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(02/12/20 1:46am)
The romantic comedy, while far from the most prestigious genre of film, is certainly one of the most culturally important. Movies in this genre may be called disparaging names such as “chick flicks,” scoffed at by the greater world of cinema, and ignored at every award ceremony ever made, but they are talked about decade after decade. However, among these comedies, one film stands out as the pinnacle of the rom–com, the paragon of everything that these movies are about: Bridget Jones’ Diary.
(02/17/20 6:30am)
"Hello, my name is Joe Pera." That's how every episode of Joe Pera Talks With You begins, followed by Pera's explanation of some acute topic in a clear, simple manner, delivered in the calm, steady tone of a Mister Rogers–incarnate. Each episode runs around 11 minutes long, airing on Adult Swim, and channels a child–like innocence with an edge of comedy that feels almost accidental, like when your teacher says "fuck."
(02/07/20 10:17pm)
Greener Grass, just recently released on Hulu, opens to classical music playing on a field nestled within the heart of Suburbia. The setting is familiar. We've all seen the trope of perfectly WASP–y, pristine, entirely constructed environments filled with entirely fake people. Here, a melodramatic spectacle is made of a children’s soccer game. A child yawns, a boy bumps into him, and then he collapses onto the ground, hyperventilating and crying for his mother.
(02/05/20 4:43am)
The Taylor Swift of Lana Wilson's new Netflix documentary, Miss Americana is alone—a surprising qualifier for someone whose reputation is at least partially built on her friends and ex–lovers. Wilson documents Swift as the hero of own life story, leaving everyone else around the star to the periphery. Nearly every frame of footage is filled with Taylor Swift.
(02/03/20 4:47pm)
The Turning could have been a perfectly fine movie. Perhaps it was destined to be a B–list horror flick with nothing new to say, a silly plot with a vaguely interesting premise, a promising setting (you can never go wrong with a haunted Victorian mansion), a pair of creepy kids, and some ominous spiders appearing out of nowhere. Yet, despite its decidedly okay production, it fumbles its way from alright into actively bad, leaving its audience with little more than angry grumbles.
(02/03/20 4:32pm)
Awkwafina and her comedic acting are some of the best parts of Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens, though the rest of the cast is equally talented, such as her grandma, played by Lori Tan Chinn (Orange is the New Black’s Mei Chang). She steals the show during all of her scenes as a clever and funny matriarch. In the second episode, she gives a big, dramatic speech to convince Nora to come to Atlantic City, crying about her friend's broken hip to eventually guilt Nora into going. "Okay, see you downstairs!" she says. "Don't embarrass me."
(02/04/20 2:07am)
Many may recognize Aidy Bryant from her role as a cast member on Saturday Night Live, but in Shrill, a Hulu original series, her talents are put to use, navigating between difficult topics and outrageous comedy.
(02/01/20 4:54pm)
Another year, another semester of putting off assignments with Netflix. And if there's a cause Film & TV can get behind, it's procrastination. Check out what we watched this past month, covering everything from an Oscar–nominated drama to an absurdist cop procedural.
(02/02/20 11:10pm)
A decade after the teen comedy's initial release in 2004, Mean Girls became a cult classic. Undying classic quotes such as “On Wednesdays, we wear pink,” “You go, Glen Coco!” “You can’t sit with us,” and “She doesn’t even go here!” are just a minor indication of how important Mean Girls is to modern culture. The film marked the debut of actress Amanda Seyfried, affirmed Lindsay Lohan as the teen icon that she is, and became many young people's first introduction to comedians Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. It would be very hard to deny just how iconic Mean Girls is and to not be surprised at its subsequent press—including a direct–to–TV sequel, a musical adaptation, and now, a film adaptation of the musical.
(01/27/20 10:15pm)
Guy Ritchie has returned to his roots. After his slightly peculiar live–action remake of Aladdin, it was unclear if the director would go back to his classic, comedic, fast–paced style of film as aptly displayed in the Sherlock Holmes duology or the funny spy action thriller The Man from U.N.C.L.E. Within the first five minutes of Ritchie’s latest film, The Gentlemen, it becomes clear that this is Ritchie back in his old groove—almost immediately, a character calls another a “deluded shit–eating cunt,” threatens to physically harm him, and then shares a drink in his living room.
(01/22/20 12:06am)
I read Little Women for the first time in sixth grade, climbing to the top of my bunk bed every night armed with the four–inch–thick novel in one hand and a book light in the other. The story of a Civil War–era family of four daughters was one I soon grew infatuated with. So when its latest film adaptation by Greta Gerwig came out, I ran to see it.
(11/27/19 3:06am)
Ford v. Ferrari is not just a racing movie. Yes, it has to do with racing—the first act is primarily about assembling a race car, its two main characters are well–known figures within the racing world, and the majority of the runtime is spent either on the track or in the workshop. But you don't have to know precisely what an RPM is, how races work, or what even goes into the construction of a race car to understand the movie.
(11/21/19 8:42am)
If The Walt Disney Company had not already solidified itself as one of the most influential and culturally relevant media companies of all time, the buzz surrounding its streaming service, Disney+, has made us sure. Just a day after its release, they boasted over 10 million subscribers, and that number is only growing. The response to this new service, and the hundreds of movies and TV shows it contains, has been widespread and positive at every turn.
(12/02/19 1:10am)
After the chaos that followed the appearance of Tupac's hologram at a 2012 Coachella performance, it should come as no surprise that the public has strong feelings about "resurrecting" deceased artists. Tupac’s image cost at least $100,000 and was mostly made up of archive footage artfully edited together, and since then the question of giving other deceased people the same computer–generated treatment has been buzzing in the back of people’s minds. This moment with Tupac’s hologram and Snoop Dogg interacting on–stage marked a terrifying advancement of technology: We can’t ensure that the dead actually stay dead.
(11/11/19 10:43pm)
Perhaps following up Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining is an impossible task. Kubrick’s 1980 classic is considered one of his best films, if not his magnum opus, and has spawned great discussion since its release. Such detail–focused examination is showcased most famously in the documentary Room 237. The Shining is not just an important aspect of film canon—it is an icon, a constantly referenced piece of work, and a culmination of an amazing director’s talents in one of the best horror movies of all time.
(11/07/19 2:01am)
The Lighthouse is a hard film to watch and an even harder one to explain. Its premise is that Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe are stranded on an island together for four weeks, and clearly they're beginning to go insane. There's a female siren, who shouts in a terrifying half–song, half–scream, a seagull who attempts to make Robert Pattinson’s existence a living hell, and an incessant humming noise from the lighthouse that seems to be driving each character mad. Director Robert Eggers, who previously gained critical acclaim for his breakout film The Witch in 2016, has crafted this film in black–and–white and an oppressive 1.19 by 1 aspect ratio. There's also the glaring, holy light of the lighthouse, omniscient and pseudo–religious. Suffice it to say, The Lighthouse is a very strange film, but certainly an interesting one.
(11/04/19 8:34am)
The King, on all accounts, should be a home run—it has Timothée Chalamet, Robert Pattinson, men rolling around in the mud, and it’s released on Netflix, meaning its mass of Twitter fans can watch it right from their bedroom, free of charge. The film initially gained traction when its trailer was released and people drooled over Timothée Chalamet’s dirt–stained face and messy hairstyle. Even within hours of its release, people were already talking about Robert Pattinson and his weird accent. Yet, despite the fact that The King seemed primed for success, it fumbled with a boring plot, peculiar pacing, and some uninspired performances.
(11/06/19 2:31am)
It comes as no surprise that the era of female superheroes is upon us. As Marvel has gained mainstream and critical attention with the massive productions of Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame, it's become clear that this specific genre of superhero movie cannot escape from popular media trends. This year’s Captain Marvel, starring Academy–Award winning Brie Larson, confirmed Marvel’s desire to follow the popular trope of the girlboss: a woman who breaks glass ceilings and stands up for herself.
(10/23/19 3:05am)
The Philadelphia Film Festival opened Oct. 17 at the Philadelphia Film Center and will continue through Oct. 27, showing over 120 movies ranging from locally–produced films to bona fide Oscar contenders.
(10/07/19 7:08pm)
You’ve probably heard something about Joker, the 2019 origin story of Batman’s famous arch–nemesis. Before it was even released, it already saw a handful of scandals, including its lead actor, Academy Award–nominated Joaquin Phoenix, reportedly walking out on set and cussing out his cinematographer, its director Todd Phillips insisting that he couldn’t make his Hangover series today because of “woke culture”, and a few audience concerns over a repeat of the Aurora shooting in 2012, which took place at a screening of The Dark Knight Rises. However, all of these stories and the criticisms that have followed them are not based on the actual content of the film—only the media circus surrounding it. What, then, is Joker actually about? Does it warrant all this criticism?
