The music is sometimes dramatic, creating a camp atmosphere instead of horror, but the line between good and evil blurs. Everyone Will Burn is one of the few movies you root for the devil.
The Witch 2: The Other One [Fantasia Festival ’22 Review]
The Witch 2: The Other One (also known as The Witch: Part 2. The Other One) playing at Fantasia Festival, expands on the story in the first film and adds more of the fight sequences that shocked viewers. Written and directed by Park Hoon-jung the film adds a new overpowered girl to the mix. But the girl (Shin Sia) does not need her hands to deliver a beatdown that her opponent’s ancestors feel. Adding onto the story that riveted audiences with more comedy, booming action, and world expansion, The Witch 2: The Other One surpasses the first film in many ways.
God Said Give ‘Em Drum Machines [Tribeca Review]
God Said Give ‘Em Drum Machines is an informative, fascinating journey through musical evolution with the pioneers in techno who crafted the sounds we still hear and bop to today. The roots begin in Detroit, where young Black men played with sounds through their love of science fiction and started the sound known as techno.
Butterfly in the Sky [Tribeca Review]
There are shows from childhood that shape us for better or worse. Butterfly in the Sky, directed by Bradford Thomason and Brett Whitcomb, looks at the origins and struggles to bring the beloved PBS show Reading Rainbow to television. The documentary, aired at Tribeca, interviews the crew, educators, children from the show, and show’s host and star, LeVar Burton. Reading Rainbow inspired children to enjoy reading, and that impact is indelibly embedded in the foundation of countless people. Butterfly in the Sky takes us down memory lane and shows us what was happening behind those joyous scenes.
Jethica [SXSW ’22] Review
and drama wrapped in a short 70-minute runtime. Jethica follows Elena (played by Callie Hernandez) as she helps Jessica (Ashlee Denise Robinson) deal with her stalker, Kevin (Will Madden). The situation becomes morbid and dark comedy as they seek assistance from beyond the grave to dispose of Kevin. Jethica keeps its pace, does not bloat the runtime, and stays unnerving and comical.
Sell/Buy/Date [SXSW ’22] Review
Sell/Buy/Date, a docudrama mixed in comedy, premiered at SXSW Festival. It stars Sarah Jones, with a story by her and David Goldblum that looks at the sex industry via the intersections of privilege. The documentary or, as Sarah Jones calls it “unorthodoc” is about Sarah Jones trying to make the documentary based on her play of the same name. Entertaining, honest in Sarah Jones’s confusion, Sell/Buy/Date skillfully touches on the main points regarding sex work, sex trafficking and decriminalization.
Aftershock [Sundance ’22 Review]
Aftershock, directed by Paula Eiselt and Tonya Lewis Lee, personalizes the Black maternal mortality and morbidity epidemic in the United States in this documentary. Through…
Emergency [Sundance ’22 Review]
Emergency starts as a comedy but spirals into a dramatic film that leaves you filled with dread as it progresses. Directed by Carey Williams and written by KD Davila, Emergency is about a night of would-be partying spiraling into a comedy of errors that leads to a potentially dangerous outcome. With strong directing and dynamic acting from the trio of men, Emergency tackles the terror of racism in an engrossing way. It does not seek to find a resolution but demonstrates how that unwarranted terror can have a lasting impact.
When You Finish Saving The World [Sundance ’22 Review]
Quirky with a helping of cringe and creep, When You Finish Saving The World is entertaining, although it lacks deeper substance. Julianne Moore stands out in her role as Evelyn, and Finn Wolfhard’s character, Ziggy, displays a level of white, entitled, lazy narcissism with an obsession that encapsulates a generation prizing their value with likes on social media.
Satoshi Kon, The Illusionist: NIGHTSTREAM ’21 Review
Satoshi Kon, The Illusionist, playing at Nightstream’s virtual festival, written and directed by Pascal-Alex Vincent, looks at Satoshi Kon’s creations and impact on the industry and the challenges he faced. The documentary explores a man that, like his creations, was complex but loved the entirety of humanity.