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Hot Take: I’ve never hated a shark movie so why start now? The Meg is more like The Meh though as it drags often and fails to be wacky or dumb enough to draw massive audiences. It lacks the bite it needs is another way to say it. See what I did there?

To be fair, we didn’t need another shark movie. There’s Jaws. It’s basically perfect. There’s not much else we need beyond that. We didn’t need it’s numerous sequels, the shot stealing Deep Blue Sea or any of the latest run of shark flicks that we’ve been getting what seems like yearly lately. Oh and Sharknado 1 through whatever number they’re on now (132?). Those, we definitely didn’t need. All that being said, we want the shark movies. Give us all the shark movies!!! Amazingly, it took The Meg over 2 decades to get to the big screen. Optioned to Disney’s now discontinued Hollywood Pictures in 1996, one year before it’s release, the novel Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror has spawned numerous sequels despite The Meg‘s inability to swim its way into theaters. Eventually, that deal fell apart and the next studio in line to nab the rights was New Line Cinema who grabbed the rights in 2005 with a plan to get it in theaters in 2006. The budget became a concern and New Line killed their plans and the rights reverted back to writer Steve Alten. Finally, the film landed in the hands of Warner Bros. in 2015, landed Jason Statham for the lead role in 2016 and was shot in four months at the end of 2016 in New Zealand and China. Even then, the film still met hiccups as it was originally slated for a March 2018 release but ended up releasing in August. But then again, why wouldn’t you expect such a long, arduous journey for a film about a prehistoric shark thought long to be extinct?Read More →

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Hot Take: Crazy Rich Asians isn’t good just because of its woke casting. It’s good, period. A very good romantic comedy that’s a pure escape from the heavier flicks we’ve been inundated with.

Every time I have to do something where my handwriting is in the spotlight, the same comment comes out. “That’s impressive handwriting… for a guy!” No, sir or ma’am, that’s impressive handwriting for anyone! While that’s a very petty example of our insensitive stereotyping and generalizing of the gender and racial issues we face, the reviews for Crazy Rich Asians have been very positive but also ridiculous condescending and oversimplified. Many can’t just call Crazy Rich Asians a good movie which it is. There’s an obsession with patting the romantic comedy based on the novel of the SAME NAME (Let that sink in a bit) for having an all-Asian cast. Ken Jeong was born in Detroit, by the way… not that that’s important. It’s ok to only look the part as long as you are of Asian descent, I guess? It’s too confusing to me, honestly. Crazy Rich Asians shouldn’t be boosted or lambasted for its casting of people of Asian descent. Honestly, that’s a no brainer. Instead, where Crazy Rich Asians should be getting accolades is for its excellent script, great performances, funny, escapist plot and filling a void in Hollywood that was left when the cinema seemingly abandoned the romantic comedy a few years ago to the point where now it feels refreshing when a good one comes along. And Crazy Rich Asians is a very good one.Read More →

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Hot Take: WORST. MOVIE. THIS. YEAR.

Here’s the easiest way to describe Slender Man: Take the worst parts of The Ring franchise, add the very worst elements of The Craft, glaze it with the most horrible moments from The Forest and sprinkle in the most dismal memories you have of Candyman and you have Slender Man. Considering 2018 has already delivered such dreck as Show Dogs and Gotti amongst a few others, calling Slender Man the worst of 2018 is a big statement. Admittedly, I’m not a fan of horror flicks but at one point, my top two films were A Quiet Place and Hereditary and I actually enjoyed Unfriended: Dark Web so it’s not like I’m not willing to enjoy a good scare from time to time. The problem with Slender Man, though, is there’s not much to be afraid of. First, we’ve seen it all before. Second, outside of some loud sounds and spastic editing forcing the jump cut down our throat, Slender Man is a bore. From the four teens completely void of personality to the derivative script that preys on an Internet legend in a much poorer way than The Blair Witch Project already did decades ago, Slender Man is an unsatisfying mess of a horror flick that at least proves sometimes you can judge a book by its cover. Read More →

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When Mitch Lowe became CEO of MoviePass in 2016, it looked like the fledgling company might find new life. Having just suffered through one of its toughest stretches as it struggled to find footing. Even at $50/month for unlimited trips to the theater, the company failed to be profitable. Lowe, a former executive of Netflix and Redbox, supported the company’s next phase where they launched numerous tests including a ridiculous $99/month unlimited model, various tiered pricing for 2, 3 or 4 movies a month and even regional pricing. At one point, the company lifted its 24 hour restriction and switched to a true daily restriction meaning instead of having to wait until 10pm the next day after seeing a 9:55pm showing, you could now turn around and see a movie at 1pm the next day with no trouble. Read More →

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Hot Take: Is it meta or just meh? I’m leaning toward meh but it could be me. It didn’t feel like much more than a few episodes of Teen Titans strung together with an added scoop of potty humor. Seriously, there are numerous jokes about using the potty, it’s a thing.

Didn’t we get enough superhero satire with The LEGO Batman Movie? If you were one of the ones who felt like we needed more, Teen Titans Go! To the Movies will attempt to fill the void for you. Based on the popular animated series from The Cartoon Network which has 5 seasons and 213 episodes under its utility belt, Teen Titans Go! To the Movies looks to capitalize on its own popularity and our own obsession with cinematic superhero serials with a ho hum plot that doesn’t feel grand enough for the big screen and could have been crammed into a two part episode on The Cartoon Network. If the film version of the episodic show was able to beat The LEGO Batman Movie to the punch, maybe it wouldn’t have felt so stale. It should appeal to the show’s fans and have just enough to satiate the more rabid superhero fans who seem to be unable to get enough cinematic superhero stories.Read More →

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Hot Take: Beyond expectations especially for first time writers and a first time director. Topical and timely. It has a lot to say and knows how to say it.

MoviePass has taken such a beating lately, let me pay it a compliment. One of the greatest features of the product is now I occasionally get to see a movie walking in completely cold. Typically, this happens when a low budget or independent film makes it to the nearby mega-cineplex. Blindspotting which opened to 14 theaters and expanded to 523 in its second week was one of those films. The writing debut of Daveed Diggs (Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson in Hamilton) and Rafael Casal riffs on gentrification, the criminal justice system, police violence and gun control amongst other things. With a charismatic, emotionally charged performance from Diggs in the main role, Blindspotting delivers a multi-faceted, spirited and provocative film that should be seen by the widest audience it can find. It has moments of intensity wrapped around a warm, love-hate relationship with the rapidly evolving Oakland landscape which is experiencing a gentrified rebirth as many inner cities are experiencing in the 21st century.Read More →