Category: Black Comedy
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The Roses Review: A C*ck and a C*nt
THE ROSES (2025) Love and hate are flip sides of the same coin they say. The “they” being married people. Marriage is an inspiring idea, and when it works, which it very much does for Ivy and Theo (Olivia Colman and Benedict Cumberbatch) and their two adorable children, it’s balanced by laughter, reciprocity and mutual…
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Eddington Review: Smurf Village from Hell
EDDINGTON (2025) There is a lot going on in director Ari Aster’s Eddington. It’s namesake is a small town in New Mexico and stage for a new age western hurtling us back in time to 2020. Halfway into its 2 hour and 28 minute runtime, I started to see it as an adult, bizarro version…
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Mickey 17 Review: Messy Mickey
MICKEY 17 (2025) Director/writer Bong Joon Ho – The Host (2006), Snowpiercer (2013), Parasite (2019) – has released his first film post-Oscar Best Picture win; and while class conflict and wealth disparity were front and centre for Parasite, new offering Mickey 17 adds a story of space colonization and printable/disposable humans to his provocative repertoire. First…
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The Parenting Review: Motherfockers, it’s not bad
THE PARENTING (2025) I went into The Parenting with low expectations. I thought it to be a Gen-Z horror-comedy with an aim to skewer boomers by way of the recognizable cast (Brian Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Edie Falco, Dean Norris, Parker Posey), with not one among them that immediately “screams” hilarity. And so my hopes were…
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Companion Review: She’s a doll
COMPANION (2025) If you’ve seen the poster and considered the title, you can surmise the genre and baseline plot of this movie. You guessed it, our main character is a sexbot, played with lovely, “bring her home to mom” sensibilities by Sophie Thatcher, who is making some excellent choices, e.g. Heritic (2024), MaXXine (2024) and…
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Nosferatu Review: Nailed it
NOSFERATU (2024) Robert Eggers is one of the greatest and most interesting directors working today. His track record speaks for itself: The Witch (2015), The Lighthouse (2019) and The Northman (2022). Needless to say, I was very excited to see his obsessively detailed reimagining of FW Murnau’s silent film Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror (1922),…
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The Promised Land Review: Move over moors
THE PROMISED LAND (2023) Are you comforted by a faith in order, manmade or otherwise? Or do you see the chaos, with its fortune and fortitude at play as we plan, react and fumble with survival, and where success has no definition? For those in The Promised Land, an historical drama set on the once…
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A Real Pain Review: Somber Succession
A REAL PAIN (2024) Last night Kieran Culkin was awarded his second Golden Globe for best supporting actor in his first movie category nomination for his performance in A Real Pain, a film written and directed by Jesse Eisenberg (who also co-stars). I don’t disagree at all. Culkin is phenomenal here. Now, after watching a…
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Nightbitch Review: Bitch, please!
NIGHTBITCH (2024) In tandem with the obligatory sex education videos that outline the mechanics of conception played in front us in elementary school, I recommend Nightbitch be viewed by all parties ready to yield the fruits of its base intention, as its visceral purpose is magical, transformative, brutal and, for the strongest among us, hilarious. It…
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Heretic review: O come, all ye faithful
HERETIC (2024) Rarely does a film toe the line between psychological thriller and religious critique, while being billed as an outright horror, succeed in all departments. Even more rare is an aging rom-com star subtly playing such a convincing menace. The second act of Hugh Grant’s career continues to impress, with his insistence on playing…
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Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Review: Ensemble Ensemble
BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE (2024) First off, I must note that I am not the biggest Tim Burton fan. I like my scary to be scary and free from whimsical Danny Elfman soundtracks telling me it’s all going to be okay. As a child I actually preferred the Beetlejuice cartoon to the movie, because, well hell, each…