Series and Movie Reviews
What started out as a street-racing/heist movie has become something entirely different. The stunts grow increasingly more ludicrous and comical with every movie. There’s plenty of laughter throughout the movie, but is the audience laughing with them or at them?
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On this week's HCA's What to Stream podcast, Morgan Rojas and I discuss Disney*Pixar's LUCA, the horror flick CENSOR, and the National Geographic documentary RISE AGAIN: TULSA AND THE RED SUMMER and Kim's Convenience. Watch below.
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The Loki series is not what you’d expect. The new Disney+ series is a time traveling crime thriller. The first two episodes are heavy on the exposition between Owen Wilson’s Mobius and Tom Hiddleston’s anti-hero, and light on the action but it is full of intrigue with a set up that’ll keep viewers tuned in.
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The latest film in THE CONJURING universe brings something new to the horror franchise - a murder mystery, and a reminder that Ed and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson) are the heart of these movies. THE CONJURING: THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT delivers more than just a haunted house horror flick the third time around.
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CRUELLA is a pompous spectacle with a punk rock vibe. Every aspect of Disney’s origins story is outrageous but so much fun to revel in. The film is gorgeous to look at from the production design, the costumes, the cinematography and the hair/make-up to the delicious rivalry between Emma Stone and Emma Thompson. Everyone is a scene stealer including Cruella’s sidekicks Paul Walter Hauser and Joel Fry, and the dogs are best in show as well.
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On this week's HCA's What to Stream podcast, Morgan Rojas and I discuss Apple TV's new series, The Me You Can't See with Oprah Winfrey, Marvel's new Hulu series, M.O.D.O.K. , Eric Bana's THE DRY, THE KILLING OF TWO LOVERS, and some oldies but goodies.
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Jon M. Chu adapts Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hit Broadway show for the big screen in an epic way. The musical numbers are ambitious and grand in scope which brings Washington Heights to life. It's one of the best musical adaptations in a long time. Anthony Ramos proves he’s once again a rising star, but he’s not the only scene stealer.
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In A QUIET PLACE you can hear yourself and others chomping on popcorn because of the absence of sound and dialogue which made it unique and suspenseful. The sequel is a lot noisier but that’s not a bad thing.
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All the action for Timur Bekmambetov's PROFILE relies solely on the interactions of two characters Skyping on a computer screen. The claustrophobic nature of the cat and mouse thriller adds to the intensity of the story, and seems even more fitting during the pandemic which has only heightened the use of the online medium to connect with friends, family and strangers.
Add a commentThis week on the Hollywood Critics Group's (HCA) podcast, "What to Stream," hosted by myself and guest host Jana Nagase of JanaonCamera.com, we give recommendations on what to watch or avoid on streaming platforms. This week we tackle Netflix's new superhero series, Jupiter's Legacy, the new docuseries, The Sons of Sam: Descent into Darkness, Liam Neeson's latest action thriller, THE MARKSMAN, Paramount+'s new series FromCradle to Stage, and which movie classics to revisit or watch for the first time.
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