Category: MAIN

By Mark Saldana Rating: 3.5 (Out of 4 Stars) Much like Lost in Translation, Sofia Coppola’s latest film feels very personal and expressive of the filmmaker’s feelings and life experiences. At the same time, though, this latest entry in her filmography lacks the same level of emotion, introspection, and joie de vivre. Nevertheless, I see… Continue reading ON THE ROCKS

By Mark Saldana Rating: 2.5 (Out of 4 Stars) An alien invasion premise sounds like the fodder for a joke directed at 2020. It also happens to be the basic premise for a new comedy movie getting released in this bizarre year. Though the idea of a global, catastrophic event might seem inappropriate given our… Continue reading SAVE YOURSELVES!

By Mark Saldana Rating: 3.5 (Out of 4 Stars) There have been several kinds of movies about mental health disorders. Some have that feel-good, triumph over adversity feel, while others serve as cautionary tales, presenting the worst-case scenarios. The Swerve definitely falls into that latter category, serving as stern, disturbing warning that if left unchecked,… Continue reading THE SWERVE

By Mark Saldana Rating: 2.5 (Out of 4 Stars) At this point in our history, most people already know that performance-enhancing drugs have had a huge impact in the world of sports. One of the major controversies to affect professional sports has to be the doping scandal that tainted the sport of cycling. A new… Continue reading THE RACER

By Mark Saldana Rating: 2.5 (Out of 4 Stars) There is little doubt that the life experiences of Black slaves can be best described as horrific. However, as far as I know, most cinematic portrayals have never fully gone the horror route. Such is the attempt of filmmakers Gerald Bush and Christopher Renz with their… Continue reading ANTEBELLUM

By Laurie Coker Rating: B+ I taught the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest as a senior English teacher and many of my students agree that Nurse Ratched is one of the most interesting antagonists ever written. In the 1975 film version of the novel, Louis Fletcher put the perfect pursed puss on the… Continue reading RATCHED – a Netflix Series

By Mark Saldana Rating: 4 (Out of 4 Stars) In the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial election, Stacey Abrams became the first African-African female nominee for a major party. After a hard-fought campaign, Abrams lost to her Republican opponent Brian Kemp. On the surface of things, this kind of loss probably seemed normal; however, to Abrams and… Continue reading ALL IN: THE FIGHT FOR DEMOCRACY