Eurovision Song Contest: The Story Of Fire Saga (2020) - Movie Review

Here’s an attempt at timeliness that backfired because COVID doesn’t like any of us having good things. In essence, because this film’s initial release was meant to coincide with the actual Eurovision Song Contest, this now serves as the next best thing to the contest itself. Considering how badly Will Ferrell’s last attempt at European sensibilities went earlier this year with Downhill, I wasn’t expecting much to come from this other than more Ugly American nonsense. And yet, while I freely admit that this film is rougher than it should be, that doesn’t mean it’s bad. Far. Bloody. From it.

Arctic (2019) - Movie Review

Maybe it’s because of my own origins as a YouTuber, but I always get a kick out of seeing someone from that sector of the Internet making it onto the big screen. It doesn’t always turn out for the best, and there’s definitely something to be said about YouTube stars getting brought into productions just for name value, but as someone who has also been trying to turn my extended hobby into something legitimate (stop laughing), it fills me with a sense of comradery. And this film is part of that legacy, coming from writer/director Joe Penna, AKA MysteryGuitarMan, one of the old guard of the YouTube scene and someone who has been chipping away at the short film grindstone for a while now. His feature-length debut, if nothing else, shows him as a cinematic creative who knows his shit.