Jose's Top 10 Films of 2018 With every passing year I find myself getting more and more cynical about the state of modern cinema. But somehow by year’s end, every year, I recollect that I still have found a way to have plenty of fun at the movies and discover a handful of flicks that renew my faith. 2018 was no different with plenty of surprises and burgeoning fads. The biggest and most welcome trend I see is the plethora of working and talented African-American filmmakers. So, it should only be fitting that my favorite film of the year is courtesy of one of their most influential artists: Spike Lee. 1. BLACKKKLANSMAN Just over 30 years after his cinematic debut (She’s Gotta Have It), Spike
While we’re all used to the traditional Christmas covers by the Josh Grobans of the world, hip hop artists have cultivated a fairly robust catalog of their own seasonal sounds. Many of us are probably familiar with DMX’s unparalleled rendition of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” or maybe for the older crowd you’re partial to Run D.M.C’s “Christmas in Hollis,” but hip hop artists of all subgenres have been rapping their Christmas tidings for decades. Christmas may have come and gone, but here are five songs you might not have heard that you can enjoy all year round: 1. Snoop Dogg, Bad Lucc & Soopafly – “Landy in my Egg Nogg” Snoop Dogg actually released an entire album, Christmas in the Dogg
Title: Aquaman (2018) Genre: Superhero/Sci Fi/Action Director: James Wan Stars: Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Nicole Kidman, Willem Dafoe Bias: This is the third outing as Aquaman by Jason Momoa (the second with dialogue) and I still don’t understand, or especially like, whatever it is he’s doing. Grade: C- In A Nutshell: Arthur Curry/Aquaman is the son of an Atlantean queen and a surface-dwelling father. Caught between these two worlds, he’s enlisted by Mera to take the throne from his evil half-brother, Orm, who is consolidating power and planning to invade the surface world. The Critique: While watching Aquaman, a question keeps coming to mind: What is t
The career of director Bob Clark was eclectic, to say the least. Best known for the enduring holiday classic A Christmas Story, his resume also included the high school sex romp Porky’s, the infamously dreadful Rhinestone and the truly awful Loose Cannons. Before his switch to comedies he got his promising start with horror flicks like Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things and Dead of Night. But it was 1974’s Black Christmas that put him on the map. I only became aware of this hidden gem of a horror film when I watched the abysmal 2006 remake. I subsequently learned that Bob Clark definitely had a gift for horror. Black Christmas gives us classic horror in the form of a psychopathic kille
We’re all familiar with the classic feel-good holiday specials that get everyone into the spirit around this time of year - A Charlie Brown Christmas, Frosty The Snowman, et cetera. While it’s perfectly delightful to gather around with family and watch that sort of thing, the Christmas-themed content I’ve enjoyed this December is far less wholesome and far more entertaining. With that said, here’s a review of my favorite not-so-family-friendly Christmas specials. The Sopranos – “...To Save Us All From Satan’s Power” (Season 3, Episode 10) It’s the first Christmas since the watery demise of Salvatore “Big Pussy” Bonpensiero, and much to his dismay, Bobby Baccalieri is forced to replace him as
Every year, starting in early December, I begin my annual Christmas movie and TV marathon. I spend the month rewatching old holiday classics, as I have time and in no particular order. This tradition is pretty loosely structured and has changed a bit from year to year, but it serves its purpose well - to get me excited for the holiday season, even when other things (like the end of semester slog through grading) feel overwhelming. Until now, my must-watch-by-Christmas list has only existed in my head, but I suppose now is as good a time as any to share it with the world. For the purposes of this blog, I'll try to stick to films available on streaming or as a reasonably-priced rental ('cuz De
My Christmas spirit has a brief window. It awakens a couple of weeks after Thanksgiving and goes back to sleep shortly after New Year's Day. And it's during this window that I engage in certain Christmas traditions - decorating the tree, buying and wrapping presents, drinking Egg Nog (the nectar of the Gods), and, yes, listening to Christmas music. So here, in no particular order, are the 10 songs I love to hear, and the 5 that I dread hearing every year. Merry Happy! 10) "Happy Xmas (War is Over)" One of the things I look for in a Christmas song isn't necessarily how "Christmas-y" it sounds (as will become apparent). Instead, I'm drawn to songs I would probably like if even if they had noth
Title: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) Genre: Animated/Superhero/Sci-Fi/Action Directors: Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman Stars (primary actors): Shameik Moore, Jake Johnson, Bryan Tyree Henry, Hailee Steinfeld, Liev Shreiber, and Mahershala Ali Bias: I’m pretty sure they made this movie for me personally, so… Grade: A+ In A Nutshell: Miles Morales is an ordinary kid from Brooklyn who gets bitten by a radioactive spider and gains superpowers. Meanwhile, Wilson Fisk, the Kingpin of Crime, is funding an experiment to open a gateway to multiple dimensions. Miles must team up with a eclectic gang of alternate dimension Spider-folks to stop Fisk, return everyone to thei
The career of Kenneth Branagh has seen him rise from stage-based Shakespearean wunderkind to international film star and acclaimed director. He gained instant notoriety and multiple Oscar nominations in 1989 with his bold and visionary take on Henry V. He has recently reinvigorated his audience, as well as garnered new fans, with back-to-back box office hits in 2015’s Cinderella and 2017’s Murder on the Orient Express. But he always finds a way to return to his Shakespearean roots. 1995’s A Midwinter’s Tale (original title: In the Bleak Midwinter) is easily one of his most charming efforts, and fits nicely into our current theme since it is set at Christmas. This time, Branagh stays behind t
My mother is a Christmas fanatic. She starts bumping the holiday tunes around August and it wouldn’t surprise me if she was the only middle-aged woman still doing snow day rituals. So Christmas movies are a big deal. Please enjoy some of the standout features that I’ve been forced to see every year. 10.) The Polar Express (2004) Robert Zemeckis turns Tom Hanks into a CGI abomination of a train conductor. The art style really falls into the uncanny valley for me in this flick about a boy who goes on a midnight adventure to the North Pole. The journey is both a literal one and one of self discovery as the boy learns that you should always believe in the magic of Christmas. The movie isn’t all
Every year, starting in early December, I begin my annual Christmas movie and TV marathon. I spend the month rewatching old holiday classics, as I have time and in no particular order. This tradition is pretty loosely structured and has changed a bit from year to year, but it serves its purpose well - to get me excited for the holiday season, even when other things (like the end of semester slog through grading) feel overwhelming. Until now, my must-watch-by-Christmas list has only existed in my head, but I suppose now is as good a time as any to share it with the world. For the purposes of this blog, I'll try to stick to shows available on streaming or as a reasonably-priced rental ('cuz De
If you were lucky like me to grow up in the late 1970’s/early 1980’s, your formative years were enriched by The Muppets. From the visionary mind of Jim Henson, The Muppets were a pop culture phenomenon who entertained kids and adults alike with just the right mixture of wholesome optimism and playful satire. From their hit variety show (The Muppet Show which ran from 1976 to 1981) to a successful trio of feature films (The Muppet Movie, The Great Muppet Caper, and The Muppets Take Manhattan), this crew of puppet characters became as iconic as they were lovable. After Jim Henson’s untimely death in 1990, creative stewardship fell to his son Brian who took the director’s chair for 1992’s The M
Title: The Nightmare Before Christmas 25th Anniversary Sing-Along Edition DVD Genre: stop-motion animation, holiday Director: Henry Selick Stars: Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'hara Bias: I already know I love the movie - have since I was 5 years old. This review is specifically about the newest edition of the DVD, rather than the film overall. In a Nutshell: For the three people in the universe that still haven't seen The Nightmare Before Christmas, the film follows the story of Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King and de facto leader of Halloween Town. Disenchanted with his macabre reign, Jack wanders into the forest where he finds a series of doorways leading to other places - wh
It’s the most wonderful time of the year…….to catch up on holiday flicks you may have missed the first time. The history of cinema has given us many “Holiday Classics” like It’s a Wonderful Life, Miracle on 34th Street, A Christmas Story and the recently recognized Die Hard. So I will take the next four weeks to take a look at films that deserve some appreciation, be they potential “Holiday Classics” or just fun Christmas-set films that are a much needed diversion from the norm. So, let’s start this month with The Long Kiss Goodnight. You can never go wrong with a Shane Black script. First, Mr. Black specializes in witty/wise-ass repartee. Second, almost all of his scripts are set at Christm
