TV amp; Movies Reviews

Want to scream bloody murder? Then the new Halloween is the trick-or-treat frightfest for you. But, first, a leap of faith is required. You have to forget that there are already nine sequels and remakes of John Carpenter’s 1978 original — thankfully, director David Gordon Green and coscreenwriters Danny McBride …

Grief is a very tough sell as the subject of an ongoing TV show. Whatever catharsis the dramatization might offer in short bursts, the potential for the “Why am I still watching this?” reflex is incredibly high. The Leftovers tried to alleviate this problem by wrapping the whole idea in …

Part wilderness survival tale, part prehistoric boy-meets-wolf love story and part American Museum of Natural History exhibit come to life, Albert Hughes’ rugged, rich epic feels just as out-of-time as its narrative of primitive hunters and their Canis lupus pals. It’s a movie devoted to overwhelming viewers with vast, lush …

Is it enough for a blockbuster to just trot out computer-generated dinos and let the audience munch popcorn while the beasties chomp down on humans? That depends on who you’re asking. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdomis practically guaranteed be a surefire box-office monster. But couldn’t it also be good or decent …

It really is incredible. Yes, the sequel to Brad Bird’s 2004 classic is not the groundbreaker that stormed the multiplex 14 years ago – you only get to be shiny new once. Pixar‘s animated miracle didn’t look or sound like anything else, being about a family of superheroes forced into …

Imagine living in the world and not giving a shit about the people who share it with you. (No jokes about the White House, please.) The deliciously depraved Thoroughbreds is set in the opulent, WASP-y world of teen divas with killer instincts. Meet Amanda (Olivia Cooke), a snappy and assured …

To call Annihilation writer-director Alex Garland the thinking geek’s new sci-fi guru is probably to jinx his box-office chances. Look where thoughtfulness got Denis Villeneuve’s Blade Runner 2049. But Garland is the real-deal for generating rattling tension and mind-blowing mojo. Annihilation, an eco-thriller based on the first book in the …

Remember the last months of the Obama administration, when diplomacy was still a preferred form of negotiation? If so, you’re likely to lose your mind watching The Final Year, a hindsight-is-20/20 documentary in which we watch a government crumble. Fully expecting a Democratic victory in the 2016 elections, the White …

Is this a joke? That’s the first reaction you have when you hear the title – but the joke’s on you. My Friend Dahmer, which chronicles Jeffrey Dahmer’s senior year in high school before he graduated and became infamous for being a serial-killing cannibal, is a warped wonder of a …

So you think a typical teen worries about getting into the right college. Get a load of Brad’s Status, a high-anxiety satire from writer-director Mike White that focuses on a parent who thinks the process is far more traumatic for him. Enter Ben Stiller in one of his best and …