Storytelling
What Went Wrong with Bad Times at the El Royale?
This caper flick wants you to believe it’s full of twists and turns… but it’s frustatingly empty.
Storytelling
Why Damien Chazelle’s First Man Feels So Empty
Why, despite some stellar filmmaking, does First Man fail to satisfy?
Storytelling
5 Reasons Why The Spy Who Dumped Me Deserves to Become a Franchise
The Spy Who Dumped Me feels more like a TV pilot than a fully-formed movie — and that’s not a bad thing.
Armchair Sociology
The Hidden Message in Disney’s Christopher Robin
Disney’s Christopher Robin may seem like a simple feel-good fable, but there’s a more interesting message under the surface.
Storytelling
What’s the Mission: Impossible Franchise Really About?
Ethan Hunt is surprisingly bland for a lead character, but what really holds Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible franchise together are its recurring themes.
Storytelling
25 Reactions to Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again from a Guy Who Never Saw the Original
We could do worse than an extended cinematic universe of ABBA musicals.
Storytelling
6 Ways to Interpret Skyscraper as Dwayne Johnson’s Defining Movie
The missing ingredients in Skyscraper accidentally define Dwayne Johnson’s true appeal.
Armchair Sociology
Why We Replaced Heroes with Antiheroes
From Superman to Iron Man, the difference between a hero and an antihero was always clear.. until now. Here’s what changed, and why it matters.
Storytelling
Why Ant-Man and the Wasp Is a Movie About Nothing
Ant-Man and the Wasp has a plot built entirely out of MacGuffins and a villain who finally breaks Marvel’s mold.
Storytelling
8 Reasons Why Ocean’s 8 Is the Perfect Feel-Good Heist Movie
From the humor to the pacing, Ocean’s 8 works in a way that provides a template for other heist movies to follow.