“Operation Finale” – a powerful start to Oscar season

Posted on August 29, 2018 by Denise

Nutshell: Real-life Nazi hunters get a powerful and moving film tribute, thanks to a stellar ensemble cast and nimble screenplay. Kingsley and Isaac deliver performances people will be talking about when award ballots start to fly. Don’t even bother with popcorn with this one; you’ll be too riveted to the screen. Grade: A-

“We should be putting him down like a mad dog.”

Story: During WWII Adolph Eichmann conceived and carried out the Final Solution, which led to the deaths of over six million Jews, along with millions of other individuals. Eichmann disappeared after the War’s end. In 1960, Mossad agents in Israel were tipped off to the possibility of Eichmann’s location in Argentina. A team of agents were sent to capture him, alive, for trial.

Genre I’d put it in: Powerful Docudramas

Remake, Sequel, Based-On, or Original: Based on the real-life capture of WWII war criminal Adolph Eichmann by members of the Mossad.  Continue reading →

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Small Press Expo announces this year’s Ignatz Award nominees!

Posted on August 28, 2018 by Denise

It’s that time of year again kids. Time for the bestest indie comics gathering to announce their best of picks. Or as I like to think of it, Goodreads Queue Expander Season! Because SPX just dropped their nominations for their Ignatz awards!

So many incredible noms…I’ma make it raaaaaain in Artist’s Alley (again)! Read on for the full list – and CONGRATULATIONS to all the nominees!

Continue reading →

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Baltimore Screening Pass-palooza: “Peppermint”!

Posted on August 27, 2018 by Denise

Jennifer Garner is a total badass.  So who else is looking forward to seeing her bring the pain in her newest flick, Peppermint? Because I have passes y’all… Synopsis!

Peppermint is a high impact, Jennifer Garner led, action thriller which tells the story of young mother Riley North (Garner) who awakens from a coma after her husband and daughter are killed in a brutal attack on the family. When the system frustratingly shields the murderers from justice, Riley sets out to transform herself from citizen to urban guerilla. Channeling her frustration into personal motivation, she spends years in hiding honing her mind, body and spirit to become an unstoppable force – eluding the underworld, the LAPD and the FBI- as she methodically delivers her personal brand of justice.

YES PLEASE.  You too?  Then let’s go!

Continue reading →

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TrailerWatch: Crank up the Awards Season Machine for “A Private War”

Posted on August 27, 2018 by Denise

Time for Award Season Onslaught y’all!  Yeah, it’s still August.  But I’m seeing a few films that look like shiny, shiny awards fodder.  Operation Finale is one, and now comes a biopic starring Rosamund Pike, Jamie Dornan and Stanley Tucci. Sounds award-y?  I think so too.  Synopsis!

In a world where journalism is under attack, Marie Colvin (Academy Award nominee Rosamund Pike) is one of the most celebrated war correspondents of our time. Colvin is an utterly fearless and rebellious spirit, driven to the frontlines of conflicts across the globe to give voice to the voiceless, while constantly testing the limits between bravery and bravado. After being hit by a grenade in Sri Lanka, she wears a distinctive eye patch and is still as comfortable sipping martinis with London’s elite as she is confronting dictators. Colvin sacrifices loving relationships, and over time, her personal life starts to unravel as the trauma she’s witnessed takes its toll. Yet, her mission to show the true cost of war leads her — along with renowned war photographer Paul Conroy (Jamie Dornan) — to embark on the most dangerous assignment of their lives in the besieged Syrian city of Homs. Based on the extraordinary life of Marie Colvin, A PRIVATE WAR is brought to the screen by Academy Award nominee and critically acclaimed documentary filmmaker Matthew Heineman in his pulse-pounding narrative feature debut.

A Private War hits theaters November 2nd. Check out the trailer below – it’s absolutely riveting.  I can’t wait to see what documentary filmmaker Heineman does with this biopic, because this taste looks incredible. And welcome, welcome to Award Season!

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ROE Giveaway: “The Little Stranger”!

Posted on August 24, 2018 by Denise

Movies based on novels are happening all over the place.  They’re adaptations as old as time. And so today I’ve got an ROE (Run Of Engagement) pass and book prize pack for The Little Stranger! Synopsis!

THE LITTLE STRANGER tells the story of Dr. Faraday, the son of a housemaid, who has built a life of quiet respectability as a country doctor. During the long hot summer of 1948, he is called to a patient at Hundreds Hall, where his mother once worked. The Hall has been home to the Ayres family for more than two centuries. But it is now in decline and its inhabitants – mother, son and daughter – are haunted by something more ominous than a dying way of life. When he takes on his new patient, Faraday has no idea how closely, and how disturbingly, the family’s story is about to become entwined with his own.

What’s great about an ROE?  Well, you can pick the time and day you’d like (during the workweek, typically) and go.  No standing in line.  No wondering if you’ll get a seat.  Go, present your ROE pass, and enjoy the show. Period. Ready to get your literary and movie-ary thang on? Let’s go!

Continue reading →

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Baltimore Screening Pass-palooza: “Operation Finale”!

Posted on August 23, 2018 by Denise

Whoa. The trailer for this docudrama looks incredible.  Synopsis!

This thrilling true story follows the 1960 covert mission of legendary Mossad agent Peter Malkin as he infiltrates Argentina and captures Adolf Eichmann, the Nazi officer who masterminded the transportation logistics that brought millions of innocent Jews to their deaths in concentration camps.

Ready to get your historical thriller on? Let’s go!

Continue reading →

Posted in Free Screenings | Tagged | 1 Comment

The Happytime Murders tries too hard to be “cool”

Posted on August 23, 2018 by Denise

Nutshell: I wasn’t expecting much here – I’m still smarting from McCarthy’s Life of the Party – so I was pleasantly surprised by a handful of genuinely good gags. Unfortunately, the film as a whole tries too hard to be comically edgy, and ends up falling flat. Grade: D+

“You look like a cloth vagina.”

Story: In an alternate reality LA, puppets and humans coexist. Well, kinda; puppets are definitely second class citizens in this scenario. But when puppets start getting murdered, puppet PI Phil Philips must team up with his former partner, Detective Connie Edwards, and find out who’s doing the puppets dirty. And speaking of dirty, cue the puppet jizz! Continue reading →

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New Prince track, “Mary Don’t You Weep” for “BlackKkKlansman” gives me all the feelings

Posted on August 22, 2018 by Denise

We’ve all heard that His Royal Purpleness had recorded tons of music before his passing (and yes, I’m still in a bit denial that he’s gone.) But Spike Lee got the okay to use this gorgeous song for BlackKkKlansman. And Lee went ahead and gave us a music video as well. Can I get a woohoo? WOOHOO!
BlackKkKlansman is now playing in theaters. Check out the video below, and let me know what you think!

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TrailerWatch: “THE OATH” talks turkeys

Posted on August 22, 2018 by Denise

I love holiday disfunction movies. But The Oath looks like a prescient documentary for folks who have loved ones across the aisle. Still funny as hell though. Synopsis!

A controversial White House policy turns family member against family member in THE OATH, a savagely funny dark comedy about surviving life and Thanksgiving in the age of political tribalism. When Chris (Ike Barinholtz), a high-strung 24-hour progressive news junkie, and his more levelheaded wife Kai (Tiffany Haddish) learn that citizens are being asked to sign a loyalty oath to the President, their reaction is disbelief, followed by idealistic refusal. But as the Thanksgiving deadline to sign approaches, the combination of sparring relatives, Chris’s own agitation and the unexpected arrival of two government agents (John Cho and Billy Magnussen) sends an already tense holiday dinner gathering completely off the rails. As timely as it is outrageous, THE OATH is a gleefully wicked reinvention of the traditional holiday comedy for our divisive political times.

The Oath comes to town October 12th.

https://youtu.be/OV03zjNVRdc

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TrailerWatch: “AURORA” brings beauty and…bodies?

Posted on August 21, 2018 by Denise

Thanks to Bloody Disgusting, here’s a gorgeous, atmospheric look at Aurora, a chilling and absolutely gorgeous horror film from the Phillipines.

Read the piece at BD for more info! (Because I’m really lazy today, and they’ve done a damn good job.)

Here’s hoping we’ll get a release date soon here in the States!

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