A movie that’s so good on such a fundamental level that I really can’t be bothered by the part that bugs me. Continue reading
“Did You Know These Beer Styles Were Born in America?”
Be honest with me: You DIDN’T, did you. Continue reading
“With ‘Talk to Me,’ Directors Leap From Phone Screens to the Big Screen”
“‘Sisu’ Review: Jalmari Helander’s WWII Action Film Makes History Fun… And Incredibly Gory”
The catch-up continues with one of 2023’s true hoots and hollers, because anything that puts Nazis on blast today is worth at least 3 stars off the bat. Continue reading
“The Most Timely Sci-Fi Epic is Impossible to Find in the US”
It is sad that a 20 year old South Korean anime is “timely” today, because that means the world’s even worse off now than it was then. Continue reading
“‘The League’ Documents a Well-Rounded Chapter in Baseball History”
I consider the line between “this could’ve been a magazine article” and “this needed to be a movie” perilously thin, which is why I run into the problem of necessity with documentaries all the time: Did this have to be a movie? Couldn’t this have been a written piece? The kicker here, regarding Sam Pollard’s The League, … Continue reading
“Horror Is Your Playground: ‘100 Bloody Acres,’ a Dirt-Cheap Delight at 10”
G’day, down under, the barbie, toss another body in the grinder, it’s mulchin’ time. One of these is not a stereotypical Australian colloquialism. Guess which! Continue reading
“For a Reunited John Slattery and Jon Hamm, Less Is ‘Maggie Moore(s)'”
Strictly speaking not a reunion, but this latest team-up between two handsomes is fruitful nonetheless. Continue reading
“‘Dalíland’ Is a Depressingly Normal Biopic of a Surrealist”
Normalizing Dalí is like taking the alcohol out of beer. Continue reading
“It’ll Take More Than Confession To Save ‘Padre Pio'”
Among other things: A recasting of the lead, a rewriting of the script, a reshooting of thy’know what, just scrap the whole thing and fucking start over. Continue reading
Andy’s Best Things 2023: Absence Makes The Heart Grow Fonder
…hi guys! Continue reading
“Get Me A Slice Of Some Hamm’s”
If you give me the chance to make a pop culture reference in a piece that isn’t about that particular niche of pop culture, I will always, always, always make the reference. Continue reading
“The Wood Brothers’ ‘Heart Is the Hero’ Puts Compassion in Charge”
The lungs are the hero’s sidekick. The stomach is the grizzled old timer in charge of the whole operation. The spleen is the shifty-eyed bastard waiting in the wings to betray everyone at the worst possible moment. Continue reading
“‘Finding Nemo’ at 20: Disney’s Greatest Trauma Revisited”
Why yes, I DID take that old Pixar fish movie about the dad and the son getting separated, and then make it about 9/11. Continue reading
“The Spirit of Alan J. Pakula Lives in ‘Chile ’76′”
Lemme tell you all: I’m gettin’ real fucking sick of this “Alfred Hitchcock” guy. Continue reading
“Scott Walker’s ‘The Tank’ Runs on Empty”
A movie that proves a creature feature needs slightly more in the tank than the creature. Or the feature. Continue reading
“How James DeMonaco Created The Smartest Horror Franchise Of The Century”
I would very much like the universe to require James DeMonaco as a source on all of my reported pieces going forward, thank you very much and please. Continue reading
“The Monsters Are ‘Unwelcome’ But the Movie Can Come Right In”
Au contraire, old-school puppeteering monster movies are always welcome! Continue reading
“‘Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets’ Should Have Been the Future of Blockbusters”
I know, I know: I’ve already made this argument. Well, it’s 5 years later, blockbusters are finally starting to look like they’re gonna turn around, and I’m making this argument again. Continue reading
“‘Phone Booth‘s’ Obsolescence Works To Its Thrilling Advantage”
When a relic of a bygone era becomes a coffin full of paranoia, terror, and Colin Farrell’s flop-sweat. Continue reading
“How Jason Segel’s Penis in ‘Forgetting Sarah Marshall’ Changed Movie Nudity”
Forget Sarah Marshall, but don’t forget “Forgetting Sarah Marshall.” Continue reading
A Constant Visual Feast 