Category: Reviews

By Mark Saldana Rating: 3.5 (Out of 4 Stars) The remarkable true story of US Airways Flight 1549 and it emergency crash landing in the Hudson River is not only one for the history books, but is tailor-made for a feature film treatment.   On January 15, 2009, this incident made a media celebrity of… Continue reading Review: SULLY

By Liz Lopez Rating: B+ Writer-director Derek Cianfrance (Blue Valentine, The Place Beyond the Pines) has a new feature film, The Light Between Oceans, a romantic period story, adapted from the 2012 novel by M.L. Stedman. For fans of this genre of film, be prepared to take the tissues to the theater, as some of… Continue reading Review: THE LIGHT BETWEEN OCEANS

By Mark Saldana Rating: 1.5 (Out of 4 Stars) Despite a solid cast and decent characters, but a cliche premise, Morgan ultimately disappoints and has little entertainment value to offer movie goers.  One thing is to take an unoriginal premise and do something exciting with it; however, the filmmakers of this movie riddle their plot… Continue reading Review: MORGAN

By Liz Lopez Rating: B – I remember viewing Director Fede Alvarez’s first feature at SXSW three years ago, the Evil Dead remake, and I certainly admired his skill with the genre film. Alvarez returned to SXSW Film Festival this past March with his new feature he directed and wrote with Rodo Sayagues, Don’t Breathe,… Continue reading Review: DON’T BREATHE

By Liz Lopez Rating: B+ The film Hands of Stone written, directed and produced by Jonathan Jakubowicz (Secuestro express) is a biopic that has plenty of action and drama as it follows the life of Panamanian Roberto Duran from his childhood life of poverty, how he helped his family, and becomes a fighter who makes… Continue reading Review: HANDS OF STONE

By Liz Lopez Rating: B A young, attractive and tall lawyer, Michelle Robinson (Tika Sumpter), is shown in the opening scenes primping as she normally does for a daytime outing to a community event with a gentleman. She insists to her parents that this is “not a date” when she is accompanying a summer associate… Continue reading Review: SOUTHSIDE WITH YOU

Film slate also includes World Premiere of the newly restored cult classic THE ZODIAC KILLER and US Premiere screenings of THE HANDMAIDEN with Park Chan-Wook in attendance, THE BAD BATCH, TONI ERDMANN,  RAW and more!   Source: Fantastic Fest Austin, TX – Thursday, August 25, 2016 – Alamo Drafthouse’s Fantastic Fest delivers another dose of cinematic decadence with its second… Continue reading Fantastic Fest 2016: FANTASTIC FEST ANNOUNCES 2ND WAVE OF PROGRAMMING INCLUDING DENIS VILLENEUVE’S “ARRIVAL” AS OPENING NIGHT FILM

By Mark Saldana Rating: 3 (Out of 4 Stars) During the 1970s, Panamanian Roberto Duran rocked the boxing world with his “Manos de Piedra” (“Hands of Stone”) and eventually won his way to the WBC Welterweight championship against Sugar Ray Leonard, with whom he formed an intense rivalry.  This bout and the infamous rematch that… Continue reading Review: HANDS OF STONE

By Mark Saldana Rating: 3.5 (Out of 4 Stars) Writer/director Fede Alvarez (Evil Dead) has taken the premise of home invasion and given it his own inventive spin with his new film Don’t Breathe. Full of shocking and surprising twists,  Alvarez’s film is an exercise in intense thrills and taut suspense.  My strongest recommendation for… Continue reading Review: DON’T BREATHE