We missed reviewing the genre-twisting thriller when it came out, so here’s a Weekend Review of this beguiling and suspenseful 2016 film.
Category Archives: Movies
In 2016, It was good to be Disney
The final box office tallies are in for 2016, and Disney made six of the top ten grossing films of the year. Of course, it helps to have Pixar, Star Wars, and Marvel in your inventory. Disney’s performance this past year is the first time a movie studio broke $1 billion in ticket sales.
- Finding Dory ($486 million)
- Rogue One: A Star Wars Story ($451 million)
- Captain America: Civil War ($408 million)
- The Secret Life of Pets ($368 million)
- The Jungle Book ($364 million)
- Deadpool ($363 million)
- Zootopia ($341 million)
- Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice ($330 million)
- Suicide Squad ($325 million)
- Doctor Strange ($230 million)
Weekend Review: Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders
Don’t worry: that Rogue One review is forthcoming. Meanwhile, we’re taking a look at a recent contribution to Bat-animation.
Return of the Caped Crusaders saw limited release in October 2016 and quickly found its way to home viewing. A tribute to the campy, cult Batman of the 1960s, featuring the voices of series originals Adam West, Burt Ward, and Julie Newmar, it uses animation and an awareness of the Dark Knight’s history to take Batman ’66 where period TV could never go.
“The Incredibles” (2004) – Silver Screen Superheroes #48, final episode
The final episode of Silver Screen Superheroes (which will be replaced with Make Me Watch It is available here.
Movie Review: Arrival
Ted Chiang holds a unique place in science-fiction. He only sporadically publishes anything, usually in the form of a long story or a short novella. When he does it’s an event, and the work generally gets nominated for or wins a major award.
Most of his written work defies obvious cinematic adaptation. I naturally felt surprise when I learned that the Nebula and Sturgeon-winning “Story of Your Life” would become a film.
Elektra (2005): Silver Screen Superheroes 47
The second last episode of Silver Screen Superheroes examines Elektra (2005).
“Dr. Strange” (2016) – Movie Review
Short version: expect to enjoy it if you’ve enjoyed Marvel’s other films. Stay for extra scenes both during and after the credits.
Wonder Woman Trailer
While the DC Cinematic Universe lags behind their Marvel counterpart, they have managed to correct one glaring oversight of the more successful brand: a female-led superhero movie.
October Countdown Review: “Trick ‘r Treat”
“Charlie Brown’s an a
sshole!”
Completed in 2007 and unable to find release until 2009, Trick r Treat has since become a critical and seasonal cult hit. Made in homage to the horror comix of yore, these interwoven tales capture the essential October 31 like few films in history.
October Countdown Review: Dracula vs Frankenstein (1971)
The fear will fully energize the molecular structure of your blood!
–Count Dracula
You would have expected that Universal would have released a movie called Dracula vs Frankenstein, since they paired the famous monsters on more than one occasion. They didn’t. As though to establish some cosmic balance for the oversight, the early 1970s saw three films by this title. The definitive movie by this title is Al Adamson’s drive-in shlockfest, which manages to be the last horror film for aging veterans J. Carroll Naish and Lon Chaney, Jr., and features a cameo by Famous Monsters publisher Forrest J. Ackerman.
It’s a truly terrible movie, one tier above the Ed Wood oeuvre, and yet, peculiarly enjoyable. Certainly, it’s better than the others, which will also be reviewed today as part of our Halloween Countdown.