All posts by Trevor Stucker

Freelance writer who loves watching movies and attending film festivals in the Indianapolis area.
Movie Reviews

Jurassic World: Rebirth Review

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Jurassic World: Rebirth

  • Director: Gareth Edwards
  • Writer: David Koepp
  • Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Jonathan Bailey, Mahershala Ali, Rupert Friend

Grade: C-

The Jurassic Park franchise has slowly become one of the most stale and lifeless franchises in the current blockbuster era. Entries like Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and Jurassic World: Dominion have failed to recapture the magic of the original film with some of the worst screenplays ever written for a major blockbuster. Despite the poor critical reception, the series manages to rack up billions of dollars. Although Dominion was perceived to be the final entry, the box office would not let the franchise die. 

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Movie Reviews

The Life of Chuck Review

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The Life of Chuck

  • Director: Mike Flanagan
  • Writer: Mike Flanagan
  • Starring: Tom Hiddleston, Karen Gillan, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Mark Hamill, Jacob Tremblay

Grade: B+

Mike Flanagan is easily one of the most underrated filmmakers working today. Whether it’s his work on films like Doctor Sleep or Gerald’s Game or his TV shows The Haunting of Hill House and The Fall of the House of Usher, Flanagan has made a name for himself in the Hollywood industry. His newest film, The Life of Chuck, sees his return to the big screen with a nonlinear drama that proves his versatility as a filmmaker.

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Film Festivals, Movie Reviews

Indy Film Fest 2025: Slide Review

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Slide

  • Director: Bill Plympton
  • Writer: Bill Plympton, Jim Lujan
  • Starring: Daniel Kaufman, Jim Lujan, Maureen McElheron

Grade: B-

Animation is a personal favorite medium of filmmaking for many reasons. The way it is able to capture the magic and imagination of filmmaking without any practical limitations has been the basis of many of my all-time favorite films. It pushes the limits of filmmaking as an art form. While it may not be a new favorite of mine, Slide reminds me of why I love animation so much.

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Movie Reviews

The Monkey Review

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The Monkey

  • Director: Osgood Perkins
  • Writer: Osgood Perkins
  • Starring: Theo James, Elijah Wood, Tatiana Maslany, Rohan Campbell, Christian Convery, Sarah Levy

Grade: B

Last year, Osgood Perkins broke into the mainstream with the box-office hit Longlegs. Not only did the film find success at the theater, but critics praised it for its atmospheric tension and gorgeous visuals. Less than a year later, Perkins teams with James Wan to adapt Stephen King’s short story “The Monkey.” Unlike his last film, The Monkey has a drastically different tone, delving deep into satire and absurdist humor, making this a riot from start to finish.

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Movie Reviews

You’re Cordially Invited Review

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You’re Cordially Invited

  • Director: Nicholas Stoller
  • Writer: Nicholas Stoller
  • Starring: Will Ferrell, Reese Witherspoon, Geraldine Viswanathan, Jack McBrayer, Bobby Moynihan, Meredith Hagner, Jimmy Tatro

Grade: C-

Will Ferrell is an actor I enjoy in any project, no matter how good or bad it ends up. Whether it’s iconic comedies like Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy or critically panned films like Get Hard, Ferrell brings an energy that elevates even the worst dialogue. With the pairing of Reese Witherspoon and writer-director Nicholas Stoller, I had high expectations that You’re Cordially Invited could be another Will Ferrell staple. Sadly, the film falls victim to most recent direct-to-streaming comedies; an unimaginative screenplay and a misunderstanding of Gen-Z culture. 

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Movie Reviews

Better Man Review

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Better Man

  • Director: Michael Gracey
  • Writers: Simon Gleeson, Oliver Cole, Michael Gracey
  • Starring: Robbie Williams, Jonno Davies, Steve Pemberton, Damon Herriman, Raechelle Banno, Alison Steadman, Kate Mulvaney, Frazer Hadfield, Tom Budge, Anthony Hayes

Grade: B-

Robbie Williams was a name I had never heard before the announcement of Better Man. Despite having a good production team behind the film, I had zero interest in seeing another musical biopic, especially about someone whom I knew nothing about. Then, I heard that Robbie Williams would be portrayed by a motion-captured CGI ape, which not only caught my attention but reversed all expectations I had before. 

Is the film as weird as its premise sounds? Absolutely.

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Movie Reviews

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 Review

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Sonic the Hedgehog 3

  • Director: Jeff Fowler
  • Writers: Pat Casey & Josh Miller, and John Whittington
  • Starring: Ben Schwartz, Jim Carrey, James Marsden, Tika Sumpter, Idris Elba, Keanu Reeves, Krysten Ritter, Lee Majdoub, Natasha Rothwell

Grade: B

Having never played the SEGA games growing up, I was never gung-ho on the idea of a Sonic the Hedgehog-based film franchise. The character never caught my attention, and the live-action/cgi hybrid did even less to catch my interest. I had fun with the first two films in the franchise, but I never felt overly enthusiastic about either of them. With Sonic the Hedgehog 3, I garnered a newfound appreciation for the characters and story, and it is mostly due to Jim Carrey. 

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Best of 2024, Special Features

Trevor Stucker’s Top 10 Movies of 2024

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This has been my biggest year of new release watches in my time of review writing. From festival premieres to streaming releases, I have seen a vast number of 2024 films. Like most years, there are some films that I have yet to watch that could end up on this list. Films like The Brutalist, I’m Still Here and Babygirl are ones that I have not watched that could easily end up here. Out of the 190+ new release films I’ve seen this year, these ten stood out as my favorites of 2024.

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Movie Reviews

The Order Review

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The Order

  • Director: Justin Kurzel
  • Writer: Zach Baylin
  • Starring: Jude Law, Nicholas Hoult, Tye Sheridan, Alison Oliver, Jurnee Smollett, Marc Maron, Odessa Young

Grade: C+

Nicholas Hoult has been busy in 2024. With films like Juror #2, Nosferatu, and a voice role in The Garfield Movie, Hoult has proven himself to be an incredibly versatile actor during this year alone, with more massive projects on the way. With director Justin Kurzel’s The Order, Hoult displays a layer of darkness that I have yet to see in his projects, carrying the film from a forgettable crime drama to an enthralling experience. 

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Movie Reviews

Red One Review

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Red One

  • Director: Jake Kasdan
  • Writer: Chris Morgan, Hiram Garcia
  • Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Chris Evans, Lucy Liu, JK Simmons, Kiernan Shipka, Nick Kroll

Grade: C-

Red One has built up an interesting reputation ahead of its release. Starting production in October of 2022, the film was meant to release during Christmas of 2023, but many problems started to grow. The film delayed production for a multitude of reasons, including rumors of Dwayne Johnson’s constant tardiness and set days missed. Then, the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike delayed the film’s release a whole year, with Amazon MGM choosing to stick with the holiday season release.

After all this time, is Red One able to overcome the controversies and obstacles that came their way? Not really.

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