“The Peanut Butter Falcon” Film Review: Easy Livin’ with a Hard Life

The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019) is an adventure comedy-drama from filmmakers Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz. It stars Zack Gottsagen, Shia LaBeouf, and Dakota Johnson in a heartwarming tale of a young man with Down Syndrome who teams up with his caretaker and an outlaw on the run for a cross-country journey to fulfill his dream of becoming a pro wrestler. It’s been described as a modern-day Huckleberry Finn retelling and one of the sweetest films of the decade, with rave reviews coming out of SXSW Fest and a surprise wide release this month. What has made this little tale such a runaway success?

Belated Film Review Round-Up: “The Souvenir”, “Yesterday”, “Wild Rose”

As is often the case these days, I am unable to see every new release in theaters and am forced to wait until they are available on VOD or streaming to catch up on the year’s best films. It’s an unfortunate byproduct of living outside of New York or Los Angeles (and not having infinite money to spend on movie tickets week after week!). But when I do finally catch up on these films, I still want to share my thoughts on them and debrief on the experience I went through watching them. So I have compiled a group of mini-reviews for films I’ve caught up on recently for your enjoyment. Enjoy my thoughts on The Souvenir, Yesterday, and Wild Rose!

Trailer Reactions: “Little Women”, “A Hidden Life”, “Parasite”, “Dolemite Is My Name”, “1917”, “Last Christmas”

As we inch ever closer to the fall season when all the best movies of the year typically release, new movie trailers are dropping like it’s hot! Which of the new trailers from the past week or so have me the most hyped? Which are looking more and more like Oscar contenders as time goes on? Let’s dig in!

2020 Oscar Contender Profiles (Part 2)

Welcome to Part 2/2 of my 92nd Academy Awards contenders analysis! With so many Oscar contenders being announced for release and festivals releasing their lineups, the awards race is starting to take shape and contenders are gearing up for battle. What are my predictions for how well each film will perform at the Oscars next year?

2020 Oscar Contender Profiles (Part 1)

As of today, we are exactly six months away from the 92nd Oscars and many of the top contenders have yet to be released. However, with most of the major festival lineups being announced and the awards race narratives taking shape, we are starting to get a vague picture of what awards season will look like. In this two-part series, I will be looking at most (if not all) of the top contenders in major categories, in no particular order, and gauging their chances at the upcoming Academy Awards. Let’s dive in!

Top 20 Films of the Decade (2000’s)

2019 marks the final year of the decade, and despite nearly half a year’s worth of films yet to be released, major film publications have already begun releasing their “Best Films of the Decade” lists. I will certainly be doing so myself when the time comes, but until then, why don’t we go back a decade and re-examine the decade prior, the turn of the century, with the benefit of another 10 years of hindsight to aid our rankings? Here are my favorite films released from 2000 to 2009!