Fred Topel 19 years ago, McG reinvented Charlie’s Angels as a movie. In 2000 that meant it reflected the ethos of the millennium. Action scenes utilized Hong Kong style wirework popularized by The Matrix, and a cheeky self-referential tone. In 2019, Charlie’s Angels still reflects the modern era of moviemaking. Unfortunately this Charlie’s Angels didn’t copy the
Whenever director Paul Feig chooses a genre, he makes one of the best in the genre. Female raunchy comedy? Bridesmaids. Buddy cop movie? The Heat. James Bond? The masterpiece Spy. ‘80s reboot? The underrated Ghostbusters. Neo-noir thriller? A Simple Favor. The Christmas movie must’ve stumped him. Katrina (Emilia Clarke) grew up in Yugoslavia in the
47 Meters Down was a big surprise for me, although it shouldn’t have been. It’s my kind of movie. When characters are trapped in a confined location, how do you keep it going for 90 minutes? The first film was all in a cage at the bottom of the ocean. 47 Meters Down: Uncaged is
I liked Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood. I was entertained the whole time, although I also definitely felt its length. Quentin Tarantino does his slow burn thing, and I’m not sure it ultimately means anything, but it’s still entertaining to see A-list actors doing his dialogue. It’s the bromance between has been TV cowboy
I wouldn’t have expected to like Guy Ritchie’s Aladdin and be disappointed by Jon Favrea’s Lion King but here we are. Jon Favreau showed all the potential for live-action remakes in The Jungle Book, but his Lion King is a cautionary tale about their limitations. I think Lion King doesn’t work as “live-action” because there
Speed opened 25 years ago today. It would captivate audiences all summer long as it did steady business week after week. Movies used to do that as people discovered movies and told their friends. It’s easy to see why. Speed was the quintessential high concept movie. There’s a bomb on the bus and Jack Traven
Nicolas Cage has been my favorite actor for over 20 years and his craziest performance came out 30 years ago today. I probably only saw Vampire’s Kiss 10 years ago but it turns out that’s a common experience. It wasn’t the easiest to find and maybe you need to come to Vampires Kiss in your
Ma is much more of a straight horror movie but it has a lot in common with the _____ from Hell movies I love so much. Ma doesn’t fit into a box as neat as Nanny from Hell or Roommate from Hell, but I guess she could be Maternal Figure From Hell. Sue Ann (Octavia
When Jonathan and Martha Kent raised a Kryptonian baby as their own, they taught him good values and helped him become Superman. It’s a good thing Clark listened to them. If he hadn’t there’d be no stopping him. Brightburn is truly the Bad Seed of Krypton. Tori (Elizabeth Banks) and Kyle Breyer (David Denman) are
From the director of Bohemian Rhapsody comes the story of Elton John. By making Rocketman an actual musical, it avoids some of the Dewey Cox biopic formula. The framing device is Elton John (Taron Egerton) telling his life story in AA, so you could say, “Elton John needs to think about his entire life before