Tag: Thriller

REVIEW: Soderbergh’s ‘Black Bag’ is a satisfactory spy flick

Talk about a power couple.

In the latest film from director Steven Soderbergh, Michael Fassbender and Cate Blanchett play a married couple who both work in British Intelligence as elite spies. At the outset of the film, Fassbender’s character George is informed that a secret piece of tech has been leaked and one of the suspects behind it is his wife, Kathryn.

George accepts the mission to investigate where the leak is coming from, committing to including his wife in his search, though he is skeptical. The film follows as he plays a careful game of keeping Kathryn close while also looking into her own spy work which has been labeled as classified or “black bagged.”

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REVIEW: Mishandled tone makes ‘Heart Eyes’ a disappointment

The mask worn by the villain in this slasher is certainly great. The rest of the movie? Not quite so much.

The antagonist in this film shares the name of the movie itself. Heart Eyes is a serial killer who has been on a rampage the last few years, killing several couples on Valentine’s Day. The film picks up again on Valentine’s Day in the present, centering on a Seattle-based marketing professional named Ally (Olivia Holt).

Because of trouble at work and her single status, she’s not too excited for the holiday. Things only get more complicated when she meets Jay (Mason Gooding), a new colleague she has chemistry with, but sees as a work rival. Unfortunately, the two are mistaken as a couple by Heart Eyes and now have to go on the run from the killer.

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REVIEW: ‘Emilia Perez’ is an awful, misguided Netflix entry

Wow, we got two crime drama musicals in 2024, and the one with the comic book clown was better.

Zoe Saldaña stars in “Emilia Perez” as Rita, a lawyer working for a defense attorney firm who’s unsatisfied with her career. After a recent major case, she gets a call from Juan Del Monte, the head of a cartel who is seeking her assistance. The kingpin is seeking to transition and wants gender-affirming care, before starting a new life and faking her death.

The path to becoming who she wants to be, Emilia Perez (Karla Sofia Gascon), is one Rita decides to help manage and plot in return for a big payout. But even once everything is set up, the future remains complicated for the two characters. Continue reading “REVIEW: ‘Emilia Perez’ is an awful, misguided Netflix entry”

REVIEW: ‘The Substance’ shocks, thrills and satirizes

French women are on a roll with body horror films lately with Julia Ducournau helming “Titane” in 2021 and CoralIe Fargeat crafting this flick in 2024.

The newer picture, “The Substance,” centers on actress and aerobics instructor Elisabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore). Once a major player in the Hollywood scene, Sparkle’s career has faded a bit over the years and things get worse when she finds out her time as host of a morning aerobics show is coming to an end.

Through a series of events, though, she comes in possession of a serum that claims to create a younger, more beautiful version of the person she is. She ends up taking it and it works, creating another version of herself to live through (Margaret Qualley). However, as time goes on, the needed balance between her two selves begins to deteriorate.

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REVIEW: Gothically gorgeous ‘Nosferatu’ is good, not quite great

The last month of 2024 brought us a new tale with the classic vampire Dracu… oh, excuse me. A new tale with the classic vampire Count Orlok.

More than 100 years after the release of the legendary German horror film, a new “Nosferatu” is in cinemas. Like the original from 1922, this remake centers on the married couple Thomas (Nicholas Hoult) and Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp) Hutter. The movie picks up with Thomas, a real estate agent, being sent to Transylvania for a sale.

There, Thomas meets Count Orlock (Bill Skarsgard), a nobleman (and secret vampire) who’s seeking a relocation to the German city where the Hutters reside. His reason for wanting to do so is a sort of mental connection the vampire has with Ellen.

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REVIEW: ‘Heretic’ has moderate suspense, though Grant shines

Hugh Grant has entered a villain phase with this and “Dungeons and Dragons,” and I’m all here for it.

In this film, Grant portrays Mr. Reed, a man who appears like a fine fellow at the movie’s outset. Early on, he’s visited by Mormon missionaries Sister Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) and Sister Paxton (Chloe East), and welcomes them into his home to discuss their religion.

To make them feel at ease, he expresses interest in their religion and claims his wife is in the back baking a pie for them to enjoy. However, it soon becomes clear that everything is a ruse, as Mr. Reed traps the two women in his home and is prepared to test their faith in dark ways.

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REVIEW: ‘Smile 2’ shows this concept can only go so far

Sequels to good horror movies can sometimes be tricky to pull off, depending on the concept behind the scares. Unfortunately, despite a solid effort, “Smile 2” doesn’t stick the landing.

The film picks up just six days after the end of the 2022 film, with the smile spirit being passed on from the police officer from the original to a drug dealer. That individual just so happens to be the supplier to a major pop music star named Skye Riley (Naomi Scott), who’s taking pain meds for a lingering injury.

The bad news for Skye is she meets up with her dealer just as he is killed by the smile entity, passing it on to her. As a result, her preparation for a new musical tour turns into a nightmare.

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Adventures in B-Movie Horror 2024: Coast to Coast

This year’s Adventure in B-Movies was a tale of two cities.

The three movies watched for the 2024 edition took place in the nation’s largest metros on both coasts, New York City and Los Angeles. Yes, terror and mayhem take the Big Apple and the City of Angels by storm this year, to varying degrees.

The first two films have an Empire State of mind, while the third shows some California love. So, let’s dive in.

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REVIEW: ‘Alien Romulus’ successfully returns series to its roots

As much as I like Michael Fassbender, I’m glad he was nowhere near this “Alien” entry after the last two.

Set between 1979’s “Alien” and 1986’s “Aliens,” “Romulus begins on a space colony called Jackson’s Star where the protagonist Rain (Cailee Spaeny) resides with her surrogate android brother Andy (David Jonsson). Life for the two is difficult, as they do grueling work on a harsh mining colony to pay a debt.

They get a chance to leave, though, when they join with a group of friends on a sort of escape mission that involves getting some equipment from a defunct space station. It’s necessary to go there as it will allow them to make a long space voyage, but unfortunately, a certain life-form is waiting for them.

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REVIEW: As a thriller, ‘Longlegs’ is laudable, but not quite legendary

Sometimes Nicolas Cage plays a character who’s just a little off. That’s not the case here, because the character he portrays in “Longlegs” is completely off.

In this film, Cage plays a serial killer known as Longlegs who’s been on the loose for decades. To help catch him after a recent family massacre, the head of Oregon’s FBI office brings in Agent Lee Harker (Maika Monroe). 

Awkward in social situations but completely dedicated to her profession, Harker begins the case with vigor, going over every clue, including letters left by Longlegs. Eventually, she’s able to decode them, but they only lead to more mysteries and memories from her own past.

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