The Hunting Party
NetworkNBC, Peacock,
SimilarBrimstone, Code of a Killer,
Dexter Manhunt Mouse, The Pretender,
As a reviewer/critic, I try to elevate unique and powerful works. As a person, on the other hand, I am incredibly subject to the lure of a juicy high concept. NBC’s newest procedural, The Hunting Party, created by JJ Bailey, has a doozy of one. The Pit, a so-secret it is literally underground high-security prison, experiences a massive break after a very suspect explosion. As a result, some of the most dangerous criminals now run among the American citizens. To add further complication, most of the escaped criminals are assumed dead by all but a select few. They were seemingly executed by the state, with an audience of officials and victims’ family members. Instead, it was all theater, meant to get everyone looking the other way while the vague, shadowy government types smuggled these human monsters into The Pit for experimentation and observation.
It falls to brilliant profiler and former FBI agent Rebecca Henderson (Melissa Roxburgh), CIA agent Jacob Hassani (Patrick Sabongui), and a guard from the secret prison, Shane Florence (Josh McKenzie), to chase down the baddies. Ideally, but sadly not usually, before they crime again.
(Never mind that CIA agents aren’t allowed to work on American soil. These are lawless times, after all. Plus, this show either has no idea about that restriction or absolutely doesn’t care.) Continue Reading →
Songbirds
Similar2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), 2046 (2004), A Trip to the Moon (1902), Black Hawk Down (2001),
Blade Runner (1982) Brazil (1985),
Desert Hearts (1985) Die Hard (1988), Dune (1984), I Am Not a Serial Killer (2016), Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985),
Mars Attacks! (1996) Metropolis (1927),
Once Upon a Time in America (1984) Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006), Random Harvest (1942), Spider-Man 2 (2004), Stormbreaker (2006),
Strange Days (1995) Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003), The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019), The Eiger Sanction (1975), The Hunger (1983), The Poseidon Adventure (1972), The Saint (1997), This Is Where I Leave You (2014), Twelve Monkeys (1995), Videodrome (1983),
Watch afterAquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023), Killers of the Flower Moon (2023), Napoleon (2023),
Oppenheimer (2023) Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire (2023), Thanksgiving (2023), The Marvels (2023), The Nun II (2023), Wonka (2023),
StudioLionsgate,
Despite a challenging premise and an overlong runtime, the Hunger Games prequel makes the most of the hand it’s been dealt.
The character of Coriolanus Snow is an odd choice for a Hunger Games hero. In the original books and films, as played by screen giant Donald Sutherland, Snow was a cold-hearted, cruel dictator clearly meant to echo real world fascist leaders. Here, in the prequel story The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (say that five times fast), Coriolanus (Tom Blyth) is just a sensitive, emotional teen dreamboat whose main goal is to provide for his family in the wake of the violent revolution that tore apart Panem, the country formerly known as the United States of America.
It’s difficult to understand why author Suzanne Collins, who wrote the novel Songbirds is based on, made the decision to try to humanize a violent authoritarian when a core theme of the original Hunger Games books and movies was lashing back at systemic oppression. Nonetheless, director Francis Lawrence (Catching Fire, I Am Legend) and his enthusiastic cast of talented performers make the best of the rather thematically confused story arc they’ve been given, turning in one of the most exciting, emotionally arresting entries in the franchise. Continue Reading →
Hypnotic
There's at once too much, and somehow not enough, of the whimsical DIY spirit of writer-director Robert Rodriguez in his latest film, the shaky B-thriller Hypnotic. The Austin native made his name in the halcyon days of '90s indie filmmaking, shooting his first feature (El Mariachi) for a mere $7,000 at the tender age of 23. Since then, he's leveraged that inventiveness into a cottage industry of his own based out of his hometown of Austin, Texas, whether it's kid-friendly fare (Spy Kids), big-budget CGI blockbusters (Alita: Battle Angel), moody noirs (Sin City) or grindhouse splatterfests (Planet Terror, From Dusk Till Dawn). Hypnotic is all and none of those things, a chintzy lo-fi Christopher Nolan riff that doesn't have nearly enough life to work. And yet, there are just enough charming elements to save it from outright dismissal. Continue Reading →
Jurassic World Dominion
Watch afterThor: Love and Thunder (2022), Top Gun: Maverick (2022),
In the video game version of the original Jurassic Park for the Sega Genesis, you can choose to play the side scroller as either Dr. Grant or a Velociraptor. Of course, you choose the raptor almost every time because dinosaurs are cooler than humans. It’s a great lesson for making a fun video game, but not for making a successful movie franchise. Continue Reading →
The Protégé
StarringSamuel L. Jackson,
StudioIngenious Media,
Hollywood is in something of a conundrum these days. Audiences have by no means lost their taste for a good action flick, but such movies are meant for a theater experience, which has become somewhat limited by necessity. Then there’s the fact that so much of our lust for violence tends to be sated by established properties such as the Marvel Cinematic Universe and its competitors, not to mention other franchises such as the Fast & the Furious and The Purge movies. Continue Reading →