Film Reviews
Seth Rogen’s An American Pickle Shines Through the Brine With Sweet and Sour Quirks: Review
What’s in the Jar? Based on Simon Rich’s 2013 New Yorker short story “Sell Out”, An American Pickle spins a tall tale about a struggling immigrant named Herschel Greenbaum (Seth Rogen), who falls into a vat of pickles in 1920 Brooklyn, only to wake up brined and still-young 100 years later.… Please click the link below to read the full article. Seth Rogen’s An American Pickle Shines Through the Brine With Sweet and Sour Quirks: Review Michael Roffman You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewards by chatting, sharing photos, blogging and help give users back their fair share of In...
Beyoncé’s Black Is King Seeks to Change the Way We See Ourselves: Review
The Pitch: “I can’t breathe.” These were some of the final words uttered by George Floyd, an African American man killed in Minneapolis, Minnesota, as a result of police brutality. Due to the frequency of its usage by countless others during similar situations in the past, this phrase has come to be synonymous with the Black Lives Matter movement. While the self-worth and regard for the life of a person of color has continuously come into question, the healing power of art (particularly music) has always been used as remedy in times of despair. Historically, the slaves residing on various plantations would receive momentary comfort by harmonizing hymns of perseverance, hope, and religion. To this day, artists are still sought out to deliver a message that is reflective of the times through...
Shudder’s Host Brilliantly Adds Paranormal Activity to Our Pandemic: Review
The Pitch: Tired of Zoom calls? Bored of the same ol’ small talk? How about a seance to spice up your quarantine? Such is the conceit of Rob Savage’s Host. This swift, 56-minute capsule of terror follows a group of friends who tap into some paranormal activity amidst our ensuing pandemic — and, yes, we do mean ours. The whole thing was shot entirely during lockdown, and the all-too-palpable reality of Covid-19 surrounds these unfortunate souls, only it’s the last thing they need to fear. No Upcoming Meetings Today: Like Dave Franco’s The Rental, the concept here alone demands a watch of Host. This is ingenuity at its finest, and its origin story is almost as exciting as the film’s brazen execution. What started out as a Zoom prank gone viral — Savage tweeted video of himself investigating ...
The Rental Has Ruined AirBnb Forever: Review
The Pitch: Two couples in search of some impromptu R&R book a couple of nights at a dreamy, seaside rental. They don’t pack lightly, bringing all their excess baggage with them: deep-seated feelings for one another, rage issues, the whole spread. Unfortunately for them, this remote locale also happens to be the target of a stalker. <img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1054339" data-attachment-id="1054339" data-permalink="https://consequenceofsound.net/2020/07/film-review-the-rental/rental_ar_05-24-19_154-arw/" data-orig-file="https://consequenceofsound.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/THERENTALStill2.jpeg?quality=80" data-orig-size="1280,721" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0&qu...
The Beach House Brings Body Horror to a Pandemic: Review
The Pitch: Terror surrounds two college sweethearts looking for a little R&R at their remote, family beach house. There’s something in the water, and for Emily (Liana Liberato) and Randall (Noah Le Gros), that something may spell their end. Love That Lovecraft: Look, if you couldn’t tell from that semi-bullshit pitch, I’m trying to keep things vague for your sake. Don’t read up on The Beach House. Don’t watch the trailer for The Beach House. And, for Christ’s sake, don’t go Googling for photos of The Beach House. Like every great horror flick, the devil’s in the details, and those details are everywhere right now — mostly because this title is hot, hot, hot. Ever since it dropped at Chattanooga’s digital film festival earlier this summer, horror hounds have been praising the sleek 90-m...
Relic Is a Terrifying and Touching Allegory for Dementia: Review
The Pitch: Three generations of women deal with the inevitability of death in the face of a global pandemic largely affecting the elderly. Kay (Emily Mortimer) and her daughter Sam (Bella Heathcote) travel to grandmother Edna’s (Robyn Nevin) remote Australian home after receiving news that she has disappeared. When Edna returns days later with no memory of where she’s been, the house begins to change, complicating an emotional story of aging with sinister undertones. Directed by Natalie Erika James, who also wrote the script along with Christian White, Relic effectively weaves in elements from Hereditary and The Visit to deliver a terrifying tale that tugs at the heartstrings. The Ties That Bind: Relic struck a nerve with me. The story of a woman dealing with her ailing mother at the end o...
Tom Hanks Saves Apple TV+’s Greyhound From Sinking: Review
The Pitch: In the North Atlantic during World War II exists a stretch of water known as the Black Pit. It’s there, beyond the reach of any air support, convoys of American supply ships heading toward a battered Britain are attacked by hunting wolfpacks of German U-Boats. Their only protection in this perilous span of water comes by way of accompanying destroyers. One such ship, the USS Keeling (call sign “Greyhound”), is helmed by Commander Ernest Krause (Tom Hanks), who must safeguard his convoy over the course of 50 hours in his first-ever wartime command. Adapted by Hanks from C. S. Forester’s novel The Good Shepherd, Greyhound’s subject matter should come as no surprise. The two-time Academy Award winning actor has explored other World War II stories as the star of Saving Private Ryan ...
Jon Stewart’s Irresistible Is A Snarky, Silly Plea for Less of the Same: Review
The Pitch: In Jon Stewart’s Irresistible, the year 2016 and the U.S. presidential election very much happened. The Democratic National Committee is left licking its wounds in the wake of what was to be a slam-dunk win for Hillary Clinton. All the strategy, all the super PAC money, all the campaigning, photo ops, polls, and beyond still couldn’t put a seasoned veteran in the White House. Gary Zimmer (Steve Carrell), a leading DNC strategist, is burrowed under his bedsheets, dodging calls from MSNBC, CNN, national networks, and the rest of the circus. He was too smart, too punchy, too confident, too well-funded, and too connected for this to happen. Fast forward to the present. Zimmer discovers a viral video of a town meeting interrupted by a Marine colonel, Jack Hastings (Chris Cooper), pro...
Artemis Fowl Isn’t Worth 94 Minutes of Your Life: Review
The Pitch: After years in development hell, Disney is unveiling its attempt at a new franchise with the adaptation of Eoin Colfer’s first Artemis Fowl novel. With a cast that includes Colin Farrell, Josh Gad, and Dame Judi Dench, and esteemed director Kenneth Branagh behind the camera, what could go wrong? What Went Wrong: Well, just about everything. The one mercy of Artemis Fowl is that it’s short, clocking in at just 94 minutes including its end credits. Unfortunately, that gives Branagh and credited screenwriters Conor McPherson and Hamish McColl plenty of time to create confusing character motivations, half-assed attempts at emotional gravitas, and stabs at humor that are best left unsaid or unseen. For those of us who haven’t read the Colfer books, Artemis Fowl fails to tell its most...
Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods Brutally Confirms We Haven’t Learned Enough From War: Review
The Pitch: Five bloods, four surviving soldiers, the fall of Saigon, a hunt for gold, and the ever-lasting damage and degradation of war. Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods is his take on Vietnam through the eyes of African American grunts, both past and present. Vietnam, 1971. Paul (Delroy Lindo), Eddie (Norm Lewis), Otis (Clark Peters), Melvin (Isaiah Whitlock Jr.), and Norman (Chadwick Boseman) are a battalion that finds a crate filled with Vietnamese gold. Knowing they can’t just grab it and go, the men bury the prize with the hope of coming back for it when the time is right. In the meantime, they’re fighting in a war they’re not sure they need to be a part of, questioning the dangers of this foreign land against the rioting, fires, and protests at home. Ho Chi Minh City. Today. Paul, Eddie, Oti...
The King of Staten Island Turns Pete Davidson Into a Judd Apatow Archetype: Review
The Pitch: There’s not much distance between The King of Staten Island, the sixth feature film from comedy legend and super-producer Judd Apatow, and Pete Davidson’s much-publicized real-life. The circumstances are different — Davidson’s character in the film isn’t a comedy star on the most-watched sketch comedy show in the world, nor has he ever dated the world’s most famous pop star — but the background details are largely the same. Essentially, the movie is a fictional dramedy based on the real-life of 26-year-old Pete Davidson, comedian and the youngest cast member currently on Saturday Night Live. Art Imitating Life: On Saturday Night Live, Davidson traditionally opts to appear as himself, often riffing about his actual mental health issues and sobriety. When he became tabloid fo...
The Trip to Greece Offers a Fitting Farewell: Review
Bon Voyage: Funnymen Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon — playing fictionalized versions of themselves — once again join director Michael Winterbottom on a European excursion, this time tracing Odyseus’ 10-year journey home from Troy in a single week. The Trip series might best be described as a mash-up of an Anthony Bourdain special with Whose Line Is It Anyway? — a colorful combination of culture, comedy, camaraderie, and culinary exploration set in some of Europe’s most visually striking locales. However, at its best (the original film set in the north of England and its Italian sequel), the series, thin on plot as it may be, also poignantly chronicles two middle-aged fathers with problems, frustrations, and fears that many men endure at that age. Fortunately, the fourth and final installment ...
