In Queue Review – “Dark Match”!

“Five deaths in the ring. That is the thing.”

Genre: Wrestling Horror
Release Date: 2025
Where I Watched: Shudder

Gist: It’s 1988. In the world of small-time wrestling league SAW, heel Miss Behave (aka Nick) wants to make it big, and that means becoming a face. When SAW gets a chance to put on a show at a “dark”  (untelevised) match out in the middle of nowhere, she thinks she’s got her chance. SAW’s manager Spencer thinks this is gonna be a huge payday. Nick’s off/on boyfriend “Mean” Joe Lean thinks it’s too good to be true. Only one of these characters is correct. Spoiler: it’s Joe.

Gotta say: I love a good grindhouse cinema homage. And when a film starts things off with blasting Trooper’s “Raise a Little Hell”? I get amped. But Match takes a promising idea and doesn’t know what to do with it. Ideas are squandered, subplots sputter out, and characters are more brief suggestions trotted out so they can fall into the meat-grinder. That meat grinder is pretty cool though. So there’s that?

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Baltimore Screening Pass-palooza – “You’re Cordially Invited”!

Ooh! It’s a title that’s also my main reason for posting! Synopsis!

When two weddings are accidentally booked on the same day at the same venue, each bridal party is challenged with preserving their family’s special moment while making the most of the unanticipated tight quarters. In a hilarious battle of determination and grit, the father of the bride (Will Ferrell) and sister of the other bride (Reese Witherspoon) chaotically go head-to-head as they stop at nothing to uphold an unforgettable celebration for their loved ones.

Ready? Let’s go!

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Baltimore Screening Pass-palooza – “Wolf Man”!

Ready to howl? Synopsis!

Golden Globe nominee Christopher Abbott (Poor Things, It Comes at Night) stars as Blake, a San Francisco husband and father, who inherits his remote childhood home in rural Oregon after his own father vanishes and is presumed dead. With his marriage to his high-powered wife, Charlotte (Emmy winner Julia Garner; Ozark, Inventing Anna), fraying, Blake persuades Charlotte to take a break from the city and visit the property with their young daughter, Ginger (Matlida Firth; Hullraisers, Coma).

But as the family approaches the farmhouse in the dead of night, they’re attacked by an unseen animal and, in a desperate escape, barricade themselves inside the home as the creature prowls the perimeter. As the night stretches on, however, Blake begins to behave strangely, transforming into something unrecognizable, and Charlotte will be forced to decide whether the terror within their house is more lethal than the danger without.

Ready? Let’s go!

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Baltimore Screening Pass-palooza: “September 5”!

“You’re Sports. You’re in way over your head.”

Ready to get this new year started? Yeah, me neither…but c’mon, let’s hit the multiplex! Synopsis!

September 5 unveils the decisive moment that forever changed media coverage and continues to impact live news today. Set during the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics, the film follows the ABC Sports broadcasting team who quickly shifted from sports reporting to live coverage of the Israeli athletes taken hostage. Through this lens, September 5 provides an important perspective on the live broadcast seen globally by millions of people at the time. At the heart of the story is Geoff (John Magaro), a young and ambitious producer striving to prove himself to his boss, the legendary TV executive Roone Arledge (Peter Sarsgaard). Together with German interpreter Marianne (Leonie Benesch) and his mentor Marvin Bader (Ben Chaplin), the story focuses on the intricate details of the high-tech broadcast capabilities of the time, juxtaposed against the many lives at stake and themoral decisions that needed to be made against an impossible ticking clock.

Ready? Let’s go!

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“Nosferatu” (2024) – Wouldst thou like to live vampirically?


“Dream of me. Only of me.”

Story: Ellen, a young girl, despondent and longing for connection, begs the universe for a companion. The universe answers. “Years later”, newlyweds Thomas and Ellen are starting their lives together. But first Thomas must act as executor to a property sale, traveling from Germany to the Carpathian mountains to visit Count Dracula Orlok, the purchaser of a castle near the lovebirds. But the arrival of the Count – along with the disappearance of Thomas – is a harbinger of bad news for not only Ellen, but the citizens of her town. Coincidence? I think not.

Genre I’d put it in: Beautifully Eerie Horror Remakes
Release Date: 2024
Remake, Sequel, Based-On, or Original: Remake of the 1922 silent film of the same name. Both are “based” on the book Dracula by Bram Stoker.

Gotta say: Robert Eggers does it again; he takes a story, injects a gothic aesthetic that is at once classical and modern, and delivers a chilling film. Fans of the director will find much to love here, and fans of the original silent film will be pleasantly surprised at how well this remake builds upon the classic tale.

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Festive Flicks – “Our Little Secret”

“Are you eating random pocket candy?” [WHO ARE YOU TO JUDGE ME? Oh wait. This is movie dialogue, not an attack. Sorry.]

Genre: Not-So-Secret Exes Holidayness
Release Date: 2024
New Holiday Spirit or Ghost of Christmas Past?: Hey girl – new Lindsay movie!
Where I Watched: Netflix

Synopsis: Avery and Logan grew up together. Childhood friends, teen sweethearts, and then Avery takes a job in London, and moves away after an awkward goodbye between the two. Cut to ten years later, and Avery is back in country, spending the holidays with new boyfriend Cameron. Logan is heading to his girlfriend Cassie’s house…and guess what? You’ll never guess who Logan’s girlfriend’s brother’s girlfriend is. Never. Ever. Wait. You guessed? Dammit.

Worth the Eggnog?: Honey, check out this cast list. Miss Lindsay. Kristin Chenoweth. Tim Meadows. Ian Harding. Judy Reyes. And a pop-in by Chris Parnell. Of course this movie is self-aware, and works this silly boilerplate comedy of manners for all it’s worth. And while yeah, this movie’s plot beats shout at you at least twenty minutes in advance every time? This cast is worth giving this a stream.

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Columbia Screening Pass-palooza – “Mufasa: The Lion King”!

Ready to get “live” actioned? Synopsis!

“Mufasa: The Lion King” enlists Rafiki to relay the legend of the unlikely rise of the beloved king of the Pride Lands, introducing an orphaned cub called Mufasa, a sympathetic lion named Taka—the heir to a royal bloodline—and their expansive journey alongside an extraordinary group of misfits.

Ready? Let’s go!

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“28 Years Later” drops it’s first trailer, and I need this movie RIGHT NOW

Men—men—men—men—men go mad with watchin’ em/An’ there’s no discharge in the war!

I’ll admit it. I had my doubts that Danny Boyle’s third foray into a UK plagued by the Rage Virus would be the same kind of nail biter as the first two. But y’all. Y’ALL. Give me this movie. Give it to me right into my brainparts immediately. Respectfully. Whoever made this excellent “tells us a lot without spoiling a thing” trailer is not paid nearly enough. And damn Boyle, you got me. You have me, heart and soul.

Apparently, this is just the third installment – a fourth, called 28 Years Later Part 2: The Bone Temple will be coming soon. Meanwhile, there’s so much to unpack with this trailer. Is Jim dead? What happened to the UK after the outbreak reappeared at the end of 28 Weeks? Will I be able to hang in until this film’s next summer’s release date?

This cast looks packed and stacked, especially in the back. And Cillian Murphy is in there so who knows what’s in store? Not me. I want to, though. Keep these mysterious trailers coming, and keep us clueless. Please.

28 Years Later comes to us June 20th, 2025.

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Baltimore Screening Pass-palooza – “A Complete Unknown”!

Ready to check out a little Bob Dylan? AGAIN? Synopsis!

Timothée Chalamet stars and sings as Bob Dylan in James Mangold’s A COMPLETE UNKNOWN, the electric true story behind the rise of one of the most iconic singer-songwriters in history.

Ready? Let’s go!

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Award Season – Washington Area Film Critics Association shares their 2024 nominees!

It’s been a busy, BUSY week, but we pulled through. And WAFCA has our list of nominees for the 2024 film season. So very many excellent films this year, we were spoiled for choice.

The Brutalist, Conclave, and Wicked lead the pack, though I’m pleased to see several of my personal faves getting nominations. Looking at you, Anora, Dune: Part Two, Nosferatu, and Will and Harper.

Official 411 after the jump. Congratulations to all of the nominees!

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