Scream VI
SimilarCube (1997), Cube Zero (2004), Klute (1971), Maria Full of Grace (2004), Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead (1995),
Watch afterAnt-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023), Evil Dead Rise (2023),
StarringJack Quaid, Josh Segarra,
The Scream franchise's strength has always been in its self-awareness. Initially, it turned the camera towards the audience, demanding that they ask themselves why it's so entertaining to see other people being made to suffer, and what happens if, as the tagline went, someone took their love of scary movies too far. Then it mocked the inevitability of sequels, then the movie industry in general, then how the media treats trauma victims like celebrities, with varying levels of success. The 2022 reboot, directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, sought to address all of it in some fashion, with toxic fandom on top of that. It was mostly successful, despite being at times aggressively meta. Scream VI does much of the same, although this time the knowing winks and nods are starting to feel a little tired. Continue Reading →
Moonfall
SimilarArmageddon (1998), Godzilla Raids Again (1955), Hellboy (2004), Twelve Monkeys (1995), War of the Worlds (2005),
Watch afterDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022), Morbius (2022), The Batman (2022),
StudioLionsgate,
Around the halfway point of Roland Emmerich’s new sci-fi disaster flick Moonfall, our protagonists find themselves in a hell of a predicament. It seems like the world is about to end, the most important people have given up on doing anything about it, and the only ones that have a chance of saving the day are the underestimated, the uninspiring, and the over-the-hill. Despite this, they manage to dust off an abandoned space shuttle, squeeze themselves into some old astronaut suits, and blast away to prevent disaster, and maybe, just maybe, become heroes in the process. Continue Reading →