Category: Film Review

Director Gabe Polsky achieved some critical acclaim in recent years as a documentarian, exploring the oddity and askew glory of Russian sporting achievements in 2014’s “Red Army” and 2019’s “Red Penguins.” He returns to dramatic interests with “Butcher’s Crossing,” adapting a 1960 novel by John Edward Williams, which examines the hardship of the frontier experience in 1874. It’s a tale of survival and mental illness, detailing a young man’s odyssey into a world he doesn’t understand, learning more about the ugliness of humanity in the process. Polsky hopes to work in an understanding of bison population decimation while in the process of crafting a slow-burn descent into insanity, and this strange balance of history and psychological horror keeps “Butcher’s Crossing” involving despite its grim premise. It also helps to have Nicolas Cage around, who seems to be enjoying the acting assignment, going raw and bald with his take on a hunter’s blinding obsession for prey. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Martin Scorsese is in the business of epics these days. He’s spent the last decade of his career aiming to make gigantic films about personal passions and lifelong commitments, keeping run times inflated to explore every inch of his material. After going back to his mafia roots with 2019’s “The Irishman,” Scorsese (along with co-writer Eric Roth) delves into America’s dark past with “Killers of the Flower Moon,” which adapts a 2017 book by David Grann. The feature runs 206 minutes, giving the production plenty of time to inspect every step of this journey, which takes viewers through the extreme details of the Osage Indian Murders that occurred 100 years ago. “Killers of the Flower Moon” is like every Scorsese picture, with impeccable technical achievements, thorough performances, and a story that explores the pure darkness of the human experience. Much like the helmer’s recent output, it’s an endeavor to be admired and studied, but it's not always a riveting sit, with editing (by longtime collaborator Thelma Schoonmaker) more of a suggestion than a reality as Scorsese tries to get his arms around the scope of the effort. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Nyad” is the first feature-length dramatic effort for directors Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, with the pair previously winning an Oscar for their rock climbing documentary, 2019’s “Free Solo.” They return to the world of intense physical endeavors with “Nyad,” which details the experience of distance swimmer Diana Nyad as she, at the age of 60, mounted a fresh attempt to swim solo from Cuba to Key West. Screenwriter Julia Cox has Diana’s own perspective to work with, adapting the athlete’s 2015 autobiography, “Find a Way,” and she has an advantage with the subject matter, which examines the power of endurance and the dangers of the swim. The production also has Annette Bening in the eponymous role, with the seasoned actress hitting all the areas of Diana’s personality, joined by Jodie Foster, who brings outstanding intensity to the part of the swimmer’s coach. There’s a lot to support “Nyad” through some choppy storytelling waters, giving the picture a special screen power. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Longtime casting professional Jennifer Cram makes her debut as a writer/director with “Sick Girl,” and she’s selected quite a tonal challenge for her first at-bat. Here’s a story about a self-absorbed woman pretending to have cancer to help win back attention from her friends and family, embarking on a journey of lies to maintain her extraordinary ruse. It’s a dark comedy with the bleakest of premises, but Cram is on a quest to make the endeavor not only funny, but sensitive, looking to understand the main character’s motives as she embarks on the worst idea of her life. Mercifully, “Sick Girl” is mildly amusing, with Cram keeping the mood light enough to make some silliness happen. Not everything works here, but the production manages to survive such a study of unforgivable behavior and, true to form, Cram has a strong eye for actors, filling the feature with spirited performers who help to capture the extremity of the writing. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1978’s “Skateboard” (a.k.a. “Skateboard: The Movie”) is a production trying to capitalize on a trend. The world of skateboarding is explored here, with co-writer/director George Gage bringing viewers to Los Angeles, where the kids are showing off their moves on four wheels, while a desperate man with an enormous debt hopes to exploit such talent for his own financial gain. “Skateboard” is a quickie production, offering a threadbare plot and sketchily drawn characters, but it’s not meant to be much more than a showcase for the sport, captured here during its 1970s heyday, with subculture superstar Tony Alva claiming a supporting role. Skateboarding footage is key here, adding a sense of excitement and showmanship to the endeavor, which noticeably struggles with anything that isn’t about following sporting accomplishments. It’s not the most electric offering of drama, with Gage and co-writer Richard A. Wolf (the future king of television, Dick Wolf, making his professional debut) struggling to pour some foundation for a feature that’s best with pure physical activity. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer/director/editor/star Andrew Bowser is an internet personality, building a fanbase with his “Onyx the Fortuitous” character, achieving some social media popularity with his version of a virginal goth kid and his extreme awkwardness. It seems to be the routine for this type of performer, joining the likes of Fred Figglehorn and Miranda Sings, who also built empires with ridiculously broad characters, using bite-sized bits of comedy to win over viewers before dreaming bigger with longer starring vehicles. Bowser tries his luck with “Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls,” which is his attempt to celebrate his Tim Burton fandom, trying to recapture the zany tone and practical effects magic of “Beetlejuice,” only without the budget or creative impishness. “Talisman of Souls” is aimed directly at Bowser’s admirers, who will have a lot more patience for his exaggerated performance, but playfulness is missing from the picture, along with editorial judiciousness, which takes short-form video content and brings it to a taxing 110-minute-long run time. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“The Burial” is a 2023 film set in 1995 and it plays like a movie from 1988. It’s an old-fashioned crowd-pleaser of a picture, going big as a legal underdog story that’s filled with terrific performances and snappy scenes of personal engagement. It’s based on a 1999 New Yorker article that explored the story of lawyer Willie E. Gary and his battle against the Lowen Group, a “death care industry” leader accused of trying to delay a contract signing to help destroy a rival in Mississippi. Co-writers Doug Wright and Maggie Betts (who also directs) jettison the dull shuffle of realistic courtroom happenings, preferring to launch a more colorful overview of law battles featuring lively characters. “The Burial” is certainly broad, perhaps too much so at times, but it’s also an immensely appealing feature, encouraging viewers to dig into this tale of justice and warming relationships. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“The Conference” is a Swedish production that brings slasher happenings to a workplace environment. It’s not exactly a novel idea, but director Patrik Eklund has some nastiness and humor to share with the endeavor, which is bloody enough to satisfy horror fans. The picture isn’t a satire, but a more direct pantsing of office politics, playing around with feisty personalities as a group of employees gather for a team-building trip, only to encounter ultraviolence in a camp setting. There’s a masked killer and an assortment of characters who refuse to understand the danger in front of them, but “The Conference” is certainly an entertaining sit, supported by engaged performances, snappy editing, and Eklund’s love of the game, handling the B-movie event with care for bodily harm and scenes of people being hunted. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Imagine if Stephen King wrote “The Outsiders,” with the film adaptation turned into a “Purge” sequel. That’s the general atmosphere of “Dark Harvest,” which is actually based on a 2006 novel by Norman Partridge, with Michael Gilio handling screenwriting duties. It’s a grim story of small-town tradition and mass death, glazed with fantasy elements to downplay everything that doesn’t make sense about the material, and the feature’s direction is handed to David Slade, who once tried to charm moviegoers with dark visions for “Hard Candy” and “30 Days of Night,” burying suspense under style overkill. He returns to unfortunate cinematographic habits here, but “Dark Harvest” is already in trouble by the time Slade lubes up his shaky-cam interests, finding the story itself difficult to buy and performances are mostly unaware of what kind of picture they’re making. It’s a rough viewing experience for the spooky season, and Slade’s general disinterest in securing a decent story or suspense only makes the endeavor harder to endure. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The war between science and religion is the dramatic foundation for “In the Fire,” which takes audiences to the early days of psychology as it develops in a land largely ruled by God’s laws. Co-writer/director Conor Allyn (“No Man’s Land,” “Java Heat”) has a sophisticated idea for the picture, examining the will of a woman devoted to the understanding of the human mind and the mob mentality of faith, with this collision of righteousness promising a heated study of certainty. “In the Fire” doesn’t end up chasing such conflict, with Allyn sticking to a more simplistic understanding of character and contentiousness. Some passion does emerge from performances, but wilder swings of condemnation, along with romantic entanglements, take material that initially feels invested in reality and turns it into a soap opera. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Dangerous Waters” is a forgettable film, but it will be remembered as the feature actor Ray Liotta was working on when he passed away in 2022. He doesn’t have a major part in the picture, showing up in the movie for a single scene, and fans of the star should be aware of this situation, as Liotta is prominently billed in marketing materials, even appearing on the poster. “Dangerous Waters” isn’t exactly boosted by Liotta’s appearance, with the effort largely underwhelming, established as something of a crime thriller before it takes a lengthy detour into a survival story. Guns and bad guys are present in the tale of a young woman facing the fight of her life while stuck on the open water, but director John Barr (“Blood and Money”) can’t tap into a rich sense of suspense, with the endeavor too slack when it comes to pressurized moments of conflict, and his casting isn’t strong enough deliver a more physical understanding of danger. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Emerging as the third feature about exorcisms released in the last year, “The Exorcist: Believer” is meant to be the most significant production of them all. It’s a sequel to the 1973 William Friedkin classic, reconnecting, in some ways, to the story of Chris MacNeil and her daughter, Regan, even managing to bring back actress Ellen Burstyn to reprise her role as the weary mother who’s been to Hell and back. The project is directed by David Gordon Green, a helmer with an iffy oeuvre, but he’s the guy who made Michael Myers headline news again with his popular but poorly conceived “Halloween” revival trilogy. The idea here is to return “The Exorcist” to media domination, but something went wrong along the way, primarily in the execution of this satanic possession story. “Believer” is a frightfully uninspired horror movie and a terrible “Exorcist” film, with Green making an episode of bad television instead of an intensely frightening cinematic offering, unable to match past franchise highs with this misbegotten brand name resurrection. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Actress Siobhan Fallon Hogan has enjoyed a steady career in supporting parts, but she took a chance on herself with 2021’s “Rushed,” providing the screenplay for the movie, which offered her an opportunity to play the lead. And she did so wonderfully, helping to guide an unusual understanding of the mourning process that subverted expectations, making for an interesting sit. Hogan returns with “Shelter in Solitude,” which also presents an unusual view of dramatic interactions, once again creating a script that’s more interested in character than formula, which, for this endeavor, involves a relationship between a prison guard and a man dealing with his final days on death row. Director Vibeke Muasya looks to maintain some emotional intensity to the feature, also tasked with detailing a COVID-19 world, but she’s best with performances, finding Hogan once again greatly impressing with her depth and sensitivity, joined by a terrific cast that makes the little moments hit the hardest. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Television director Chloe Domont makes her feature debut with “Fair Play,” and it’s a doozy at times. It’s a look at a couple experiencing a seismic change in their secret relationship, with these hedge fund firm employees taking a direct shot to their mutual trust and attraction when the balance of power is destroyed, leaving them to deal with a situation both are unprepared for. At its best, “Fair Play” is an unusual slow-burn viewing experience, with its examination of workplace gamesmanship and domestic animosity finding ways to slip under the skin, making for a riveting sit. Domont (who also scripts) offers a sharp understanding of gender tension and she crafts an intense picture up until the last 15 minutes of the movie. Suddenly, the writing shows in the worst way, but a bum ending doesn’t deflate the endeavor, which examines psychological poisoning brilliantly, working right to the core of humiliation. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The poster for “Desperation Road” has stars Mel Gibson and Garrett Hedlund holding guns, posed in a way that suggests the feature is an action film, with plenty of violence served up for viewers. It’s a strange way to promote an effort that’s not all that physically active, more interested in human sorrow than blazing weapons. I suppose this is the way of movie marketing, but the picture actually offers a more tender view of characters in pain, struggling to right themselves in a world that’s seemingly working against then. Guns are involved in the plot, but screenwriter Michael Farris Smith (adapting his own 2017 novel) tries to remain with emotions during the run time, studying lasting pain and surprising connections, aiming to make a little mournful Mississippi screen poetry with the endeavor. Director Nadine Crocker has a decent grasp on the material, overseeing a well-acted and periodically powerful study of grief. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

For the sixth installment of the anthology series, “V/H/S/85” is actually just like the other pictures, with the producers gathering a small assortment of directors to share their bite-sized visions of screen horror. The last sequel, “V/H/S/99,” couldn’t get out of mediocrity despite some creative highlights, and the new endeavor is only a slight improvement, doing a little better when it comes to shock and situations of survival. Jittery visuals and human suffering returns, dialing back the clock to the 1980s, when video formats were a source of debate and handheld cameras were becoming omnipresent. “V/H/S/85” remains in line with franchise demands, concentrating on characters experiencing a great disruption to their strange lives, with some of the storytellers a bit more invested in pace and screen tension than others, making for an uneven sit with a particularly sluggish conclusion. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

A case of the cutes threatens to break out at any moment in “She Came to Me,” which is a strange approach to a film that’s mostly about infidelity and legal entanglements. It’s the latest feature from writer/director Rebecca Miller, who’s done good work before (“Personal Velocity: Three Portraits,” “The Ballad of Jack and Rose”), but hasn’t been seen in a while (2015’s “Maggie’s Plan”), with her latest feeling like an opportunity to try some funky tones out while feeling around for dark comedy and deep drama. “She Came to Me” is a handful at times, but Miller’s commitment to character is involving, exploring semi-unwell people hunting for control and opportunities in their sad lives. It’s a fascinating study of ego as well, nicely propped up by the cast, who secure distinct personalities in the haziness of Miller’s screenplay. Wackiness and anguish don’t mix as well as the helmer hopes, and the endeavor is often unsteady, but there are ideas that connect here, making for some interesting conflicts. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

There wasn’t much excitement surrounding the release of 2019’s “Pet Sematary,” which offered an updated take on the Stephen King novel, trying to compete with a previous film adaptation from 1989. However, profit is profit, and the feature did small-time business on a minimal budget, inspiring the producers to try and milk the brand name once again, this time going the prequel route with “Pet Sematary: Bloodlines,” which examines the horrors of Ludlow, Maine in the 1960s. The story for the picture is actually part of King’s book, but here, it’s the whole show, with screenwriters Jeff Buhler and Lindsey Anderson Beer (who also directs) on a mission to make something out of this small piece of local history, hoping to resurrect some of the dark “Pet Sematary” magic for another round of small-town violence involving the newly reanimated. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Sean McNamara makes a lot of movies, already onscreen this year with last spring’s “On a Wing and a Prayer.” The “Bratz” and “Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite” helmer isn’t one to worry about the fine details of filmmaking, with production speed his primary motivation. This creative approach is easily identified in “Vindicta,” which looks to combine the pressurized experience of being a paramedic in the big city with a horror story about a masked killer looking to destroy anyone involved with the history of a burned building in Seattle. “Vindicta” is a low-budget offering of suspense, and McNamara’s clumsy approach to everything in the endeavor doesn’t inspire a rich ride of genre entertainment. It’s confused work, never quite settling on a cohesive tone as it goes from vocational stress to family woes to blood-spurting bodily destruction. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Sean McNamara makes a lot of movies, already onscreen this year with last spring’s “On a Wing and a Prayer.” The “Bratz” and “Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite” helmer isn’t one to worry about the fine details of filmmaking, with production speed his primary motivation. This creative approach is easily identified in “Vindicta,” which looks to combine the pressurized experience of being a paramedic in the big city with a horror story about a masked killer looking to destroy anyone involved with the history of a burned building in Seattle. “Vindicta” is a low-budget offering of suspense, and McNamara’s clumsy approach to everything in the endeavor doesn’t inspire a rich ride of genre entertainment. It’s confused work, never quite settling on a cohesive tone as it goes from vocational stress to family woes to blood-spurting bodily destruction. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com