In a Violent Nature

 In a Violent Nature is a fantastic concept, we follow the slasher killer instead of the victims. It starts off decent but i had a suspicion the film would take itself too serious. Well the film rolls on and we see a glimpse of the slasher's origin, and it is giving us rules of sort only not as good as Scream or Cabin in the Woods. We meet our victims, and they are annoying but not in a campy way like a Friday the 13th film, instead we don't get to know any of them. The kills are unique, some are great, only the serious tone began to feel campy, and the picture then loses it's idea of what tone it wants. By time we get to the final girl i was checked out, i didn't care about her, but that was the deconstruction of the film, only this deconstruction is a In a Tedious Way.  

I Saw The TV Glow

 A couple years ago i was stoked to see We're All Going to the World's Fair, but i wound up being underwhelmed by it. Now director Jane Schoenbrun is back with I Saw The TV Glow, and this is pretty much what i wanted the previous film to be. It's a coming of age tale told through the 90s and obsession over young adult horror TV. It's sad and bleak yet endearing and charming in an awkward way. The ideas get pretty bat shit and nothing is truly unraveled and i loved that decision. Cause much like a season finale, it leaves you wanting more.  

The Simpsons

 The 35th season of the Simpsons was easily the biggest chore of the series in over a decade, but the final 6 or so episodes are honestly pure brilliant Simpsons writing. 35 would have been a perfect number of seasons. Well maybe after Mania 45 we can have the Simpsons end on season 40. 

Problemista

 I was stoked for Problemista, it is the type of weird that i love, but upon watching it the film, while weird, feels more like a film that wants to be Everything Everywhere All At Once. I would love if that film inspired many but this just fell flat on all levels for me except for the satire about banks. But i wont bank on a revisit. 

Immaculate

 I wrote off Immaculate as a basic religious horror flick, but reviews kept saying it goes hard. Well the first hour and 15 minutes or so is a super slow burn, and honestly feels like your basic Shudder film. Then it picks up in the final 15 minutes....also like your basic Shudder film but the difference here is the final shot, holy fuck it really does go hard in that final shot. Ballsy ending. 

Furiosa

 I love Mad Max, especially Fury Road. It is a masterpiece of cinema and it gave us a new lead in Furiosa. A Furiosa spin off with Charlize Theron? Yes please! But a prequel with Anya Taylor Joy? I love Anya but was it needed?....well....no.....but  glad this exists as it is a perfect prequel, origin story, bridge. It is a beautiful film and is super fast paced for the extended run time. Here we see how she came to work for Immortan Joe and it plays out perfectly. Chris Hemsworth does his best work since Bad Times at the El Royal, the dude does his best working heel. The cinematography, the stunts, the action, George Miller does it again! This almost works as a stand alone film.

The Black Quarry

 

The Black Quarry is a cheap yet effective film that feels like a short. I was digging this flick but wished it had been further expanded and explored. Heavy metal and horror go hand and hand and this oozes both. 

Brain Tumor

 Lately Wild Eye Releasing has been pretty miss more than hit. There was a time where I used to watch all their films it I got soured too many times with screeners. This weekend while at Texas Frightmare I attended a screening of Brain Tumor and honestly as dumb as it was it was also the funniest damn film this year. It reminded me of the films I made as a teen. Over the top, raunchy And cheap. 

The Primevals

The Primevals is a film I had been reading about for decades. A long lost Full Moon film finally getting finished in all it's stop motion animated glory. It is your typical Full Moon in terms of acting and plot but above Full Moon at the same time. The sets feel very 1960s in all the best ways possible. It's a dumb film but a super fun one. 

X-Men 97

 The opening credits of X-Men 97 made me tear up, and the episode was quite solid. The entire season is a perfect sequel to the original but by that it also carries that shows weaknesses which were contrived plots and  scattered elements. I still love the original, and did a full on rewatch two years ago, along with Spider Man, and i founder Spidey to be the more consistent. Now this is a grown up cartoon, so there is a few cuss words, but it never feels forced, and blood and it is quite impactful. It's a fun watch but not the end all be all people are making it out to be. 

Monkey Man

 Monkey Man from Dev Patel reminds me alot of The Raid. It is a great looking action film that is hard hitting but ultimately did nothing for me. Good acting, good sets, there is honestly nothing to complain about from a technical stand point, the action scenes are great, i just never felt connected to it and felt more bored than entertained. This was not a bad film, it just didn't do much for me. 

The First Omen

 The first Omen,  not to be confused with The First Omen, is a great film, but it is not a franchise i love. I feel i watched more of them in parts during halloween than as a full feature but the original still is the only solid entree. Now we get The First Omen, and it is the best Omen since the first Omen. It is nothing special, just actually looks good, but it feels very Shudder, like super Shudder. There are some moments that push the envelope that i respected but ultimately it just feels like another possession film.....with out the possession. 

Kim's Video

 Kim's Video is one of the more interesting docs in some time. A tribute to cinephile love and VHS, it starts off as a way to see the beauty of New York's East Village, the underground films and music and the 80s, but then it shows that the store owner had a mysterious and possible criminal life and from that it goes truly insane. I wish it had dealt more with the store & tapes, but you couldn't tell this tale without this real story. 

Challengers

 Luca Guadagnino is an interesting filmmaker, pretentious but interesting. His last three i have all enjoyed in some way, but now Challengers is out and well.....it is indeed interesting in that Zendaya is great but it oozes pretention so much to the point where the film feels like an SNL skit. The time jumps are disorienting, the love triangle feels forced and not nearly developed enough. It feels like a film people will see and think is provocative and deep but it just is style over substance. 

Civil War

 Alex Garland is truly a master filmmaker. Every film of his has been hard hitting and viscerally fucked up, but Civil War is his most intense.  The four leads are all excellent here, the action & choreography is top notch, so much of it reminded me of Children of Men. The film drops you in the middle of a truly divided U.S. and doesn't give much back story, and i loved that it said fuck exposition, we follow our leads and we see their journey not just as characters but as people. We see how war can soften & harden individuals, how obsessive people become for their art. and just how plain scary human beings truly are as a whole. 

Snack Shack

 Snack Shack is a charming coming of age movie that is brutally honest about friendship & relationships. It tugs at the heart strings at times, feels raw like a 90s indie, and that has nothing to do with the decade it is set in, and feels comforting & real throughout, even in it's bleakness. Being shot in Nebraska City it is oddly one of the most Nebraskan films out there, so many moments i feel could be lost of non Nebraskans but that adds to the realness & rawness. 

Match of April

 Cody Rhodes vs Roman Reigns. WWE Title: WrestleMania 

Oba Femi vs Dijak vs Josh Briggs: North American Title: Stand & Deliver

Sami Zayn vs Gunther: IC Title: WrestleMania

Drew McIntyre vs Seth Rollins: World Title: WrestleMania

Trick Williams vs Ilja Dragunov: NXT Title 

Trick Williams vs Carmelo Hayes: Stand & Deliver 

Trick Williams vs Carmelo Hayes: Steel Cage:NXT

WolfDogs vs Nathan Frazer & Axiom: NXT Tag Titles: Stand & Deliver 

Roxanne Perez vs Lyra Valkyria: NXT Womens title: Stand & Deliver

Rhea Ripley vs Becky Lynch: Womens Title: Wresltemania

Chucky

 Chucky season 1 had no right to be as great as it was, season 2 was a mess, but it carried enough for me to want season 3. The third season has finished and it is a mixed bag, none were as good as s1, but some were more of a cluster than s2. Sadly though this season's finale was just bland and contrived. Twists happened that we knew, which isn't a bad thing usually, but here it just felt uninspired. Great gore this season but so much of the plot and characters were so cringe. 

The Fall Guy

 David Leitch is consistently one of the more fun directors working. The Fall Guy is a blast, Ryan Gosling & Emily Blunt have great chemistry, and the entire cast is having fun here. It is endlessly charming with a plot that is self aware enough not to be meta but feels comforting. This is a big budget blockbuster that pays tributes to blockbusters, filmmaking, but also stunt work as a whole.