The new animated series from the creators of Love, Death + Robots is, I suppose unsurprisingly, an infuriating mess and generally a huge waste of time. Coming in hot at the end of the year, Amazon Prime’s Secret Level is one of the worst new TV shows of 2024. Judging whether it will turn out… Read More Whatever This Is, It’s Loud and Unpleasant | Secret Level (2024) Amazon Prime Series Premiere
The new Netflix spy thriller Black Doves can feel awfully familiar in a lot of ways. The series is reminiscent of a number of other popular shows, and indulges in some genre tropes that have frankly been overplayed for a while by this point. Somehow, it’s a lot of fun regardless. A good cast, smart… Read More Arouse No Suspicion | Black Doves Season 1 (2024) on Netflix
Five sequels, a couple TV spinoffs, and innumerable viewings later, The Terminator is no longer the same movie it was forty years ago. What started as a scrappy, low-budget thriller made by a relatively unknown young director desperate to prove himself, has transformed into the first cog in a popular and long-running franchise, as well… Read More You’re Dead, Honey | The Terminator (1984) 4K Ultra HD
Originally planned for a wide theatrical release, the George Clooney/Brad Pitt crime comedy Wolfs had its run in theaters cut short to just one week – the minimum required to satisfy both stars’ contracts – before being rapidly whisked to its long-term home on streaming. In years past, a film like this might have brought… Read More Smooth Operators | Wolfs (2024) on Apple TV+
Walter’s Hill’s 1979 The Warriors was a box office hit and has grown to become an even greater cult classic over the years, but was released to considerable criticism and controversy at the time. Unfortunately, that reputation led Hill, decades later, to create a Director’s Cut in 2005 that attempted to water down the content… Read More Miracles Is the Way Things Ought to Be | The Warriors (1979) Arrow Video 4K Ultra HD
Arnold Schwarzenegger was already a celebrity by the early 1980s from his bodybuilding career, TV appearances, and featured screen time in the popular documentary Pumping Iron, but his attempts at acting didn’t really take off until he landed the lead in Conan the Barbarian. A screen vehicle well-tailored to both his strengths and limitations, the… Read More Days of High Adventure | Conan the Barbarian (1982) Arrow Video 4K Ultra HD
The Killer is legendary action filmmaker John Woo’s masterpiece. To be clear, when I say that, I’m of course referring to Woo’s 1989 film called The Killer. His new 2024 movie also called The Killer, which is being promoted as a self-directed remake of his own work, is something different entirely. The new version of… Read More La Femme Redundant | The Killer (2024) on Peacock
Three and four decades, respectively, since they each debuted, producer Jerry Bruckheimer’s Bad Boys and Beverly Hills Cop action franchises both returned with belated fourth entries in 2024. Bad Boys was apparently deemed still fresh enough to merit another theatrical release, but former box office juggernaut Beverly Hills Cop wound up relegated to a Netflix… Read More Some Things Never Change | Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F (2024) on Netflix
In his more than three decades doing it to date, Richard Linklater has had an erratic career directing movies. He’s made a small handful of classics, several other worthy efforts, and a few cult favorites, but also a whole bunch of middle-of-the-road misfires that went nowhere. His latest feature, Hit Man, is a pleasant enough… Read More This Is What Happens When You Hire an Amateur | Hit Man (2024) on Netflix
Hollywood has been warning us about the dangers of A.I. for decades. Look to the Terminator franchise for the most famous example of that, of course. However, as A.I. tools work their way into the real-world film production chain, such that a good chunk of Netflix originals often feel like they were probably scripted by… Read More Don’t Be Fooled by the Bot That She’s Got | Atlas (2024) on Netflix
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