Chef Flynn Review: A Teen Chef Serves Up Delicious Dishes
Cameron Yates’ foodie doc about a budding teen chef is a riveting look at how ambition knows no age, but its smaller scope stretches a bit to get to feature length. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood If you were to ask the average ten-year-old about the presentation of their food, they’d probably respond ... Chef Flynn Review: A Teen Chef Serves Up Delicious Dishes
Mary Queen of Scots Review: A Riveting, if Ahistorical, Royal Drama
While it won’t win any awards for historical accuracy, Josie Rourke’s royal drama shines thanks to some gorgeous cinematography and the performances of Saiorse Ronan and Margot Robbie. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood Whenever someone watches a Hollywood movie that focuses on a historical figure, they must ask themselves, “how important is accuracy?” ... Mary Queen of Scots Review: A Riveting, if Ahistorical, Royal Drama
Asher Review: A Creaky Pre-90s Hitman Thriller
Try as they might, even genre giants like Ron Perlman and Famke Jannsen can’t elevate this dull, by-the-numbers hitman thriller. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood The ‘90s were peak years for the hitman genre. Between Tarantino, Rodriguez, and Jarmusch, the way we think about and view these agents of quiet doom has informed ... Asher Review: A Creaky Pre-90s Hitman Thriller
CAM Review: Netflix’s Peep Show Into the Terror of Stolen Identity
Director Daniel Goldhaber and screenwriter Isa Mazzei explore the complexities of online sex work with a fascinating thriller about a camgirl facing an identity crisis. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood On the Internet, you can be anyone you want. CAM, the debut film from director Daniel Goldhaber and writer Isa Mazzei, asks, “What ... CAM Review: Netflix’s Peep Show Into the Terror of Stolen Identity
The Favourite Review: Yorgos Lanthimos Holds Uproarious Royal Court
Yorgos Lanthimos’ latest is a droll, hilarious dramedy about the challenges of female power and competition, with three amazing performances from Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, and Rachel Weisz. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood When it comes to acid-tongued, deadpan humor, few do it better than Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos. While works like the ... The Favourite Review: Yorgos Lanthimos Holds Uproarious Royal Court
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse Review – A Web-Slinging Animated Classic in the Making
Miles Morales gets the big-screen treatment he deserves, an aesthetically vibrant, action-packed story that might just be one of the best animated superhero films of all time. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood What if I were to tell you that one of the most dazzling, innovative, hilarious and poignant animated films of the ... Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse Review – A Web-Slinging Animated Classic in the Making
Twisted Pair Review: Neil Breen’s Latest Exercise in Baffling Anti-Cinema
The deeply strange Neil Breen returns with an even more deeply strange entry in his filmography of homespun, barely-coherent ‘psychological thrillers.’ This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood One doesn’t review a Neil Breen movie so much as ponder its existence. It’s not even a question of how it got made—we know it was financed ... Twisted Pair Review: Neil Breen’s Latest Exercise in Baffling Anti-Cinema
Scrooged at 30: How Bill Murray Turned A Christmas Carol On Its Head
Three decades later, Bill Murray’s dark turn on Ebenezer Scrooge remains as adored by its fans as it was a nightmare to make. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood In December of 2015, Netflix aired A Very Murray Christmas, an original holiday special hosted by Bill Murray, who at some point in the past fifteen ... Scrooged at 30: How Bill Murray Turned A Christmas Carol On Its Head
Green Book Review: Playing the Same Old Song About Jim Crow Racism
Peter Farrelly’s period road movie about a black piano player and his Italian driver in Jim Crow America doesn’t dig deep into American racism, but charms and moves nonetheless. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood The discussion of racism in America is a Pandora’s box for Hollywood. On one hand, it’s a vastly important ... Green Book Review: Playing the Same Old Song About Jim Crow Racism
Ralph Breaks the Internet Review: Disney Didn’t Wreck It!
As adorable and poignant as the first, Disney Animation Studios crafts a Wreck-It Ralph sequel that’s as much about navigating difficult friendships as it is poking fun at Disney princesses and Snapchat. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood “There’s no law saying best friends have to have the same dreams.” Amid all the madcap ... Ralph Breaks the Internet Review: Disney Didn’t Wreck It!
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs Review: The Coen Brothers Spin Six Tales of Old West Tragicomedy
The Coen brothers return to the Old West for a darkly comic anthology of six stories of doomed men and women out on the frontier. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood Watching a Western movie means feeling a strange surge of patriotism, of pride and awe for the American men and women who made ... The Ballad of Buster Scruggs Review: The Coen Brothers Spin Six Tales of Old West Tragicomedy
The Christmas Chronicles Review: Kurt Russell Saves the Holidays
Netflix continues its encroachment into the Hallmark Christmas movie game with a treacly kid’s flick elevated greatly by Kurt Russell as a Santa Who Bangs. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood The Hallmark Channel runs somewhere between 30 and 418 new Christmas movies every holiday season. I haven’t seen a single one of them. ... The Christmas Chronicles Review: Kurt Russell Saves the Holidays
Widows Review: An Enthralling Heist Thriller with Some Less Interesting Gangster Drama Touches
Steve McQueen’s ambitious, female-driven crime film sports fabulous performances, but bounces haphazardly between tones. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood The opening of Steve McQueen’s riveting new heist movie Widows is a masterclass in storytelling efficiency. Four moments of domesticity—some happy, some far more complicated—are intercut with a harrowing heist-gone-wrong shot from inside the ... Widows Review: An Enthralling Heist Thriller with Some Less Interesting Gangster Drama Touches
The Front Runner Review: Hugh Jackman’s Misguided Political Drama Stumbles Across the Finish Line
Despite a stellar cast and some good intentions, Jason Reitman’s political drama about the rise of the tabloid age does a little too much finger-wagging in the wrong direction. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood Watching the news can sometimes feel more like watching a drama than something informative. Headlines aim to create the ... The Front Runner Review: Hugh Jackman’s Misguided Political Drama Stumbles Across the Finish Line
Prospect Review: A Thrilling, Micro-budget Sci-Fi Western
Writer/director team Zeek Earl and Chris Caldwell craft a grimy, visceral space Western about a family of prospectors risking their lives on an alien moon. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood Space-based science fiction is usually a big-budget affair – hundred-million-dollar space battles, exotic alien creatures and slick, futuristic spaceships. However, every so often ... Prospect Review: A Thrilling, Micro-budget Sci-Fi Western
Overlord Review: Nazi Zombie Shoot-Em-Up Is Fast and Furhrer-ious
The JJ Abrams-produced Nazi zombie flick provides plenty of schlock and scares, but stumbles over its own rotting feet when it reaches for profundity. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood If Indiana Jones has taught us anything, it’s that Jehovah starts with a ‘Y’ and there’s nothing more satisfying that watching someone kick the ... Overlord Review: Nazi Zombie Shoot-Em-Up Is Fast and Furhrer-ious
The Girl in the Spider’s Web Review: Lisbeth Slander gets an action hero makeover
Lisbeth Salander returns, this time played by Claire Foy, in a slick but shallow sequel that trades in the series’ nuance for Bond-ian action. This piece was originally posted on Alcohollywood Pre-screening chatter before The Girl in the Spider’s Web all seemed to center on the same questions: “What happened in the last movie?” “Is ... The Girl in the Spider’s Web Review: Lisbeth Slander gets an action hero makeover