Favorite films

Recent reviews

• 

  Here 2024

  ★★½ Added

  Carl Sagan once wrote, “If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe.” Counting on his fingers, Zemeckis replies, “Forget the pie, how much of the earth do I need to make a middling melodrama?”

  In order for this to work the director would have to trust the audience. Robert does not. Every plot point is smashed into your eyeballs with all the sterling grace of a cheese grater.

  The premise is good…

• 

  Megalopolis 2024

  ★★½ Added

  There's at least something to the commitment and self-backing, marshaling, funding (?).

  Beyond that, some lovely murnau-lang sequence of shadows on the wall as the satellite crashes; the theatrical fourth-wall break is fun; some fine digital/collage transitions.

  There's probably a pretty convincing 6-9 minute salvageable short in there. Twenty million a minute sounds about right. Not cheap. but it would be something instead of nothing.

  Most of the dialog is sort of like if a dog were taught to bark…

Popular reviews

• 

  Civil War 2024

  ★★★ Added

  This is the work of a rich, well-intentioned middle-aged man commentating on politics as though it is sport, nobly and patronizingly lecturing anyone foolish enough to Feel Ways About Stuff (Insert the dril post: the wise man bowed his head solemnly and spoke: "theres actually zero difference between good & bad things. you imbecile. you fucking moron").

  Most popular culture amounts to a sort of slurry of safe bets, otherwise known as an investment. These products are so risk averse as…

• 

  Same Player Shoots Again 1968

  ★★★ Added

  The only workout video you'll ever need. Try to keep up.