Tag: Music
The Brutalist is a Big, Epic Cinematic Swing (Middleburg Film Festival)
I am sure by now if you’re the type to pay attention to film awards or the buzz around fall film releases, you’ve heard the hype surrounding The Brutalist. Because it is a smaller independent film, its release…
Read More »A Complete Unknown is a Strong Defense of the Creative Artist
Biopics of legendary musicians have become all the rage in multiplexes post-Bohemian Rhapsody, Hollywood is a copycat town after all. Director James Mangold has crafted one following the rise of folk music legend Bob Dylan (Timothee Chalamet). His…
Read More »Joker: Folie à Deux’s Meta Commentary Boring Rather Than Poignant
Joker was a controversial hit in 2019, using the iconic comic book villain as a conduit to explore real world, grounded themes in a gritty, Scorsese like world. Director Todd Phillips defied the odds and created a billion…
Read More »Trap’s Delicious Thrills and Josh Hartnett Help It Overcome a Bumpy Third Act
Director M. Night Shyamalan returns to multiplexes with his newest thriller. Trap introduces us to Cooper (Josh Hartnett), a dad from suburban Philadelphia taking his teen daughter Riley (Ariel Donoghue) to see her favorite pop star Lady Raven…
Read More »Bob Marley: One Love Does Little to Rise Above Typical Biopic Fare
Following the overwhelming box office success of 2018’s Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, films detailing the lives of musical legends were greenlit across Hollywood studio lots. The newest one, Bob Marley: One Love tells the story of reggae icon Bob Marley (Kingsley Ben-Adir) and his…
Read More »The Color Purple is a Visual and Musical Marvel
Following up an iconic story with a new retelling is always a daunting task and adapting a story as beloved as this one can be even more challenging. The Color Purple follows the same story many are familiar…
Read More »Maestro is a Technical Marvel Paired with an Emotional Story of Marriage’s Complexity (Middleburg Film Festival)
Bradley Cooper returns to directing with a biopic about a famous musician, this time focusing on a famous, real life figure. Maestro chronicles the rise of famous composer Leonard Bernstein (Cooper) as he builds his musical legend alongside…
Read More »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…
Read More »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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Emilia Pérez is a Pleasant Surprise That Effectively Melds Social Commentary, Drama, and Music Together (Middleburg Film Festival)
Multiplexes have been riddled with the remnants of musicals past in recent years with some having succeeded, like 2023’s Wonka, and others crashing and burning like Joker Folie á Deux earlier this year. Audiences have had mixed reactions…
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