A young woman in a skimpy bathing suit floats in a hot tub. Just seconds ago, she caught sight of an unfamiliar creature, a hulking figure in the background of the selfies she took. But like so many horror movie victims, she ignored good sense and laid back in the tub, unaware of the danger …
ric and Andrew just wanted to get away. When the married couple at the center of M. Night Shyamalan’s new thriller, Knock at the Cabin, took their daughter to a rustic lodge in the Pennsylvania woods, they hoped to escape the demands of a world that hated them simply for existing. They wanted nothing more than …
Knock at the Cabin Makes an Impossible Call For Care Read More »
Saint Omer begins and ends the same way, with the sounds of a mother’s breath layered over a black screen. Exhausted, worn down by not just the weight of the children they carry but also the expectations thrust upon them, these mothers labor on, waiting for their final rest. But between these gasps for air, Saint Omer feels …
Two superpowered titans clash on the field of battle, their outlandish costumes illuminated by sparks and energy beams. Powered by the magical element Vibranium, the Black Panther unsheathes her claws and hurls herself toward her opponent, the centuries-old mutant Namor. Desperate to replenish himself in the sea, Namor lifts into the air via the tiny …
Review: The Anti-Colonialism of ‘Wakanda Forever’ Read More »
Midway through Park Chan-wook’s latest film Decision to Leave, Inspector Hae-jun (Park Hae-il) makes his case. He explains in detail how Chinese immigrant Song Seo-rae (Tang Wei) secretly tailed her abusive husband on a mountain climbing trip and waited for him to reach the summit. While he took in the view, unaware that he wasn’t alone, …
Review: ‘Decision to Leave’ Is a Noir for the Surveillance Age Read More »
“I’m not even supposed to be here today.” That oft-repeated phrase from the original Clerks perfectly sums up the ethos of the 1994 movie. It comes via Dante Hicks (Brian O’Halloran), a twenty-two-year-old Quick Stop clerk who feels an overwhelming sense of responsibility toward his job (but not so much toward the women he dates). The …
Review: Clerks III Gives Dead-End Wage Labor Its Due Read More »
A man walks into a desert amphitheater, his red cowboy suit clashing against a cloudy sky. As a computer pumps an orchestral score through strategically placed speakers, he turns to address a scattered crowd. “For the past six months, my family and I have borne witness to an absolute spectacle,” he announces, emphasizing “spectacle.” A …
Despite what its title might suggest, the 1987 PBS documentary Who Killed Vincent Chin? is not a mystery. Almost immediately, the film details Ronald Ebens’s beating of Chinese American draftsperson Vincent Chin on June 19, 1982, after an altercation in a Detroit bar. Ebens, with the assistance of his stepson Michael Nitz, used a baseball …
The Boys is a tasteless show. Take the first scene of the season three premiere. A shrinking superhero called Termite (think Marvel’s Ant-Man) tunnels into his lover’s orifice as part of their sex play. But when he sneezes, Termite accidentally grows to full size, causing him to explode. Gory gags such as these occur regularly …
The Progressive: The Boys Gun Show Episode Was Tasteless But Necessary Read More »
Neal Adams was not only an influential artist. He also fought to bring justice to the comic book industry.