With things being so slow at the box office in the early going of 2024, you would half expect to hear people reporting sightings of tumbleweeds rolling across the floors of their local movie theaters. Praise to the cinema gods, May is finally arriving with a promising crop of tentpoles to help rejuvenate the marketplace, starting with director David Leitch's much-buzzed-about '80s series turned contemporary action-comedy "The Fall Guy" (you can read our own Jacob Hall's glowing review of the picture here). But never fear! If you're searching for something to watch at home, too, Netflix will provide in bountiful amounts.
Well, sort of.
Truth be told, next month is looking kind of sparse when it comes to Netflix exclusives outside the purview of shows with firmly established fandoms (see: the latest season of "Bridgerton") or the service's usual smattering of specialty offerings, including live comedy events and ongoing anime series.
Well, sort of.
Truth be told, next month is looking kind of sparse when it comes to Netflix exclusives outside the purview of shows with firmly established fandoms (see: the latest season of "Bridgerton") or the service's usual smattering of specialty offerings, including live comedy events and ongoing anime series.
- 4/27/2024
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
This article contains spoilers for the latest episode of "Star Trek: Discovery."
For many Trekkies, "Star Trek: Discovery" has always felt a little like the younger brother clinging onto the franchise's back. The sky-high stakes that always seem to threaten the universe, the heavily serialized nature from episode to episode, and even the way these heart-on-their-sleeve characters carry themselves throughout their duties has all but screamed the fact that this show was meant for younger, more modern audiences.
So imagine our surprise when episode 4 of this final season suddenly dipped into its bag of tricks to unleash not one, but two classic examples of TV tropes that hearken back to the days of "The Original Series." The "time bug" kicks everything off, catching Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and Commander Rayner (Callum Keith Rennie) in the most quintessential of Trekkian problems: a time loop. Although not unfamiliar territory for our...
For many Trekkies, "Star Trek: Discovery" has always felt a little like the younger brother clinging onto the franchise's back. The sky-high stakes that always seem to threaten the universe, the heavily serialized nature from episode to episode, and even the way these heart-on-their-sleeve characters carry themselves throughout their duties has all but screamed the fact that this show was meant for younger, more modern audiences.
So imagine our surprise when episode 4 of this final season suddenly dipped into its bag of tricks to unleash not one, but two classic examples of TV tropes that hearken back to the days of "The Original Series." The "time bug" kicks everything off, catching Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and Commander Rayner (Callum Keith Rennie) in the most quintessential of Trekkian problems: a time loop. Although not unfamiliar territory for our...
- 4/18/2024
- by Jeremy Mathai
- Slash Film
I think /Film's Jacob Hall put it best in our list of the greatest "Star Wars" movie moments when he described George Lucas' prequel trilogy as "a collection of brilliant ideas, filmed in the most baffling, alien way possible." That extends to Anakin Skywalker's journey from a wide-eyed wunderkind enslaved on Tatooine with his mother to a genocidal tyrant who murders kids and owes fealty to a cackling dictator over the course of three movies. As conceptually logical and narratively sound as the rise of Darth Vader is on paper, it's perplexing enough in motion to merit me writing an article explaining Anakin's fall to the dark side for all those folks who watched the films and yet still came away scratching their heads.
In contrast, you get a far more satisfying depiction of Anakin and his transformation in "The Clone Wars," the animated show following Anakin (Matt Lanter...
In contrast, you get a far more satisfying depiction of Anakin and his transformation in "The Clone Wars," the animated show following Anakin (Matt Lanter...
- 4/14/2024
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
Few movie studios can lay claim to the kind of brand name prestige that A24 has. Founded in 2012, the indie distributor has quickly become beloved by cinephiles and the A24 logo alone is enough to draw views to a trailer. It's a reputation that's been well-earned, through great horror movies like "Hereditary" and "Talk to Me" and off-the-wall genre films like "The Green Knight" and "Everything Everywhere All At Once." The latest A24 film comes from filmmaker Alex Garland (whose films "Ex Machina" and "Men" were distributed by A24 in the U.S.), and it has already set a new record for the studio.
"Civil War" is set in an imminent-future nightmare where the United States of America has fractured into multiple warring factions, and follows a group of war journalists as they journey to Washington, D.C., in the hopes of scoring a final interview with the defiant president...
"Civil War" is set in an imminent-future nightmare where the United States of America has fractured into multiple warring factions, and follows a group of war journalists as they journey to Washington, D.C., in the hopes of scoring a final interview with the defiant president...
- 4/13/2024
- by Hannah Shaw-Williams
- Slash Film
Warning: This article discusses major spoilers for "Civil War."
At no point in Alex Garland's "Civil War" (reviewed by /Film's Jacob Hall here) do we ever find out what actually triggered the nationwide descent into chaos and violence raging throughout the movie. The action begins with Nick Offerman's unnamed President of the United States quietly reciting a prepared statement to himself, struggling to find the perfect cadence and tone for a speech that, as we eventually learn, serves as a desperate last gasp from the losing side's propaganda machine. The film ends with rebel soldiers standing triumphantly over that same President, now deposed, and celebrating over his still-warm corpse like countless wartime images beamed back from abroad to so-called First World countries -- all of whom would contend they'd never commit such savagery. In between, we follow our journalist protagonists Lee (Kirsten Dunst), Joel (Wagner Moura), Sammy (Stephen McKinley Henderson...
At no point in Alex Garland's "Civil War" (reviewed by /Film's Jacob Hall here) do we ever find out what actually triggered the nationwide descent into chaos and violence raging throughout the movie. The action begins with Nick Offerman's unnamed President of the United States quietly reciting a prepared statement to himself, struggling to find the perfect cadence and tone for a speech that, as we eventually learn, serves as a desperate last gasp from the losing side's propaganda machine. The film ends with rebel soldiers standing triumphantly over that same President, now deposed, and celebrating over his still-warm corpse like countless wartime images beamed back from abroad to so-called First World countries -- all of whom would contend they'd never commit such savagery. In between, we follow our journalist protagonists Lee (Kirsten Dunst), Joel (Wagner Moura), Sammy (Stephen McKinley Henderson...
- 4/12/2024
- by Jeremy Mathai
- Slash Film
Different things scare different people. Granted, a good jump scare can get even the best of us, but that's not necessarily something that leaves a lasting impression. That's more of a "You got me!" sort of thing. But when a movie can rattle you deep down to your bones? That's something special in its own f****d-up way. That's precisely what director Alex Garland did to me with "Civil War," which is in theaters now. I am here to share my (spoiler-free) experience not because my ego is such that I feel everyone is dying to know why a movie scared me, but as more of a PSA.
Without getting into the specifics, Garland's movie imagines a near-future U.S. where the various states have divided into warring factions. We come into the film near the end of the war and follow several journalists who are trying to make their...
Without getting into the specifics, Garland's movie imagines a near-future U.S. where the various states have divided into warring factions. We come into the film near the end of the war and follow several journalists who are trying to make their...
- 4/12/2024
- by Ryan Scott
- Slash Film
When interviewed by the Chicago Tribune in 1973, the critic and trailblazing French New Wave actor/filmmaker Francois Truffaut famously stated that he'd yet to see a truly "antiwar" movie, adding, "Every film about war ends up being pro-war." His argument, in essence, was that the very act of making war cinematic tends to infuse it with qualities that make it more entertaining and, as a result, less horrifying. In contrast to that, Truffaut's "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" director Steven Spielberg -- then on the heels of helming his WWII drama "Saving Private Ryan" -- once told Newsweek that "every war movie, good or bad, is an antiwar movie." In his case, Spielberg reasoned that by portraying warfare as convincingly as plausible, it becomes impossible for a film to be pro-war since war is, itself, an inherently horrific thing.
If there's a middle ground between these two camps of thought,...
If there's a middle ground between these two camps of thought,...
- 4/10/2024
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
Remember Donald Trump? Of course you do — the terrible game show host turned terrible president is inescapable, and he's running for a second term this year. No matter what you think of Trump, it's not incorrect to say he's a divisive figure — and he's fond of stoking the flames of that divisiveness. With that in mind, any time a modern film portrays a divisive politician (or a figure with some sort of political power), it's easy to read that character as some sort of Trump stand-in. Sometimes this is intentional, sometimes it's not. But art often reflects life, and this is the world we live in.
In Alex Garland's "Civil War," a second American Civil War has torn the country apart, and a team of journalists is traveling across America documenting what they see as the days of the war wind down. It's bound to be a controversial film.
In Alex Garland's "Civil War," a second American Civil War has torn the country apart, and a team of journalists is traveling across America documenting what they see as the days of the war wind down. It's bound to be a controversial film.
- 4/9/2024
- by Chris Evangelista
- Slash Film
"Monkey Man" is on track to make a nice bit of change at the box office this weekend, and good financial returns often lead quickly to sequel talk. First-time director Dev Patel is having none of that, though; as he told Variety this week, he's more focused on seeing his first baby make its way into the world.
"I'm trying not to get ahead of myself," Patel told the outlet when asked about possible sequel plans for the criminal underworld-set action thriller. "I know this sounds like a cliché," he continued, "but just to [...] birth this little thing, it's been a huge undertaking. This is all a dream come true."
We don't blame Patel for wanting to let the dust on "Monkey Man" settle before thinking of future projects. The road to this movie's theatrical release has been long, complex, and surprisingly gory. Patel tore his shoulder and broke his hand during filming,...
"I'm trying not to get ahead of myself," Patel told the outlet when asked about possible sequel plans for the criminal underworld-set action thriller. "I know this sounds like a cliché," he continued, "but just to [...] birth this little thing, it's been a huge undertaking. This is all a dream come true."
We don't blame Patel for wanting to let the dust on "Monkey Man" settle before thinking of future projects. The road to this movie's theatrical release has been long, complex, and surprisingly gory. Patel tore his shoulder and broke his hand during filming,...
- 4/7/2024
- by Valerie Ettenhofer
- Slash Film
You know what's the great thing about most movies? They're fiction, which means writers and directors can do whatever the heck they want. Simple! Okay, to put that a little less bluntly, creatives should ideally have free rein to put the needs of the script ahead of anything else and simply tell the best story that they possibly can. It feels like we as audiences used to understand that concept, which is why debates over so-called "plot holes" like why the Eagles didn't fly the Fellowship into Mordor or why Bruce Wayne doesn't just fund social services instead of beating up low-level criminals on the streets never pass the smell test for me. The obvious answer is that there would be no movie if they did -- or, at least, not a very entertaining one.
Well, it's with a heavy heart that we report the logic police have come for...
Well, it's with a heavy heart that we report the logic police have come for...
- 4/5/2024
- by Jeremy Mathai
- Slash Film
Dev Patel's directorial debut "Monkey Man" is due in theaters on April 5, and reviews so far have been largely positive. /Film's own Jacob Hall praised the film for its efficient brutality, keen at Patel's abilities to wallow in emotions as he is capably murdering foes. Patel plays a character known only as "Kid," who seeks to murder a cadre of local bad guys as revenge for the death of his mother. In so doing, he unwittingly becomes a legendary hero for the locals, all beset by the same cadre of bad guys.
"Monkey Man" has been compared to "John Wick" in both its action brutality and lean premise. Patel also co-wrote the screenplay, produced the film, and likely did the catering as well, given his devotion to the project. If nothing else, "Monkey Man" seems to be Patel's proof to studios that he can handle major action projects.
"Monkey Man" has been compared to "John Wick" in both its action brutality and lean premise. Patel also co-wrote the screenplay, produced the film, and likely did the catering as well, given his devotion to the project. If nothing else, "Monkey Man" seems to be Patel's proof to studios that he can handle major action projects.
- 4/5/2024
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Motherhood is a challenging, stressful and inherently messy experience. Very messy. It's a wild carnival of bodily fluids: poop, pee, puke and, well, female excretions that a male such as myself has no business discussing in graphic detail. I understand and salute the multitude of sacrifices women make when they choose to carry, deliver and raise a child, and I know good and goddamn well when to keep my mouth shut about this topic -- which is just about 100-percent of the time.
As someone who believes films can be amazing empathy machines (the recent trend of abortion road trip movies has been a stark revelation for me), I do wish there were more movies that depicted in unvarnished detail the conception-to-delivery process without feeling obliged to give equal time or thereabouts to the male perspective. This is especially true of comedies. I adore "Juno" and "Knocked Up," but these...
As someone who believes films can be amazing empathy machines (the recent trend of abortion road trip movies has been a stark revelation for me), I do wish there were more movies that depicted in unvarnished detail the conception-to-delivery process without feeling obliged to give equal time or thereabouts to the male perspective. This is especially true of comedies. I adore "Juno" and "Knocked Up," but these...
- 4/4/2024
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
This article contains spoilers for the season 5 premiere of "Star Trek: Discovery."
With an ensemble cast as large as the one in "Star Trek: Discovery," it can't be easy to find a way to give each and every major character their own moment to shine. Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) is all but guaranteed to play a significant role in any given episode, naturally, as is David Ajala's Cleveland Booker. Recent seasons have even committed to shining a brighter spotlight on the supporting cast at large, devoting much more screen time and emotional heavy-lifting to characters like Sylvia Tilly (Mary Wiseman), Paul Stamets (Anthony Rapp), Dr. Culber (Wilson Cruz), and Adira (Blu del Barrio). But Doug Jones' charismatic performance as the even-keeled Saru has always helped elevate "Discovery" to greater heights, serving much of the same narrative and thematic purpose as classic franchise characters like Spock or Data.
The...
With an ensemble cast as large as the one in "Star Trek: Discovery," it can't be easy to find a way to give each and every major character their own moment to shine. Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) is all but guaranteed to play a significant role in any given episode, naturally, as is David Ajala's Cleveland Booker. Recent seasons have even committed to shining a brighter spotlight on the supporting cast at large, devoting much more screen time and emotional heavy-lifting to characters like Sylvia Tilly (Mary Wiseman), Paul Stamets (Anthony Rapp), Dr. Culber (Wilson Cruz), and Adira (Blu del Barrio). But Doug Jones' charismatic performance as the even-keeled Saru has always helped elevate "Discovery" to greater heights, serving much of the same narrative and thematic purpose as classic franchise characters like Spock or Data.
The...
- 4/4/2024
- by Jeremy Mathai
- Slash Film
Shields up! This article contains major spoilers for the season 5 premiere of "Star Trek: Discovery."
Who knew that "Star Trek: Discovery" would be saving its biggest reveal for last? After being responsible for kickstarting the new era of "Trek" on streaming, the fifth and final season is signaling the beginning of the end for the flagship series. But as fans would expect, the opening episode proves the writing team has no intentions of taking its final bow without crafting one last adventure worthy of Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green), Mr. Saru (Doug Jones), and the rest of the Discovery crew. So perhaps it was inevitable that the biggest twist of the young season would have its roots in one of the most game-changing hours of "Trek" lore ever.
Trekkies will no doubt remember the classic "Next Generation" episode "The Chase," which first introduced the extinct race known as the Progenitors.
Who knew that "Star Trek: Discovery" would be saving its biggest reveal for last? After being responsible for kickstarting the new era of "Trek" on streaming, the fifth and final season is signaling the beginning of the end for the flagship series. But as fans would expect, the opening episode proves the writing team has no intentions of taking its final bow without crafting one last adventure worthy of Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green), Mr. Saru (Doug Jones), and the rest of the Discovery crew. So perhaps it was inevitable that the biggest twist of the young season would have its roots in one of the most game-changing hours of "Trek" lore ever.
Trekkies will no doubt remember the classic "Next Generation" episode "The Chase," which first introduced the extinct race known as the Progenitors.
- 4/4/2024
- by Jeremy Mathai
- Slash Film
The "Barbenheimer" phenomenon was one of the few bright spots in a rotten year for the film industry, which was marred by a pack of greedy, morally bankrupt executives attempting to strongarm the Writers Guild of America and the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television Radio Artists into striking deals that would've financially damaged many of these unions' members while kicking open the door to all manner of technological abuses. For those of us who've loved movies our whole lives, and believe that motion picture artists should be fairly compensated, "Barbenheimer" was a welcome reminder of why this battle mattered.
It was also just a fun release schedule quirk that pitted a deathly serious drama from a stellar filmmaker against a wildly inventive celebration of an iconic doll from a terrific director whose sensibility is, thus far, thrillingly difficult to pin down.
If you thought the Barbenheimer talk would die...
It was also just a fun release schedule quirk that pitted a deathly serious drama from a stellar filmmaker against a wildly inventive celebration of an iconic doll from a terrific director whose sensibility is, thus far, thrillingly difficult to pin down.
If you thought the Barbenheimer talk would die...
- 4/2/2024
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
How brutal does a film need to be for horror aficionado Mike Flanagan to invent a new "MegaSlasher" genre to describe it? As brutal as "Terrifier 2." The 2022 "MegaSlasher" (a term basically indistinguishable from the "splatter" genre) was director Damien Leone's sequel to his low-budget 2016 "Terrifier," and took the violence to extreme levels in order to differentiate itself from the standard Hollywood slasher fare. As Leone said during a 2022 Q&a, "We have to show the audience things that [Hollywood] would never have the balls to show.'"
It's a tactic that worked, with the film proving too brutal for some horror fans and making headlines with reports of viewers fainting and vomiting during screenings. "Terrifier 2" scared up big wins at the box office, too, making $15.7 million on a $250,000 budget. Not bad at all, especially for a film that contains some of the most sickening on-screen violence you'll ever see.
It's a tactic that worked, with the film proving too brutal for some horror fans and making headlines with reports of viewers fainting and vomiting during screenings. "Terrifier 2" scared up big wins at the box office, too, making $15.7 million on a $250,000 budget. Not bad at all, especially for a film that contains some of the most sickening on-screen violence you'll ever see.
- 4/1/2024
- by Joe Roberts
- Slash Film
Here we go again. Another year is starting, which means it's time for the "He-Man and the Masters of the Universe" movie to get yet another director. Like so many projects stuck in developing hell, it seems like practically every director currently working in Hollywood has, at some point, been involved in this film.
Now, Deadline reports that Travis Knight — the director of "Bumblebee" and "Kubo and the Two Strings," founder and CEO of Laika, and son of Nike co-founder Phil Knight — is the latest name to be attached to the long-in-development "Masters of the Universe" movie from Mattel. The report specifically says he is in "final negotiations" to direct, yet the deal hasn't closed just yet as other elements of the film are still being figured out. Nevertheless, this is exciting news, and brings the project one step closer to actually getting made.
Knight is reportedly bringing along writer...
Now, Deadline reports that Travis Knight — the director of "Bumblebee" and "Kubo and the Two Strings," founder and CEO of Laika, and son of Nike co-founder Phil Knight — is the latest name to be attached to the long-in-development "Masters of the Universe" movie from Mattel. The report specifically says he is in "final negotiations" to direct, yet the deal hasn't closed just yet as other elements of the film are still being figured out. Nevertheless, this is exciting news, and brings the project one step closer to actually getting made.
Knight is reportedly bringing along writer...
- 2/13/2024
- by Rafael Motamayor
- Slash Film
The "Saw" films will continue to slice and dice their way into theaters until morale improves -- or until audiences finally get tired of the über-successful horror franchise. If the universal acclaim and strong box office performance of "Saw X" proved anything, however, it's that a return to its roots was sorely needed. As the eleventh film in the series is scheduled to release later this year, that theme is about to continue in a big way.
We haven't been told much about the cast or even the plot of "Saw XI" since the sequel was first announced back in December of last year, though it's been easy to imagine the creative team picking up on the ongoing prequel storyline almost exactly where they last left off. While the involvement of the man, myth, and legend Tobin Bell remains unclear, we now know that at least one other franchise veteran...
We haven't been told much about the cast or even the plot of "Saw XI" since the sequel was first announced back in December of last year, though it's been easy to imagine the creative team picking up on the ongoing prequel storyline almost exactly where they last left off. While the involvement of the man, myth, and legend Tobin Bell remains unclear, we now know that at least one other franchise veteran...
- 2/5/2024
- by Jeremy Mathai
- Slash Film
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