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IR Film Review: THE POPE’S EXORCIST [Screen Gems]
The context of an exorcism movie always paints back to the initial vision of "The Exorcist" which has its own mythology. The reason "The Pope's Exorcist" works on many levels is because it takes the existing history of the church and of Europe into the equation anchored by a solid and engaging performance by Russell Crowe.
IR Film Review: RENFIELD [Universal]
The modern connotation of "Dracula" is bathed in mythos but ultimately the reference is correlated to Vlad The Impaler. With "Renfield", the texture is more integrated into the self help wokeness that would never even have entered the lexicon years ago.
IR Film Review: THE SUPER MARIO BROTHERS MOVIE [Nintendo/Illumination/Universal]
With nostalgia the basis always begins with where the idea of the connection began. An interesting illustration of the Super Mario craze is that it stretches over generations which is both good and bad because there are many different interpretations. This partly explains why "The Super Mario Brothers Movie" is all over the place.
IR Film Review: AIR [Amazon]
"AIR" as a movie is a specific exercise in a way but the reason it works is because the people making it have a certain freedom without being exploitative. It is a very specific story told with good actors in an almost compacted space with a sense of scale.
IR Film Review: DUNGEONS & DRAGONS - HONOR AMONG THIEVES [Paramount]
The context of "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" is an ode on loss wrapped in an element of fantasy. The movie is wonderfully cast and has a light tone that is very hard to walk in this type of genre.
IR Film Review: JOHN WICK - CHAPTER 4 [Lionsgate]
The tenaciousness of John Wick has turned into something ethereal, less realistic in any sense and more the aspect of myth in his path of nilistic existence. With "John Wick: Chapter 4", the ampage continues to build but like samurais of old, using certain contemplations and ideas of what can be to make the world spin.
IR Film Review: SHAZAM! - FURY OF THE GODS [Warner Brothers]
For a sequel that seemingly wasn't sure of the tone of the original, "Shazam! - Fury Of The Gods" as an overall approach is a hit-and-miss proposition. While the themes work, most of the narrative structure and progression is a bit muddled and messy.
IR Film Review: BOSTON STRANGLER [Hulu]
The story of the Boston Strangler is a story that is at the fringes of American consciousness but a term still people recognize. Like "She Said" last fall with different focal points, similar pedigree but an underlying similarity, "Boston Strangler", premiering on Hulu, follows two real life women battling against perception, motivation and masculine mansplaining as they pursue the truth.
IR Film Review: OPERATION FORTUNE - RUSE DE GUERRE [Lionsgate]
The context of a would be heist/spy thriller all reflects in the tone of a film. Guy Ritchie has always been great at balancing the aspect of bug budget with scrappy independent-feel pieces. With "Operation Fortune - Ruse De Guerre", he finds the best balance so far because the approach is both humorous, dynamic, fun and doesn't take itself too seriously.