Tag: Historical

The Bikeriders Feels Like a Missed Opportunity

The Bikeriders has been building up buzz since last year, mostly based around the reported performance of Austin Butler coming off the heels of his Oscar nominated turn in 2022’s Elvis. Now, the film finally hits theaters. The…

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Shirley Documents The Audacity of Self Belief

Forty-four years before Hillary Clinton’s historic run for President, one Congresswoman had the audacity to try her hand at the biggest political office on the planet. Shirley documents the historic 1972 Presidential campaign of black U.S. congresswoman Shirley…

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The Zone of Interest Powerfully Displays the Banality of Evil (Middleburg Film Festival)

The concept of evil triumphing within society not because of some over-the-top conquest, but because of everyday people becoming numb to the slow march of what they know to be wrong is an oft explored concept within the…

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Napoleon’s Two Quality Halves Don’t Make a Whole

2023 has seen multiple historical epics grace the big screen as if the 1960s have returned. Audiences seem to be warming up to witnessing history unfold in theaters with the hype surrounding multiple pictures and director Ridley Scott’s…

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Rustin is Part How-to Guide for Political Organizing, Part Character Study, All Engaging (Middleburg Film Festival)

As protests rage on around the world, the how of these massive demonstrations is often forgotten or glossed over. Who organizes these protests? How are thousands of people corralled into one place fighting for one cause? Rustin reintroduces…

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Killers of the Flower Moon: A Tale of Americana

“But the bigger we get, the more we’re taking from other people.” – Mobsters (1991) Social inequality and equity have become hot topics in American society over the past several years. Politicians, academics, and business leaders have all…

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Oppenheimer Explores Guilt, Crisis of Conscience in Fusion of Biopic and Tense Procedural Drama

A three-hour biographical drama shot partially in black-and-white does not usually sound like a recipe for a mid-summer theatrical release, but the formula for blockbuster success changes when director Christopher Nolan is involved. His latest film seeks to…

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Chevalier is a By-The-Numbers Biopic Saved By Its Cast

Chevalier sets out to tell the true tale of Joseph Bologne (Kelvin Harrison Jr.), the illegitimate son of an African slave named Nanon (Ronke Adekoluejo) and French plantation owner George Bologne (Jim High). After his father recognizes his…

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Babylon is a Bit Too Ambitious For Its Own Good

Babylon spans the pivotal era of American filmmaking in Hollywood from 1926-1952 as a host of changes were taking place both behind the camera, in the boardrooms of movie studios, and throughout American culture at large. We follow…

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Olivia Colman and Micheal Ward Elevate Empire of Light’s Simple Romance (Middleburg Film Festival)

Director Sam Mendes returns to the big screen bringing along with him actress powerhouse Olivia Colman. In Empire of Light we meet Hillary (Olivia Colman) a middle-aged manager of a movie theater in the United Kingdom in the…

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