The opening night film of this year’s SXSW Film Festival is a brilliant offering from “Daniels,” the mad and visionary filmmaking duo who came up with the wild cinematic insanity that is Swiss Army Man. I went into this exciting beginning of the festival with high expectations, and the eccentric filmmaking partnership did not disappoint.… Continue reading SXSW 2022: EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE
Author: Mark Saldana
THE 94TH ACADEMY AWARDS
For most of the broadcast, the 2022 Oscars seemed to go without a hitch. The stars were all dressed well, filmmakers and actors received awards, musical numbers were performed, and the hosts and awards presenters made jokes. It wall all business as usual. That is, until one particular joke triggered a violent and controversial response.… Continue reading THE 94TH ACADEMY AWARDS
SXSW 2022: THE LOST CITY
The Lost City is one of those movies that hopes to reignite a flame and love for escapist cinema through the romantically comedic action genre. I am sure there are people who will cry, “Rip Off!” after watching this movie. And that might be a fair thing to claim. However, I feel that the people… Continue reading SXSW 2022: THE LOST CITY
SXSW 2022: SELL/BUY/DATE
Sarah Jones is an artist whose controversial play, Sell/Buy/Date, has affected audiences in a multitude of ways. The playwright/performer has made a film that comes across as a hybrid feature that mixes elements of her stage production and a documentary that shows the aftermath of her play. The result is a rather fascinating and thought-provoking… Continue reading SXSW 2022: SELL/BUY/DATE
THE OUTFIT
When I was offered this movie for reviewing, I hadn’t actually previously heard of it. I had seen no trailers, TV spots, and didnt seem to notice any previous press releases or other types of emails promoting the movie. In fact, after watching this intriguing and suspenseful drama, I am rather frustrated that the movie… Continue reading THE OUTFIT
COMPARTMENT NO. 6
The Grand Prix is the second place honor given by the Grand Jury at the Cannes Film Festival. At last year’s festival this award was shared by two impressive films. The first is Asghar Farhadi’s exceptional film, A Hero, while the other is a heartfelt and beautiful movie from Finland titled Compartment No. 6. I… Continue reading COMPARTMENT NO. 6
SXSW 2022: X
All slasher horror fans know that the ultimate sin that gets one killed is sex. Well, Ti West’s latest horror feature presents what happens when adult filmmakers and their cast become the targets. Taking place in 1979, X proves to be a gruesomely fun throwback that not only beautifully recreates the era in which the… Continue reading SXSW 2022: X
SXSW 2022: MASTER
One would that at the collegiate level, racism would not be a systemic problem at all. Writer/director Mariama Diallo strongly states otherwise in a powerful and emotional film that takes the issue of racial prejudice and utilizes it to spin a supernatural horror tale. The movie screened at this year’s SXSW festival and is now… Continue reading SXSW 2022: MASTER
THE BATMAN
Director Matt Reeves’ take on the Dark Knight has arrived and the results are absolutely amazing. I am sure there are some people wondering what makes his version of Batman so great, and I would have to say, that he absolutely gets how a dark, gritty and pulpy Dark Knight detective movie should look, live… Continue reading THE BATMAN
AFTER YANG
Well, it appears that there are two movies featuring actor Colin Farrell opening this weekend. One movie features Farrell, heavily made up and in a suit that helps him embody the character of the Penguin, in Matt Reeves’ new take on the Dark Knight called The Batman. The other is a more subtle, but still… Continue reading AFTER YANG