Posts By Justin Gunterman
Movie critics love to talk about big disappointments, and it makes perfect sense. If you’re waiting months for a movie to come out only to be let down, you’re gonna wanna hop on the keyboard and talk about it. Pleasant surprises aren’t talked about nearly as much. More often than not, these movies get a brief comment about how they’re… Read more »
Good news, everyone. 2017 is not as consistently disappointing as 2016. We haven’t ran into any colossal misfires like Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, X-Men: Apocalypse, or Zoolander 2. In fact, there have been a surprising amount of pleasant surprises instead. Wonder Woman, John Wick 2, and Get Out all managed to exceed expectations. With that being said, this… Read more »
Not every movie can rake in money like Wonder Woman or Beauty and the Beast. Every year, studios take big risks by putting too much hope in a project that ultimately fails. Sometimes, the box office failure can be seen from a mile away, as was the case for last year’s Gods of Egypt. Other times, an otherwise promising movie… Read more »
David O. Russell has a certain reputation for being, to put it lightly, hard to work with. From leaked YouTube videos to some less-than-kind interviews from people he has worked with, Russell’s unconventional directing techniques have been criticized for years. While his negative attitude has put a dent in reputation, Russell continues to wow critics and audiences with each new… Read more »
Ranking Almodóvar’s films is something of a challenge. If you talk to several hardcore fans, you’ll quickly realize that what is considered a top 5 Almodóvar film for one person could be in the bottom five for someone else. His movies are so consistently well-done that it’s hard to pick out winners and losers. Almodóvar doesn’t really have any losers…. Read more »
Darren Aronofsky’s filmography may be small, but it’s also consistently solid. Even at his worst, Aronofsky still manages to create films with profound messages. His ability to experiment with different genres and filmmaking techniques is admirable. More importantly, his knack for capturing the darker side of life is almost unprecedented. Whether he’s making a movie about ballet or mathematics, Aronofsky… Read more »
If there’s one movie that’s capable of scaring people away from drug use, it’s Darren Aronofsky’s Requiem for a Dream. It was more than just a movie about addiction. It was a psychological drama about mental health, isolation, and the human condition. It’s not easy to sit through, but every second is mesmerizing. It did well with critics when it… Read more »
It’s so rare for a mainstream horror movie to be as much of a success as Get Out. It’s usually the indie horror movies that are talked about by critics after the year ends. Last year, The Witch, Neon Demon, and Train to Busan were the center of numerous conversations. In terms of critical discussion, Don’t Breathe and The Conjuring… Read more »
2016 brought us The Witch, Don’t Breathe, The Conjuring 2, Green Room, and countless other horror success stories. So far this year, things haven’t been too shabby either. Split received the best reviews of a Shyamalan movie since Signs, and Get Out could potentially end up on quite a few critic top ten lists by the time the year is… Read more »
The Academy Awards are right around the category, and like last year, we’re going to try our hand at predicting every single category. Note that this list is not picking the movies that most deserve to win. Rather, it’s picking the most likely winners. Predicting the Oscars requires a lot of annoying analysis, but in the end there’s no way… Read more »
The Oscars have chosen their five picks for the Best Documentary category. While they’re not too shabby, it’s obvious that they left out quite a few stellar choices. It’s not hard to see why. 2016 has graciously gifted us with so many fantastic documentaries. With streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu swooping up as much content as they… Read more »
2016 has come to a close, the Oscars are right around the corner, and major publications have gone out of their way to publish as many end-of-the-year lists as possible. This includes a number of lists pointing out the greatest performances of the year. Taste of Cinema may be late to the party, but that’s because hours upon hours were… Read more »
2016 brought cinemagoers a slew of critical and commercial hits. Star Wars: Rogue One proved that the franchise is in the right hands. Arrival helped show that there’s still room for smart sci-fi blockbusters. Hell, even the sequel to Ouija managed to leave critics happily stunned. There was no shortage of great movies that came along this past year. Unfortunately,… Read more »
2016 has come to an end, and critics around the globe have been gushing over their favorite film performances. By now, you’ve likely grown tired of hearing about how fantastic Casey Affleck, Natalie Portman, and Jeff Bridges were in the many Oscar frontrunners from this year. While there’s no arguing that these performances were stellar, attention needs to be given… Read more »
The term “Oscar bait” essentially refers to any movie that seems aimed at the Oscar voting audience. Oscar voters love feel-good dramas with talented casts and critically acclaimed directors. Movies like The Danish Girl and The Help are wonderful examples of Oscar bait. In many cases, Oscar bait movies get the critical acclaim they desperately desire. In other cases, they… Read more »
This year, it’s surprisingly easy to think of the worst movies. This isn’t to say that 2016 has been consistently terrible, but there have been plenty of noteworthy duds. As the year comes to a close, people will likely have seen most of the movies they set out to see. After hearing about how wonderful La La Land is time… Read more »
