Spell is far from anything great but it's a atmospheric watch filled with solid acting. The story is unique and it has a message but it still feels bland. It's a great idea stuck in a pale film, it doesn't look bad but it feels no better than a Shudder film but with Paramount's name on it. Way better than the reviews it has previously received but doesn't feel theatrical at all.
The Midnight Sky might be George Clooney's best since the Ides Of March but that is like saying your latest shit didn't smell as bad as the past two days. It looks his best since Good Night and Good Luck but boy, is this film boring. I backed it when he trashed Tenet, but competing at the box office didn't happen in the summer, competing on streaming might be happening but competing for most boring is neck and neck.
The story of Sputnik intrigued me, however the final results felt more like a video game cut scene. When i say cut scene i mean cut scene and no game play. This is all very survival horror yet with the threat being overly subtle. This is a good film but it feels forgettable and untapped.
It was 6 years between Me and You and Everyone We Know to The Future. Now it was 9 years between the Future and Kajilionaire. If Miranda July's next film is 12 years from now it will be worth it. All three films share her voice and her uniqueness should be admired. In a time where many indie directors jump on board director for hire projects, she takes her time and doesn't make a film just to make a film, she makes them when she has something to say.
When the trailer for the Craft Legacy hit it was met with alot of hate, not because it looked bad(which it did) but because everyone acted like the original was sacred. Many crapped on the sequel thinking it was a remake, but the original, while entertaining, is far from untouchable. To many it is a film of their teen years, i get it, but those that are fans should watch Legacy. Where as the first was built around grunge, this here is more in the woke era. Some of the plot does feel contrived and rushed but it moves fast and has a good message. Besides that i found the characters far more likeable in this chapter.
After Midnight, the third film from Jeremy Gardner, and his second co directed with Christian Stella, feels like the film i've been waiting for since The Battery. The Battery is still one of the best zombie films in the past decade and with After Midnight he creates one of the best monster films of the past decade. It is far from non stop horror, in fact it is a character study and part coming of age. Instead of non stop gore we get characters discussing life. The monster is kept mostly in the shadows and it is more effective that way.
Letters to Satan Claus is the best Christmas flick in two years. A horror send up of Hallmark films with the big city girl that hates loves and Christmas returning to her home town, except Satan is accepting letters and killing the townsfolk. It is hilarious, bloody, full of charm, and the cast nails how they are supposed to act. We're all aware of Hallmark movies, so even those of us that do not watch them can be in on the joke.
