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Movie Reviews

Nickel Boys Review

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Nickel Boys

  • Director: RaMell Ross
  • Writers: RaMell Ross, Joslyn Barnes
  • Starring: Ethan Herisse, Brandon Wilson, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Hamish Linklater, Fred Hechinger, Daveed Diggs

Grade: A

For 111 years after it opened in 1900, Florida’s School for Boys, nicknamed the Nickel Academy, operated officially as a reform school for troubled youths, but harbored painful secrets rooted in racism and cruelty. RaMell Ross’s film Nickel Boys, adapted from Colson Whitehead’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, tells just a fraction of the horrors that took place at the school in the Jim Crow era, but it’s also a film of staggering beauty. Through a risky creative choice, Ross has created one of the most empathetic films in recent memory, and one of the best of the year.

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Movie Reviews

Mufasa: The Lion King Review

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Mufasa: The Lion King

  • Director: Barry Jenkins
  • Writers: Jeff Nathanson
  • Starring: Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Tiffany Boone, Kasigo Lediga, Mads Mikkelsen, Thandiwe Newton, Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, Blue Ivy Carter

Grade: C-

It came as a bit of a surprise when arthouse auteur Barry Jenkins was announced as the director of Mufasa: The Lion King, the prequel to the 2019 computer animated remake of the 1994 classic. Though Disney has snagged a handful of well respected directors to helm their live-action remakes, Jenkins was a different level. Would he simply use the project as a springboard to make another passion film, or would he find a way to inject his style and humanity past the Mouse House’s tight leash? Though there are bright flashes where it feels like Jenkins prevailed, the film is ultimately plagued by a mixture of everything that’s hurt Disney in recent years.

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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

A Complete Unknown Review

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A Complete Unknown

  • Director: James Mangold
  • Writer: Jay Cocks, James Mangold
  • Starring: Timothée Chalamet, Elle Fanning, Edward Norton, Monica Barbaro, Boyd Holbrook, Scoot McNairy

Grade: B+

I’ve personally always been softer on musical biopics compared to most. Sure, most of these movies follow the same exact formula, telling the same rise and fall narrative, that movies like Walk Hard and Weird: The Al Yankovic Story mocked relentlessly. But some movies, like Elvis or Rocketman, add some more much-needed personality to the subgenre. But more often than not, we get movies like Bohemian Rhapsody or Bob Marley: One Love, which treat their subjects as if they are literal superheroes.

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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

Maria Review

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Maria

  • Director: Pablo Larraín
  • Writers: Steven Knight
  • Starring: Angelina Jolie, Alba Rohrwacher, Pierfrancesco Favino, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Haluk Bilginer

Grade: B-

During his introduction of his latest film Maria, director Pablo Larraín espoused a childhood fondness for the opera, and a hope that the art form could return to its more welcoming, populous roots. With this in mind, it’s clear that Larraín’s film has great reverence not just for the opera itself, but for its subject, Maria Callas. It’s a thread that has connected a number of his films, especially his unofficial trilogy exploring the inner lives of the 20th century’s most misunderstood women, but there’s something missing from his latest entry, and part of it may be because of her unfamiliarity.

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Movie Reviews

Gladiator II Review

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Gladiator II

  • Director: Ridley Scott
  • Writer: Chris Morgan, Hiram Garcia
  • Starring: Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, Connie Nielson, Joseph Quinn, Fred Hechinger

Grade: B

Ridley Scott is one of our more interesting filmmakers working today. Like many of his era, he’s directed many films that have been hailed as all-time classics, like Alien, Blade Runner, and of course, the original Gladiator. However, over the past two decades, Scott’s track record has gotten much shakier with misfires such as The Counselor and Robin Hood. It really wasn’t until The Martian in 2015 that Scott felt like he was fully back in form. At least for a little bit.

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Movie Reviews

Wicked Review

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Wicked

  • Director: Jon M. Chu
  • Writer: Winnie Holzman
  • Starring: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Michelle Yeoh, Jonathan Bailey, Marissa Bode, Bowen Yang, Jeff Goldblum

Grade: A-

The movie musical is back in a big way with the long-simmering adaptation of Wicked thanks to director Jon M. Chu and the undeniable chemistry of its leads. Since its premiere on Broadway, Hollywood has tied itself in knots trying to figure out exactly how to film its version of Gregory Maguire’s novel, and while it may not be perfect, Chu’s vision does right by the material – a more difficult feat to accomplish than expected. Yes, technically, Wicked is only half of the story (part two is currently scheduled to be released in one year), but it’s one of the breeziest, most enjoyable moviegoing experiences of the year.

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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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