Focus on Film & Television Reviews and writings about these subjects. As well as Pop Culture at times. With a bit of an edge and some color
Directed By: Andrew Neel
Written By: David Gordon Green, Andrew Neel & Mike Roberts
Based on the book by: Brad Land
Cinematography By: Ethan Palmer
Editor: Brad Turner
Cast: Ben Schnetzer, Gus Halper, Danny Flaherty, Nick Jonas, James Franco, Jake Picking
Written & Directed By: Clay Liford
Cinematography By: Ellie Ann Fenton
Editor: David Fabelo & Bryan Poyser
Cast: Michael Johnston, Hannah Marks, Michael Ian Black, Missi Pyle, Sarah Ramos, Angela Kinsey, Sam Eidson
Freshman Neil’s Vanguard stories are all he cares about…until he meets the older Julia, who pushes him to put his own fan fic online. When the website’s moderator takes a special interest in Neil’s work, it opens up a whole new universe.
Directed By: Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris
Written By: Simon Beaufoy
Cinematography By: Linus Sandgren
Editor: Pamela Martin
Cast: Steve Carrell, Emma Stone, Bill Pullman, Andrea Riseborough, Natalie Morales, Sarah Silverman, Elisabeth Shue, Martha MacIssac, Alan Cumming, Eric Christian Olsen, Fred Armisen, Mickey Sumner, Wallace Langham, Matt Molloy, Bridey Elliott, Chris Parnell, Mike Vogel, Tom Kenny, Jamey Sheridan
In the wake of the sexual revolution and the rise of the women’s movement, the 1973 tennis match between women’s world champion and ex-men’s-champ and serial hustler Bobby Riggs was billed as the BATTLE OF THE SEXES and became one of the most watched televised sports events of all time, reaching 90 million viewers around the world. As the rivalry between King and Riggs kicked into high gear, off-court each was fighting more personal and complex battles. The fiercely private King was not only championing for equality, but also struggling to come to terms with her own sexuality, as her friendship with Marilyn Barnett developed. And Riggs, one of the first self-made media-age celebrities, wrestled with his gambling demons, at the expense of his family and wife Priscilla. Together, Billie and Bobby served up a cultural spectacle that resonated far beyond the tennis court, sparking discussions in bedrooms and boardrooms that continue to reverberate today.
Directed By: Luca Guadagnino
Written By: James Ivory
Based On The Book Written By: Andre Aciman
Cinematography By: Sayombhu Mukdeeprom
Editor: Walter Fasano
Cast: Timothee Chalamet, Armie Hammer, Esther Garrel, Michael Stuhlbarg, Amira Casar
In Northern Italy in 1983, seventeen year-old Elio begins a relationship with visiting Oliver, his father’s research assistant, with whom he bonds over his emerging sexuality, their Jewish heritage, and the beguiling Italian landscape. I am not the biggest fan of director Luca Guadagnino as it is obvious he has talent but I have never exactly been a fan of his previous films. Visually lucious but the stories and plots left a lot to be desired. Here he seems to have found the right material because here he and his style definitely come through loud and clear.
Directed By: Tate Taylor
Written By: Jez Butterworth & John-Henry Butterworth
Story By: Steven Baigelman, Jez Butterworth & John-Henry Butterworth
Cinematography By: Stephen Goldblatt
Editor: Michael McCusker
Cast: Chadwick Boseman, Nelsan Ellis, Lennie James, Jill Scott, Dan Ayckroyd, Viola Davis, Craig Robinson, Octavia Spencer, Fred Melamed, Tika Sumpter, Aloe Blacc, Tariq Trotter, Aunjanue Ellis, Keith Robinson
A chronicle of James Brown ‘s rise from extreme poverty to become one of the most influential musicians in history. Of course it would be hard to summarize the life and legacy of James Brown in a single film. That is a near impossible task. Though this film has a nice overview and introduces some aspects that maybe the general public didn’t know.
Written & Directed By: Todd Haynes
Story By: Todd Haynes & James Lyons
Cinematography: Maryse Alberti
Editor:James Lyons
Cast: Christian Bale, Ewan McGregor, Jonathan Rhys Myers, Toni Collette, Eddie Izzard, Emily Woof, Michael Feast
1971: Glamrock explodes all over the world and challenges the seriousness within the flower power generation by means of glitter and brutal music. Brian Slade, a young rock star, inspires numerous teenage boys and girls to paint their nails and explore their own sexuality. In the end Slade destroys himself. Unable to escape the character role of “Maxwell Demon” that he created, he plots his own murder. When fans discover the murder is not real, his star falls abruptly and he is quickly forgotten about. 1984: Arthur, a journalist working for a New York newspaper, gets assigned the tenth anniversary story about the fake murder of Brian Slade. When Arthur was young and growing up in Manchester, he was more than a fan of Slade. Reluctantly he accepts the assignment and starts to investigate what happened to his old glam rock hero.
Directed By: Jules Dassin
Written & Based On The Novel By: A.I. Bezzerides
Cinematography By: Norbert Brodine
Editor: Nick DeMaggio
Cast: Richard Conte, Valentina Cortese, Lee J. Cobb, Barbara Lawrence, Jack Oakie, Millard Mitchell, Jospeh Pevney
A war-veteran-turned-truck driver attempts to avenge the crippling and robbing of his father at the hands of an amoral produce scofflaw. What I like about this film is that inherently it is a simple film. It’s has a simple premise that has monkey wrench a thrown into plans that generally shock the audience as considering the time it came out. It has such a cynical heart and unpleasent scenes mixed in with some they are more jolly.
Directed By: James Gray
Written By: James Gray & Ric Minello
Cinematography: Joaquin Baca-Asay
Editor: John Axelrad
Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Gwyneth Patrow, Vinessa Shaw, Isabella Rosselini, Elias Koates
Leonard Kraditor is a burned-out case, living with his immigrant parents after his fiancée left him, helping out at their Brooklyn dry cleaners, taking photographs, at loose ends, suicidal. In quick succession, he meets two women: Sandra, the daughter of his parents’ business associates, frank, direct, sensual, Jewish like Leonard; and, his neighbor Michelle, mercurial, rootless, fun, blond, unattainable. Michelle is in love with a married man and cries on Leonard’s shoulder; Sandra wants to save him. Is Leonard willing to risk losing Sandra’s fidelity for the moments Michelle’s moods swing toward him? Can this end well?
Directed By: Jean-Marc Vallee
Written By: Nick Hornby
Based on the memoir “Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail” By: Cheryl Strayed Cinematography By: Yves Belanger
Editor: John Mac McMurphy (Jean-Marc Vallee) & Martin Pensa
Cast: Resse Witherspoon, Laura Dern, Thomas Sadoski, W. Earl Brown, Gaby Hoffman, Kevin Rankin, Brian Van Holt, Cliff De Young
Edited & Directed By: Amara Cash
Written By: Alex Bloom & Amara Cash
Story By: Alex Bloom
Cinematography: Nico Aguilar
Cast: Madison Lawlor, Montana Manning, Andrew Pifco, Kamala Jones, Jodi Carol Harrison, Monte Markham, Seth Cassell
Maya, a 19-year-old queer pixie, spends her days working on her art and cyberstalkng her insta-crush, the sexually fluid fashion designer, Jasmine. One night Maya boldly meets Jasmine IRL, there’s an insta-spark and the two begin an inspiring romantic relationship that gives Maya her first taste of true love and Jasmine the inspiration she needs to jump start her career. It’s all gumdrops and fairytales until Maya discovers Jasmine’s in a co-dependent relationship with a neurotic sugar daddy. What started as a dream come true turns into a beautiful nightmare.
Cut To The Chase 