You Should Have Left (2020) - Movie Review

Unless he somehow found a way to resurrect Jimmy Saville to star in it, there’s basically no way that David Koepp’s latest turn in the director’s chair could possibly turn out worse than it did with his last film Mortdecai. And since Secret Window remains one of his best efforts to date, it makes sense that he would return to a similar psycho-horror vein for this, a haunted house yarn starring Kevin Bacon and Amanda Seyfried. However, while that decision is advisable, it seems that he went a little too far in that direction, as this is basically Secret Window 2: The Housening.

Patriots Day (2017) - Movie Review

Since taking the art of cinema as seriously as I do nowadays, I have gained a greater appreciation for the films that I watch. Of the many boons that I consider myself gaining because of this, the one I hold closest to me is how I now attach specific names to features. Actors, directors and screenwriters behind the films I look at here have gained greater meaning to me and have led me to some works that I wouldn’t have batted an eye at beforehand. For example: "You mean the guy who made Back To The Future and Forrest Gump also made The Walk? Man, I gotta check this out!" That’s a statement that would never cross my lips a few short years ago, and I always get a bit of a kick from linking films together through the people involved in social situations.

However, there’s a flipside to that that not only links bad films to particular people, but also because it has made me more aware of the specific styles employed by most directors. In terms of today’s film, it’s what I’ve noticed about director/co-writer Peter Berg’s more recent filmography… and how his attachment to it didn’t exactly have me riveted to check it out. Why is this? Well, let’s get started and I’ll hopefully be able to explain why.