Movies, Film, and Chili

Wildwood is a stopmotion animated film that combines 3D printing, claymation, puppetry, and CGI for water and other digital effects. Directed by Travis Knight , best known for Kubo and the Two Strings , which earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature, this film showcases just how far hybrid animation can go. The animation is off the charts, bringing together the best of traditional stopmotion craftsmanship and modern digital techniques. Every frame feels carefully constructed, and the visual presentation is easily the film's greatest strength. Carey Mulligan , known for Promising Young Woman and Drive , brings the sympathetic villain trope to life. Her performance is convincing enough that I had difficulty recognizing her natural speaking voice, which is a compliment. She completely immerses herself in the character, making the villain feel like someone with understandable motivations rather than just another obstacle for the protagonist. That kind of transform...

Fjord is written and directed by Cristian Mungiu , best known for 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days and Graduation , and features Sebastian Stan and Renate Reinsve . This film is about a lot of things, but at its core, it follows a family trying to get their children back after they are wrongfully taken by child protective services. Along the way, the story explores faith, religious persecution, cultural differences, resistance to change, and the importance of community. There are plenty of political interpretations that viewers can take from the film, but I think Mungiu does something more interesting than simply taking one side or the other. The film can be interpreted as pro-immigration and pro-LGB, while also being pro-Christian and supportive of traditional family values. Rather than forcing the story into one ideological corner, Mungiu allows these ideas to coexist, creating a film that encourages viewers to consider perspectives they might otherwise dismiss. I appreciate that ap...

Clayface is a body horror movie set in James Gunn's DC Universe, and it ended up being a pleasant surprise for me. I grew up watching Batman: The Animated Series on Saturday mornings, so I remember Clayface and his strange, monster-like appearance. I had no idea going in that this movie would draw inspiration from the show, which made that connection all the more enjoyable. The animated series leaned more into noir, while this film feels closer to Joker mixed with the body horror of David Cronenberg . Director James Watkins , best known for Speak No Evil , brings that same unsettling energy and deliberate direction to this film. He also makes the smart choice of keeping the camera on his actors long enough for their performances to do the work, specifically Naomi Ackie and Tom Rhys Harries . Tom Rhys Harries gets the benefit of that approach, with the camera giving him room to carry his scenes without constantly cutting away. That decision suits the movie's more intimate...

Regression is a thriller written and directed by Alejandro Amenábar , best known for The Others and Vanilla Sky . Although Amenábar has not been particularly active in recent years, he demonstrates that he still knows how to direct an interesting film. The story follows a detective investigating a woman's past and her claims of involvement with a satanic cult. There is an intriguing mystery at the center of the film, and the direction helps maintain some interest even when the pacing slows down. Unfortunately, the performances from some of the supporting cast take away from the experience rather than adding to it. Ethan Hawke , known for films like Training Day and Sinister , plays the detective investigating the case. He does the best he can with the material, but his chemistry with the rest of the cast is inconsistent. Hawke is a capable actor, and he gives the investigation enough weight to keep the story moving, but the performances around him make it harder to become fully...

Hell House LLC is written and directed by Stephen Cognetti , and it has just about everything you would expect from a found footage horror movie. It takes far too long to get to the horror. There are long, drawn out scenes dedicated to character building, but the cast is so large that it becomes difficult to tell most of the characters apart. It also feels strange that nearly thirty minutes pass before another female character gets much attention, leaving the cast feeling unbalanced. The dialogue often comes across as improvised, as if  Cognetti simply told the actors to hang out and banter until something scary happened. The biggest problem with the first half is how little actually happens. The characters spend so much time talking that the movie starts to feel like a home video of friends preparing for a haunted house attraction rather than a horror film. Some of the dialogue is downright cringe worthy, especially when one of the guys repeatedly asks a female character to go t...

Whalefall is a suspense drama written and directed by Brian Duffield , known for directing Spontaneous and No One Will Save You . The film brings Austin Abrams and Josh Brolin together again after Weapons , this time in a story that combines a strained father-son relationship with a claustrophobic survival thriller. The movie does a good job balancing flashbacks with the increasingly terrifying situation in the present. There are some genuinely tense moments that make you feel trapped alongside the main character, and the flashbacks give the story some much-needed breathing room. Austin Abrams , who has had a great run with Weapons last year and Resident Evil this year, is quickly becoming one of Hollywood's go to leading men. He does a great job carrying the film, balancing the physical demands of the survival story with the emotional baggage his character brings into it. He has a natural screen presence that makes him easy to root for, and this is another strong performance...

The Lazarus Effect is a film I never got around to watching when it was released in 2015 so seeing it eleven years later certainly makes for an interesting experience. Directed by David Gelb , best known for the documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi , the film tries to blend scientific experimentation with supernatural horror. Unfortunately, it spends far too much time explaining the science behind its premise and not nearly enough time making any of it frightening. There is an interesting concept buried underneath all the exposition, but the movie seems more concerned with explaining how everything works than actually scaring its audience. Olivia Wilde , known for Tron: Legacy and House , is probably the film's biggest asset, though not necessarily because of her acting. She has a screen presence that keeps the movie interesting whenever she is around, and the direction wisely seems to understand that she is more effective on screen than some of her costars. Unfortunately, the film d...