A movie can’t succeed on fights alone. Then again… — Thallumaala literally translates to “Ballad of Brawls” and the movie more than lives up to that title. Structured as a series of episodes played out in nonchronological order, most every episode is in some way built around a fistfight of some kind. That being said, if you go in expecting…

del Toro channels auteurs both past and present in his take on the puppet’s tale. — “It was in the reign of George III that the aforesaid personages lived and quarreled; good or bad, handsome or ugly, rich or poor they are all equal now.” The above text serves as conclusion, thesis statement, and final bitter punchline to Stanley Kubrick’s 1975 historical epic Barry Lyndon. After…

Once You’ve Seen the Best, Can You Be Better? — For an ever-expanding percentage of viewers, the blockbuster cinematic event of 2022 doesn’t involve caped crusaders or cinematic universes or any of the familiar franchises that U.S. audiences have grown accustomed to. No, the movie that has audiences losing their collective minds is RRR, a sprawling Indian action epic from…

Did Netflix Do Right by These Three Major Characters? — For the third and final installment of our breakdown of the Netflix adaptation of The Sandman, we’re talking about three of the most important characters in the entire saga: Lyta Hall, Rose Walker, and the Sandman himself, Dream of the Endless. …

DC Comics, Mystic Librarians, and the Devil — For part two of our breakdown of Netflix’s adaptation of The Sandman, let’s go deep into the comic’s lore and discuss some fundamental changes to certain characters and to the entire universe in which this story takes place. The DC Comics of It All

We Have Thoughts. Many, Many Thoughts. — Holy crap, they actually filmed The Sandman. Neil Gaiman’s sprawling comic book epic—created by Gaiman, Sam Kieth, and Mark Dringenberg, written by Gaiman, and illustrated by a revolving door of artists—has long been considered unfilmable because of all the failed attempts at filming it. …

Wayne Wang’s low key charmer turns mystery tropes upside down. — Wayne Wang’s Chan Is Missing, now available on a gorgeous new Blu-ray from the Criterion Collection, doesn’t call out any specific noir films and it doesn’t have to. From its stark black and white cinematography to its wall-to-wall narration, through to the twisting investigation that forms the film’s plot and…

While there are obvious examples of optimism and idealism to be found in science fiction, I think it’s fair to say that the speculative tales that gain the most mainstream attention are cautionary ones. We prefer our mirrors black, our scanners darkly, our nators termi. Or, if not ‘prefer’ per…

Frank Tashlin’s Landmark Rock’n’Roll Comedy Arrives on Blu-ray — Whatever his other qualities or deficiencies as a filmmaker, you gotta give this to Frank Tashlin: The man knew funny. If you don’t know Tashlin by name, you probably know his work. …