Tag: Score

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 »

Past Lives Powerfully Brings Love to the Big Screen, in All Its Glory and Pain

“If you leave something behind, you gain something too.” Past Lives follows the connection between Na Young (Greta Lee) and Hae Sung (Teo Yoo), two children who befriend each other in South Korea but lose contact with each…

Read More »

Cyrano’s Performances and Dynamic Score Create a Treat for Fans of Musicals (Middleburg Film Festival)

In late 2019, Erica Schmidt wrote and directed an Off Broadway adaptation of Cyrano that starred her husband, Game of Thrones actor Peter Dinklage. After its successful run, the musical has been brought to the big screen by…

Read More »

Monster’s Incredible Cast Can’t Elevate Story We’ve Seen Before

The issue of how American society paints black people as being pathological, as trouble waiting to happen, has been at the forefront for nearly a decade now. Just moments after a Florida jury set George Zimmerman free in…

Read More »

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom Provides a Glimpse at the Black Struggle for Basic Respect

The summer of 2020 was an explosive one that in many way mirrored the Red Summer of 1919 with protests and the dark specter of black death spread nationwide and beamed into our homes on the news or…

Read More »

Mank Uses Old Hollywood to Examine Current Politics, But Not Enough to Save It

One good way to prepare for change in our own world is to analyze previous societies that were on the precipice of change and how they handled it. What were their successes, or more importantly, their failures in…

Read More »

The Haunting of Da 5 Bloods

“After you’ve been in a war, you understand it really never ends. Whether it’s in your mind or in reality, they’re just degrees.” The ghosts of the past often stay with us. Try as we may, running from…

Read More »

I Will Make You Mine Shows Love is Anything but Black and White

“I’m trying to let you go. What do I know? You left me with all of your things. What will this bring?” Where is the line between love and infatuation? Merriam-Webster defines infatuation as “strong and unreasoning attachment”…

Read More »

High Life is an Examination of the Psychological Effects of Guilt Couched in Sci-Fi

************************This review contains spoilers**************************** Guilt is one of the more devastating emotions that humans can feel, one that can linger and fester over long periods of time and affect every level of our well-being and existence. As any…

Read More »

Phantom Thread Stumbles Down the Runway

Phantom Thread takes us into 1950s London as world renowned clothier Reynolds Woodcock (Daniel Day-Lewis) runs his studio House of Woodcock alongside his sister Cyril (Lesley Manville). Reynolds soon meets young waitress Alma (Vicky Krieps) who becomes his…

Read More »