By Kevin Muller
There are certain roles on television that you can’t imagine any other actor, or actress, playing. Ed O’Neil was hilariously pathetic as Al Bundy, Julia Louis-Dreyfus gave us so many laughs as Elaine, and Bryan Cranston sent chills down our spines as the Walter White. Now, you can add Rachel Brosnahan to the list of actors who have provided unforgettable protagonists that make a great show, like this one, even better. Her Midge Maisel is a true character of female empowerment.
by Kevin Muller
The Irishman represents a lot as a film. First, it is the first time the legendary director, Martin Scorsese has worked with legendary actor, Al Pacino. This is also a big gamble for the streaming service, Netflix, who put up the $159 Million dollar budget, when almost every studio in town passed on it. The company has released many films before, including last year’s Oscar winning, and my favorite film of the year, Roma. The gigantic price tag went to de-aging the actors, since this film spans over 50 years. It is an expensive trick to finance. Most of all, this feels like a good-bye to a genre of films made by the master and his crew of skilled actors. The important question is, does it all work?
by Kevin Muller
One of the perks of the Oscar film season, which we are currently in, is films from all around the world get their moment in the spotlight that are vying for the chance at the “Best Foreign Film” prize. You probably have a favorite film from this genre: Life is Beautiful, Roma, A Separation, War and Peace, and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. This film comes from South Korea. Does it deserve to be mentioned amongst those other great films?
by Kevin Muller
When writer and director Robert Eggers burst on to the scene with 2016’s The Witch, he gave us a true New England horror tale. What he succeeded in doing was creating an immersive experience for the viewers. A majority of the time, when films are set in a different time periods, the accents are shoddy, the cinematography too clean, or the actors can’t nail the true essence of the characters. Eggers nailed all three of those aspects and much more. For his next feature, he has given us a movie, that takes place at the end of the 19th century, located in New England, with his two actors speaking in thick New England accents. Does he go two for two, or was his first effort a fluke?
by Kevin Muller
How would you define a movie star? Personally, it is an actor whose charisma shines through and levitates the best and worst of films. Will Smith has a giant personality that has given him a successful career that has spanned through television, music, film, and two Academy Award nominations. He can bring the funny as well as he can bring the tears. He can be sensitive, loving, and caring, but also witty, fun, and bad ass. Those are the very traits that make this very mediocre film semi-enjoyable instead of the train wreck it could’ve been.
by Kevin Muller
John Rambo is a relic of an older and wilder time in cinema. He’s a former soldier who came home only to be thrown back into the world of violence and murder. The chaos of war runs through his veins. Eleven years ago, after a 20 year hiatus, Stallone, who was 62 at the time, came back with a kick ass action movie that was unforgiving with its level of gore. It was a great call back to the films of the 80s too. Now, the aging action star, who can still kick the ass of people more than half his age, is back with another story for his memorable action hero. Does he still have it?
By Kevin Muller
The most important thing a film can do is make you feel something. Most of the time, we expect to walk out of the cinema feeling inspired or uplifted. That is fine, but certain films conjure certain feelings within us that are not always positive. The 1978 film, The Deer Hunter, was a bleak look at the mental anguish that war, specifically Vietnam, can have on former soldiers. One of the reasons it won best picture was because it took viewers on a journey where they encountered many types of emotions, mostly ones of horror, despair, and hopelessness. These are the same feelings you will face when watching Todd Phillip’s new film about the origins of the “Prince of Crime.” It isn’t a pleasurable experience, but a well-made one that really dives into the darkness of the character.
by Kevin Muller
Stanley Kubrick’s film 2001: A Space Odyssey, was groundbreaking because it took viewers on a miraculous journey that displayed revolutionary film making. It also inspired countless directors and writers to create films of similar nature, with its beautiful visuals and psychedelic nature, that were either were respectful imitators or just flat out disasters. James Gray, who brought us the severely underrated 2016 The Lost City of Z, has now directed a space film that has hints of Kubrick. Does his film soar like a rocket or get lost in space?
By Kevin Muller
It is always great to see new talent headline a movie. If you look up Jillian Bell, you will probably say to yourself, “oh yeah, that’s where she is from!” One of her more popular roles was playing the antagonist in 22 Jump Street, providing an uncomfortable, but hilarious, sexual tension with Jonah Hill in that film’s final confrontation. She was also a writer on Saturday Night Live for a few years. The chance to headline her own film is a pretty big step for this actress. Did the hard work pay off?
by Kevin Muller
While there are many defenders of the television miniseries, that was the first adaptation of Stephen King’s classic novel, the majority of those defenders will agree that the adult part of the 90s version fell short. Everything seemed to fall apart in the second half of that adaptation. After 2017’s hugely successful big screen version, could director Andy Muschietti succeed in bringing something as good as IT Chapter 1?
Cinephellas 