The Menu Arrives On Digital, Physical Media To Follow

The Menu is now available for audiences to relish and savor from the comforts from their home as the comedy arrives on Digital (UHD, HD, SD). It will also arrive on Blu-ray and DVD on January 17, 2022. Feel free to also check out my interviews with screenwriters Seth Reiss and Will Tracy along with composer Colin Sexton. What follows is my original review from TIFF: The Menu isn’t a dish that you can eat…

"The Menu Arrives On Digital, Physical Media To Follow"

The Menu – Toronto 2022

The Menu isn’t a dish that you can eat but a fine dining experience that one must savor and relish in order to get the most out of it. There are some elements of horror but they are minor compared to the laughs in this satire. Trust me, I would never have seen this film if it were a horror movie! Given that Adam McKay is among the film’s producers, audiences should know that they…

"The Menu – Toronto 2022"

Those Who Wish Me Dead: A Tale of Survival

Those Who Wish Me Dead is another gripping thriller on one level but it’s also a tale of survival and what we do when we face the odds. The film runs just over an hour and a half but you’re never not on the edge of the seat. It’s thrilling until the very end. I wouldn’t necessarily say that this is a starring vehicle for Angelina Jolie. Jolie might be the first-billed but this film…

"Those Who Wish Me Dead: A Tale of Survival"

The Current War: Director’s Cut Gets Released

After a long road, The Current War: Director’s Cut–about the industrial age rivalry–is finally getting a theatrical release this weekend. This is a film that takes us back to the past in order to show the fight for the future.  While we probably don’t think about it often, electricity isn’t something that was always taken for granted.  Thomas Edison (Benedict Cumberbatch) is battling against George Westinghouse (Michael Shannnon).  When Edison is on the verge of…

"The Current War: Director’s Cut Gets Released"

Dark Phoenix closes out X-Men saga with a bang

Dark Phoenix makes for a satisfying conclusion to the X-Men series while we wait for the proper return of the mutants into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. “What you choose to do with your gift is entirely up to you,” Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) tells eight-year-old Jean Grey in 1975. While Simon Kinberg now moves into the director’s chair, he also makes up for the single worst X-Men film.  It’s no easy task.  For one, the…

"Dark Phoenix closes out X-Men saga with a bang"

X-Men: Apocalypse – The Road to Dark Phoenix

X-Men: Apocalypse may not be the satisfying third film in the series that one would like but it certainly does the job here. After being teased during a post-credits scene, we meet En Sabah Nur (Oscar Isaac) aka Apocalypse just before the transference.  The next thing we know, it’s 1983 and Moira MacTaggert (Rose Byrne) awakens the sleeping mutant.  This also launches an earthquake felt across the globe.  At the same time, Mystique frees Kurt…

"X-Men: Apocalypse – The Road to Dark Phoenix"

X-Men: Days of Future Past – Road to Dark Phoenix

X-Men: Days of Future Past is certainly one of the best films in the entire X-Men series and unites both the new and old casts with stakes on the line. After being set up in The Wolverine, the action starts in 2023.  By this point, the elder Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) and Erik Lehnsherr (Ian McKellan) have gotten over their differences.  The two of them are working together in order to save both mutants and…

"X-Men: Days of Future Past – Road to Dark Phoenix"

X-Men: First Class – The Road to Dark Phoenix

X-Men: First Class does a solid job in taking things back to where it all begin when both Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr meet for the first time. A brief prologue lays the beginning foundations for Erik Lehnsherr (Michael Fassbender), Charles Xavier (James McAvoy), and Raven Darkhölme (Jennifer Lawrence).  I like that director Matthew Vaughn opts for a shot-for-shot recreation of the X-Men opening.  It’s a brilliant way to tie the new series into the…

"X-Men: First Class – The Road to Dark Phoenix"

Tolkien: No Simple Walk Through Mordor

It’s no simple walk through Mordor as we get a glimpse at the early years of The Lord of the Rings creator J.R.R. Tolkien in Tolkien. There’s a lot of flashing back in the film between the J.R.R. Tolkien’s (Harry Gilby/Nicholas Hoult) childhood, college days, and World War 1.  These childhood bonds do play a role when it comes to creating the fellowship in the books.  An orphan upon entering King Edward’s School in Birmingham…

"Tolkien: No Simple Walk Through Mordor"

The Favourite: Yorgos Lanthimos’s Best To Date

The Favourite is the wittiest film to date from director Yorgos Lanthimos and is brought to life largely by three strong women. The newest film from Yorgos Lanthimos takes place in the early 1700s.  Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) holds the English throne at this time.  She’s calling the shots while England and France are at war.  The war being the War of Spanish Succession–which doesn’t end until 1714.  While it’s safe to say that this film is a…

"The Favourite: Yorgos Lanthimos’s Best To Date"