By Mark Saldana Rating: 3 (Out of 4 Stars) In the 1990s, the video game Mortal Kombat became one of the hottest fighting video games in the world. With its photo-realistic graphics for the characters and its intense, gory, over-the-top violence, teens and young adults spent loads of money either playing the arcade versions or… Continue reading MORTAL KOMBAT
Category: Reviews
THE COURIER
By Mark Saldana Rating: 3.5 (Out of 4 Stars) Now available for viewing via Premium Video on Demand, The Courier tells the compelling true story of British businessman Greville Wynne, a mostly unassuming salesman recruited as a spy during the Cold War and how his work with Russian secret agent Oleg Penkovsky helped defuse the… Continue reading THE COURIER
SXSW 2021: JAKOB’S WIFE
By Mark Saldana Rating: 3.5 (Out of 4 Stars) From producer/director Travis Stevens, the filmmaker behind several genre festival favorites, comes a “biting” dark satire that critiques some of the more archaic conventions of marriage. Horror legend Barbara Crampton stars as the titular character who finds herself trapped in a stale and stagnant marriage where… Continue reading SXSW 2021: JAKOB’S WIFE
VOYAGERS
By Mark Saldana Rating: 2 (Out of 4 Stars) Much like William Golding’s novel, Lord of the Flies, this science fiction thriller depicts what could happen when teenagers/young adults are left to their immature devices when placed in positions of responsibility. The problem with this film, however, is that is comes across as a not-so-great… Continue reading VOYAGERS
SXSW 2021: VIOLATION
By Mark Saldana Rating: 3.5 (Out of 4 Stars) This dramatic horror film from Canada deals with the very traumatic problem of rape and abuse, but offers a more frightening and disturbing take on the aftermath of such trauma. Written and directed by, and starring Madeleine Sims-Fewer, Violation depicts what can happen when a family’s… Continue reading SXSW 2021: VIOLATION
SXSW 2021: DEAR MR. BRODY
By Mark Saldana Rating: 4 (Out of 4 Stars) In 1970, Michael James Brody Jr. an heir to oleomargarine millions, publicly announced that he would give away all of the money from his $25 million fortune to anyone who needed it. Known as a “hippie angel,” Brody obviously was not prepared for the massive response… Continue reading SXSW 2021: DEAR MR. BRODY
THE KNOT
By Laurie Coker Rating: B+ Indian writer/director Ashish Pant explores disparaging class divides in his freshman, full-feature film effort, The Knot (Uljhan). The film, starring Vikas Kumar and Saloni Batra rolls along at a slow burn and digs deeply into the chasm that exists between the haves and have nots. Pant’s is suspenseful, although sometimes… Continue reading THE KNOT
GODZILLA VS. KONG
By Laurie Coker Rating: A I still get a chuckle when I think about watching old-school Godzilla movies and the rubbery creature stomping around with people screaming “Godzilla” lips not matching sound. Great stuff! The giant lizard has graced the screen countless times in several different forms, but CGI experts have gone above and amazingly… Continue reading GODZILLA VS. KONG
SXSW 2021: WOMEN IS LOSERS
By Laurie Coker Rating: A+ Getting into my VIRTUAL SXSW mode, settling into my office chair, and choosing my first film proved a bit more difficult than I imagined compared to face-to-face experiences of past festivals. Once I figured it all out, I chose Women is Losers as the first film I watched. Written and… Continue reading SXSW 2021: WOMEN IS LOSERS
GODZILLA VS. KONG
By Mark Saldana Rating: 3 (Out of 4 Stars) After the somewhat frustrating self-seriousness of 2014’s Godzilla and 2019’s Godzilla: King of Monsters, a team of writers and director Adam Wingard have managed to take the goofy fun elements and exciting action of Kong: Skull Island to help steer this latest entry onto its proper… Continue reading GODZILLA VS. KONG