Delivering American University's news and views since 1925 | Tuesday, June 6, 2023
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Thirty years after Clifford McBride—a visionary pioneer in space exploration—went missing during a deep space mission gone wrong, his estranged son, Roy (Brad Pitt) is sent to search for him.
Making a movie is hard work. Making a monster movie is even harder. Making a good monster movie may be one of the hardest things to pull off in Hollywood.
If you’ve kept up with the DC extended universe (DCEU), which, as lowly box office sales report, many of you have not -- then you are probably looking forward to James Wan’s “Aquaman” coming out this weekend.
Sending a man to the moon was one of the most difficult and dangerous missions ever attempted in human history. Its toll, in finances and human life, are ever-apparent in “First Man.” So is the cost of Neil Armstrong’s personal journey, one full of pain and tumult.
“Mission: Impossible” is not the first thing that comes to mind when considering Hollywood blockbuster franchises, but maybe it should be.
We often correlate high school to uneasiness and anxiety. Bo Burnham relates it to the frightened thirteen-year-old in us all in “Eighth Grade,” a film about the final week of eighth grade for Kayla Day (Elsie Fisher). She records YouTube videos speaking words of motivation and advice for her next-to-invisible audience but struggles with shyness in day-to-day life and worries about her impending high school social life. Kayla’s father (Josh Hamilton) tries his best to make her feel okay about her situation, usually falling on earbud-filled ears.
“I immediately started crying.”
It has all led up to this. Ten years of entertaining films, character development and world-building have culminated in Marvel’s latest addition to their cinematic universe, “Avengers: Infinity War.”
"Annihilation,” Alex Garland’s much-anticipated follow-up to his smash hit “Ex Machina” is in theaters this weekend. Trailers have teased the film as sci-fi horror with world-ending stakes, a seemingly odd turn from “Ex Machina.” In the end, “Annihilation” is a slow burn sci-fi thriller pondering over gender status, humanity and creation.
“Justice League” opens with a smartphone video recording Superman. Children behind the camera hastily ask him questions about his sigil and stumble into their ending question, “What’s your favorite part of planet Earth?” Henry Cavill freezes and ponders his newly adopted homeland, he looks down and smiles -- before he can give us an answer the screen cuts to black.
Marvel is an unstoppable machine in the movie business, with three films scheduled to come out every year until 2020. Each one is expected to be a surefire hit due to a devoted, widespread following, including the newest addition to Thor’s solo ventures. Marvel films have a generally positive track record but despite every film being a box office hit, there are flaws that exist.
Yorgos Lanthimos is one of the most adventurous directors working today, consistently making films that are willing to unsettle an audience -- most recently “The Lobster,” an expectedly twisted but unexpectedly romantic take on modern love.
Tom Cruise, no matter what his personal life holds, is a bonafide, big box office movie star. Even his latest film, The Mummy, which was a critically dismissed domestic flop but boomed in China, managed to gross over $400 million. While “American Made” may be the same case, Cruise displays his ability to haul in any viewer’s attention.
Little was known about “Mother!” leading up to its release, and that is exactly as writer/director Darren Aronofsky wanted. Marketing for the film has been gearing it towards the horror genre, though that is nowhere near what the film truly is.
“Good Time,” directed by Josh and Benny Safdie (Benny also stars in the film as Nick) tells a one night tale of madness and crime in New York City. After a bank robbery gone wrong, Connie (Robert Pattinson) must get his brother, Nick, out of the dangerous Rikers Island Prison before the night is up.
Christopher Nolan is one of the most acclaimed directors working in Hollywood right now. He’s also one of the few filmmakers who can demand any budget for any script he authorizes. Following his last picture, the divisive “Interstellar,” the film public was on edge about what was in store from the British writer and director.
Journalism’s worst kept secret is the fact that print newspapers are a dying business. Something that has been somewhat of a secret is the directly-correlated dying obituary section.
Louis C.K. has always been a maestro of humor, and Netflix decided to capitalize on this opportunity by enlisting him to perform his seventh hour-long special for them. Seven is a staggering number for the amount of taped stand-up specials a comedian can have. That said, Louis C.K. delivers just as he has throughout his career.
Jordan Peele has made a name for himself working on and starring in the famous sketch show Key and Peele. Now, he has officially made his directorial debut with 2017’s horror-comedy “Get Out.”
Bill Burr has become a sort of icon in the comedic landscape of the 21st century. His humor is not exactly prototypical when compared to some other household names of today, such as Louis C.K. and Sarah Silverman. All three find common ground in an ability to use vulgarity as a mechanism to further a joke, not dilute it. That is where Bill Burr begins to diverge, however, and with his new Netflix special “Walk Your Way Out,” he displays his variance from the average.
