Through the looking glass: A review of Marvel’s ‘What If…?’

The concept of alternative or parallel universes has been the spark for plenty of pieces of media spanning any and every medium. Questioning what could be in another reality has shaped some of fiction’s most prominent characters; from the electric web slinger Miles Morales to the mirror versions of the Starship Enterprise crew to the… Continue reading Through the looking glass: A review of Marvel’s ‘What If…?’

Sony delivers a modest mulligan in disarmingly pleasant ‘Venom: Let There Be Carnage’

Though it generated immense box office, the initial Venom was woefully bad and derivate of its most uninspired, dour comic book movie counterparts, so homogenized with the corrosively insipid elements of this contemporary subgenre that it might as well have been another leeching symbiote from the far stretches of outer space. A picture almost entirely… Continue reading Sony delivers a modest mulligan in disarmingly pleasant ‘Venom: Let There Be Carnage’

‘Those Who Wish Me Dead’ is a lean, tense survivalist thriller

In the vast Montana wilderness, Hannah (Angelina Jolie), a firefighter suffering from past trauma, encounters Connor (Finn Little), a bewildered, distraught and bloodied boy on the run from two relentless assassins (Nicholas Hoult, Aidan Gillen) after they murdered his father. It’s only a matter of time before either the cold-blooded killers dispatch Connor – unless… Continue reading ‘Those Who Wish Me Dead’ is a lean, tense survivalist thriller

‘Jungle Cruise’ eventually deflates its homages

The year is 1916 in London, and MacGregor Houghton (Jack Whitehall) –brother and assistant to fiercely self-possessed botanist Dr. Lily Houghton (Emily Blunt) – is presenting his sister’s research on the Tears of the Moon – a mystical tree of legend whose petals would revolutionize medicine – to the terribly drab Royal Society in a… Continue reading ‘Jungle Cruise’ eventually deflates its homages

‘Free Guy’ is affable- if slight- summer spectacle

Guy (Ryan Reynolds) is leading a perfectly average life of working-class monotony and complacent self-satisfaction. He arises every day to his beloved goldfish and a drab wardrobe of khakis and a blue button-down, not to mention the Mariah Carey song that always seems to enliven his spirits (This is certainly not a jab at pop… Continue reading ‘Free Guy’ is affable- if slight- summer spectacle

Subterfuge is disguised as uplift in fatally misguided ‘Dear Evan Hansen’

The erroneous choices of catastrophic Broadway musical adaptation Dear Evan Hansen begin with the curious casting of Ben Platt, reprising the titular lead role that earned him a Tony award and thrust the performer into the limelight. On paper, he’s obviously a viable contender to translate this popular character from stage to screen, but one… Continue reading Subterfuge is disguised as uplift in fatally misguided ‘Dear Evan Hansen’

Not just phoning it in: A review of ‘The Mitchells vs. the Machines’

Sony Pictures Animation has gone through an amazing renaissance in the past few years. They have gone from simply making movies that were really hit – Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and Hotel Transylvania – or miss – The Emoji Movie – to becoming one of the best animation studios in recent memory. Hot… Continue reading Not just phoning it in: A review of ‘The Mitchells vs. the Machines’