’t to say that it’s the best comedy of the year because it’s not but it’s not one of the downright awful films that came in the form of studio comedies this year. The comedy comes from the screenwriting team that wrote both Neighbors, Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising, and Mike and Dave Need Wedding…
"The House is Surprisingly Okay"
Aida’s Secrets is an inspiring true story of two brothers who finally meet after learning of each other’s existence. The year has been a stronger year for Holocaust-related documentaries even as survivors start to pass on. Aida’s Secrets doesn’t so much focus on reliving the horrors of the Shoah in as much as it focuses on reuniting a family. The biggest tragedy may very well be that Izak Szewelwicz, sent away to Israel for adoption in…
"Aida’s Secrets"
Against all odds, All the Money in the World was locked on time prior to the December 22nd release date. The film was pushed back to December 25th because of a crowded field at the box office leading up to the holiday weekend. Make no mistake, director Ridley Scott was quick to recast actor Kevin Spacey with Oscar winner Christopher Plummer, reshoot scenes with Plummer over the course of nine days, and still get the…
"All the Money in the World helped by Recasting"
With a story about surviving sexual assault, The Light of the Moon may perhaps be one of the most timeliest films of the year. The long awaited directorial debut from writer/director Jessica M. Thompson is a very important film with a cast includes Stephanie Beatriz, Michael Stahl-David, Conrad Ricamora, and Catherine Curtin. The Light of the Moon takes place over the span of six weeks after Latina architect Bonnie (Beatriz) makes her way back home after…
"The Light of the Moon: A Timely Film about Surviving"
A Bad Idea Gone Wrong offers Matt Jones the chance to show what he can do in a feature film as a major supporting player. The film marks the feature film directorial debut for writer/director Jason Headley. It went on to take the Grand Jury Prize for Best Ensemble Cast for a Narrative Feature at the SXSW Film Festival. As feature debuts go, this one is pretty solid. Headley works with a very minimal cast…
"A Bad Idea Gone Wrong: A Heist Comedy"
Get Out, written and directed by Jordan Peele, is not a comedy but a psychological thriller that–if anything–delves into satirical territory. The whatever-genre-film-it-is stars Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Bradley Whitford, Caleb Landry Jones, Stephen Root, Lakeith Stanfield and Catherine Keener. The film kicked off a hell of a year for Caleb Landry Jones, who can also be seen in American Made; The Florida Project; Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri; and a few episodes of Twin…
"Get Out is a Psychological Thriller, not a Comedy"
Actress Jessica Chastain delivers a commanding performance in Molly’s Game as Oscar-winning screenwriter Aaron Sorkin makes his directorial debut. Chastain is joined by a strong ensemble cast that includes Idris Elba, Kevin Costner, Michael Cera, Jeremy Strong, Bill Camp, Chris O’Dowd, Brian d’Arcy James, and Graham Greene. In taking a stab at directing, Sorkin brings the true story of Molly Bloom (Chastain) to the big screen. Bloom grew up with Olympic dreams at skiing and the…
"Molly’s Game: Chastain commands in Sorkin debut"