Jonah Koslofsky, Author at The Spool - Page 3 of 5 (Page 3) | The Spool

Jonah Koslofsky, Author at The Spool - Page 3 of 5 (Page 3)

Jonah Koslofsky is a critic and filmmaker living in Chicago. He regularly writes about film, television, and pop culture, with a special interest in David Lynch, the Marvel movies, and using too many em-dashes. On an average day, you might find him in a coffee shop or a comic book store. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook – he's just happy to be here!

“Mary and Max” combined stubby designs with sleek emotions

Adam Elliot's claymation offering was Philip Seymour Hoffman's only animated film, but it's as thorough as his other efforts.

P.S.H. I Love You: “The Party’s Over” captures election-era anxiety

The sequel to 1992's The Last Party sees Philip Seymour Hoffman reflects the polarized politics of 2020 through the 2000 race.

“His House” mines assimilation for effective scares

By: Jonah Koslofsky

Remy Weekes' haunting debut elegantly balances bone-chilling atmosphere with more socially relevant scares.

Unraveling pop-culture one thread at a time

The Spool is an irreverent, informative source for film and television coverage, focused on diverse, thoughtful opinions that seek out a greater understanding of the media we love.

P.S.H. I Love You

P.S.H. I Love You: “The Savages” shows us the aches of aging

Philip Seymour Hoffman gives us one of his most achingly heartfelt performances opposite Laura Linney in Tamara Jenkins' family drama.

P.S.H. I Love You: Hoffman serves up sleaze in the middling “Red Dragon”

Try as he might, Philip Seymour Hoffman can't lend enough sleaze to Brett Ratner's Hannibal Lecter sequel to make it feel less like a bland retread.

P.S.H. I Love You: “My Boyfriend’s Back” finds fun in its zombified mess

This spooky season, we glance back at one of two horror movies Philip Seymour Hoffman did.

NYFF: “Tragic Jungle” gets lost in its own mysticism

By: Jonah Koslofsky

Yulene Olaizola presents a nightmarish thriller based on Central American folklore, but its opaqueness makes it hard to truly grasp.

P.S.H. I Love You: Avoid the trip to “Cold Mountain”

Philip Seymour Hoffman does his level best to elevate Anthony Minghella's Oscar-friendly Miramax Western, but even he can't save it.

NYFF58: “Small Axe” takes racism to the grindstone

By: Jonah Koslofsky

Steve McQueen's new anthology series is an impassioned, insightful look at anti-Black discrimination in 20th-century London.

NYFF58: “The Human Voice” turns the empty into intimate

By: Jonah Koslofsky

Pedro Almodóvar's adaptation of Jean Cocteau's one-act play is an expansive, carefully constructed half-hour.

P.S.H. I Love You: Stealing every scene in “Mission Impossible III”

Philp Seymour Hoffman takes a rote villain role and goes toe-to-toe with megastar Tom Cruise in J.J. Abrams' Mission: Impossible III.

NYFF58: “MLK/FBI” is a damning look at the U.S. government

By: Jonah Koslofsky

Sam Pollard's latest documentary is a dense look at Martin Luther King Jr. and the Hoover administration's attempts to silence him.

“Almost Famous” is still even-keeled escapism

Cameron Crowe's rock and roll dramedy may not be the most realistic tale, but it's a keen mix of chaotic and crowd-pleasing.

“The Babysitter: Killer Queen” proves that 2020 won’t stop punishing us

By: Jonah Koslofsky

Add McG's execrable slasher sequel to the pile of tragedies 2020 has foisted upon us.

P.S.H. I Love You: “25th Hour” grapples with our fragile lives

Philip Seymour Hoffman lends remarkable texture to Spike Lee's 25th Hour, a film in mourning over New York and the fleeting nature of being.

“Synecdoche, New York” is an excruciating, exciting trip to nowhere

Charlie Kaufman's minimalist meditation on mortality is as hard to get through as it is oddly rewarding.

P.S.H. I Love You: Enter the suck zone of 1996’s “Twister”

Philip Seymour Hoffman livened up Jan de Bont's 1996 blockbuster -- and probably made Jack Black's career possible.

P.S.H. I Love You: Beware “The Ides of March”, if you can remember it

Try as he might, not even Philip Seymour Hoffman can't quite spice up George Clooney's warmed-over political drama.

P.S.H. I Love You: “Happiness” is only real when its mood is shared

Todd Solondz's "Happiness" is a grimly comic film that swings for the fences, and is buoyed by Philip Seymour Hoffman's compellingly repressed figure.

“I Used to Go Here” offers a charming trip to the not-so-distant past

By: Jonah Koslofsky

Kris Rey directs Gillian Jacobs in a lighthearted comedy about reliving the supposedly carefree college years.

The “Moneyball” we got delivers a baseball movie for Ben Shapiro

Bennett Miller's adaptation of Michael Lewis' book is an overlong, overcrowded sports biopic partially redeemed by its cast.

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