“Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare” is a Promising Slasher that Fails to Take Flight
Let’s be honest. Peter Pan has always been a little bit creepy. J. M. Barrie’s original story follows a series of child abductions with the title character serving as a thinly disguised metaphor for the angel of death. No matter how charming the original Disney film and subsequent musical...
It’s Difficult to Fall In Love With “Love Hurts”
We all know what we’re getting with a Valentine’s Day movie. Perhaps a creative meet cute or friends to enemies subplot enacted by gorgeous actors with sparkling, white teeth, immaculate wardrobes, and flawless hair. They’re designed to ensure our continued belief in love and exemplify relationship goals. But those...
“Push” Is a Symbolic Battle Between a Pregnant Woman and Dangerous World
Charbonier and Powell keep the story draped in shadows, revealing just enough of this formidable killer to chill us to the bone....
“Smile 2” Puts a Pop Filter on a Devastating Story
Smile 2 may put a shiny, pop filter over addiction and recovery, but its message still hits just as hard. ...
“Woman of the Hour” Exposes the Dangers of the Dating Game
Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut remixes this disturbing story to highlight the dangers women face when playing the dating game in real life....
“Apartment 7A” is a Blunt Argument for Bodily Autonomy
the film is a paranoid nightmare revealing the ways in which our patriarchal society thrives by gaslighting, abusing, then discarding women....
“Strange Harvest: Occult Murder in the Inland Empire” is Faux True Crime at Its Most Horrific
Somewhere in between horror and true crime lies the faux documentary. While technically falling under the found footage genre, this unique subtype tells a fictional story through the lens of investigative journalism. Rather than disconnected snippets the audience must mentally piece together, the faux documentary walks us through each...
“Betrayal” is a Harrowing Test of Brotherly Love
Three brothers attempt to protect each other from their abusive father but find that the truth behind a tragic fall may be more horrific than they could have imagined. ...
“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” Trades the Monster For a Matriarchy
Thirty-six years later, we return to Burton’s afterlife and catch up with these friends and foes as they deal with a web of tangled romance. While an excess of plot bogs the film down, it’s the Deetz matriarchy that rises to the top....
“Place of Bones” is a Boilerplate Western With a Few Bright Sparks
Something interesting is happening to the modern western. After decades of male-dominated frontier stories in which dutiful wives maintain the home while their brave men go off to be cowboys, attention has been turning towards the women left behind in the wild west. The 2017 Netflix miniseries Godless seemed...