No Hard Feelings (2023) - Movie Review

Every so often, I end up encountering a film that didn’t get the chance it deserved because some surface detail became the public fixation. It’s not so often that said chance wasn’t given by myself for that very reason. Yes, for as much as I try not to judge films based purely on their marketing, especially since I watch so many damn movies every year, I’ll admit that the premise of this one immediately had me on edge. The main premise of an older woman essentially being hired by the parents of an incredibly awkward young adult to have sex with said incredibly awkward young adult, on first glance, set off one of my hair triggers. I’ve gotten into this in past reviews, where storylines that are usually reserved for more unsettling tones are presented as light and comedic purely because it’s happening to a man as opposed to a woman, furthering the damaging stereotype of men as always prepared for sex… no matter what they themselves have to say about it.

But of course, as is usually the case with getting judgemental about the packaging rather than the content, the ick factor of that idea is the entire point of the film itself.

Joy Ride (2023) - Movie Review

After spending the last few years focusing more on streaming with The Boys, Invincible, and the Pam & Tommy miniseries, my favourite modern film studio is back on the big screen. Yes, Point Grey Pictures, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s production company, who I have come to adore for their consistently fun releases and unrivalled knack for matching licensed music to film. On top of their long-awaited return (by me, at least), it also comes in the form of something else I haven’t seen much of over the last few years: A proper American-R-rated raunchy comedy. Y’know, the kind I used to bitch about fairly often because they kept stopping the film dead just so the actors could riff off of each other without actually furthering the plot? Good times.

American Pie Presents: Girls' Rule (2020) - Movie Review

With 2020 being the year of everyone trying to remember any time prior to this one, I guess it makes sense why we’d have a new American Pie movie eight years after the collective shrug of American Wedding. That doesn’t save it from being a highly disposable follow-up made by people who specialise in highly disposable follow-ups (between the director and writers, we got credits for The Scorpion King 4, Honey 2, Blue Crush 2 and Grand-Daddy Day Care), but in a year that has never failed to make zero sense, I’ll cling to what little I can with this because ‘little’ is about all on offer here.

High Life (2019) - Movie Review

Well, this is certainly a change of pace from what sci-fi space flicks have been lately. Writer/director Claire Denis’ first step into English-language cinema finds her looking at all the monumental idealism baked into features like Interstellar and The Martian, and questioning whether such things would really play out that way. The result of that is a very different, very moody, very fucking depressing take on the isolated-in-space thriller.

Breath (2018) - Movie Review

The plot: Younger surfers Pikelet (Samson Coulter) and Loonie (Ben Spence), always seeking the thrill of the waves, make a connection with older surfer Sando (Simon Baker) and his wife Eva (Elizabeth Debicki), who teach them the ways of the world and how, while it may be risky, some risks are worth taking.

It Follows (2015) - Movie Review

If there’s anything that is more subjective than comedy, it is horror. Subjectivity is the critical man’s kryptonite, so talking about what can get under people’s skin like I know anything for absolute certain is rather stupid. That said though, and as much as I like to believe otherwise, the current trend in horror films that leans more towards ‘music video horror’ has an audience and I can see why. I know full well that not every moviegoer thinks as intently about what they watch as I do, and that is very much a good thing, and scares generated from smash cuts and sudden loud noises in the soundtrack may not be that substantial but they still work at getting the heart racing. There is as much a place for this breed of film that focuses primarily on editing and soundtrack (hence the term ‘music video horror’) as there is for films that creep a little further under the skin; I just wish that one didn’t far outweigh the other in today’s market. So, with the current prevalence of junk food scares, does today’s subject add to their ranks?