I did not recognize I'm The Man at first until a quick search reminded me that the song "I'm The Man" by Jehnny Beth is on the soundtrack of one of my all-time favorite shows, Peaky Blinders. Cillian Murphy offers a voiceover reading of "A Place Above," also by Jehnny Beth, which comes before Beth begins to sing and goes on a streak of choreographed debauchery with the glint of neon lights at night on people in the street. Murphy's…

I was really hoping that Beetlejuice Beetlejuice would be a quality sequel; obviously incapable of eclipsing the original, but be a reasonably good film that feels deserving to come after the iconic first one. Unfortunately, this is not that sequel.

As with any Tim Burton film, I enjoyed the effects, the costumes, the makeup and the production design. It definitely feels like being back in the world of the original film in terms of aesthetics. However, the plot is very…

I had not seen Following in so many years that I honestly forgot what it is about. But as soon as I started watching, I was reminded of who Christopher Nolan is as a filmmaker.

It almost does not matter that this is his first full feature, shot on 16mm, for barely any money. Or that it is black and white. It is Nolan through and through. From how he casts leads as if he is slicing parts of himself…

I have wanted to watch The Fall for so many years solely off of the strength of still photographs that I have seen that reveal some of the most compelling cinematography and direction to exist. I feel like every single film on earth has to white knuckle fight this film on asphalt for the title of best cinematography ever.

This film is easily one of the most narratively bizarre films that I have ever seen and it really pushed me…

Beyoncé Bowl is as close to perfection as one can get with this type of performance. Though my band experience is minimal (I was in colorguard for one year in middle school), that short amount of time was enough for me to understand how elaborate a performance like this is. The overall vision, coordination and rehearsal it takes to pull it off for a large audience. But when the audience is not only a stadium of tens of thousands of…

The Pop Out: Ken & Friends is a nice moment of modern West Coast hip-hop. Admittedly, I came for The Beef, but I stayed for the way Kendrick Lamar and the artists he features reveal their love for Black music as more than conflict or commodity, but as community.

But community has flaws, doesn't it? To see Kendrick scathingly critique Drake with the precision of a surgeon with a scalpel or a sculptor with a swivel, yet have a glaring blind…

Megan Thee Stallion: In Her Words is a well-made documentary...that I doubt I can watch a second time. Every moment of it is painful. Megan has to navigate being human and flawed, like everyone else, but in the spotlight as the price of fame. And yet, there is no mistake she made that justifies the disproportionate violence and abuse she endures. The documentary reveals how disproportionate it actually is, while not making excuses for her own mistakes. The idea that…

While watching His Three Daughters, the first thing that crossed my mind was Succession S4E3 - "Connor's Wedding." Not because the class, style, tone, or circumstances are exactly the same, but because that is the last time that I have seen death and the reaction to it depicted in way that feels grounded in the very intimate reality of losing a parent. Of death itself. Who remains; the roles expected; the roles assumed.

This film is like it takes the…

Dark Waters delivers exactly what I thought it would, and a bit more. A compelling drama about the sheer disgust that the cruelty of greed and power evokes (DuPont et. al. in this story); yes. A butterfly effect of never-ending caustic ripples. And another (wildly imperfect, but useful) example of "the good" not "doing nothing." But also, I appreciate that the film conveys the personal cost of pursuing justice. Because it is...expensive. It can cost money obviously, but also careers,…

Hans Zimmer: Hollywood Rebel offers what the title claims: reveals Zimmer as a rebel of sorts. More specifically in terms of not following some of the confines impressed upon musicians in school, starting his music journey in youth in a band not an orchestra, not feeling confined to a singular genre of film to compose for, being a trendsetter in terms of the incorporation of technology in composing while at times being sonically positioned between popular music and symphonic music,…

Killers of the Flower Moon is an incredibly well-directed (another Martin Scorsese banger; no surprise) and well-acted film with stunning aesthetics and an effective score that all work together to affirm a dually painful truth: white supremacy is not only an obvious poison that kills through greed, weapons and laws, but a subtle one that kills slowly through the lie that it can nurture and sustain friendship, kinship and love. Almost every single moment of this film is psychologically horrifying,…