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28 Jul

Sugar Daddy, Midge, Allan and the Barbie Movie Dolls That Were Once Discontinued By Mattel

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This Barbie article contains spoilers. We’re looking at cinema through a pair of pink-tinted glasses because Greta Gerwig’s Barbie is everywhere right now. The Margot Robbie-led caper is defying all expectations and looks poised to kickstart a Mattel Cinematic Universe that includes an upcoming Barney movie with Daniel Kaluuya.  This is far from the first Barbie movie we’ve had, but as well as being the first live-action outing, its meta take on the IP is grabbing headlines. With some 64 years of Barbie history to pull from, the script has gotten away with weaving in some of the toy line’s…

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28 Jul

Summer Is Actually the Scariest Time of the Year For Horror Movies

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With all the hoopla, excitement, and massive box office last week due to the combined cinematic juggernaut known as Barbenheimer, it would not be remiss on the part of audiences if they completely ignored another new movie that opened the same weekend: a horror film called Cobweb from Lionsgate Films. The movie was released on less than 2,000 screens (the exact number is hard to find), and the box office did not even register enough to land the movie in the week’s Top 10. Cobweb did generate some good reviews, though, albeit not enough to create any kind of buzz…

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28 Jul

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem – Ice Cube Calls Superfly “Most Gorgeous Creature Ever”

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This article is presented by Paramount Pictures. The Ninja Turtles aren’t the only mutants in New York City. (The film is called Mutant Mayhem, after all.) Superfly is the leader of a group of mutants that have experienced firsthand what human beings think of their kind… And he isn’t happy about it. He’s so unhappy that, if humans are never going to accept mutants, Mutants will rule the Earth. This of course will put him in conflict with the Turtles, who have very different feelings about human beings. Superfly also appears to be a fan of rap music, with him…

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27 Jul

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem – Ayo Edebiri on the “Unforgettable Experience” of Playing April O’Neil

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This article is presented by Paramount Pictures. If the Ninja Turtles are out on the town, you can bet that reporter April O’Neil isn’t far behind and she’s ready to get in on the action. Mutant Mayhem’s incarnation of April is a younger version of the classic character who is one of the first humans to closely interact with the mutant teenagers. The Turtles are apprehensive but April surprises them with her acceptance of their differences. In a way, she helps them come out of their shells. April also helps the teens realize how important it is to just be…

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27 Jul

Barbenheimer: Barbie and Oppenheimer Are Two Sides of the Same American Story

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This article contains some mild Barbie and Oppenheimer spoilers. The Barbenheimer has landed! And it has been fun, hasn’t it? Going to the cinema and seeing people walking the streets in neon pink outfits! Scrolling through the memes! Arguing over the merits of different viewing orders (we actually got a Wikipedia mention over our contribution to that debate). The whole project has been a mix of nuclear-age aesthetics, feminist discourse, and the kind of publicity-tour drama that we haven’t seen since Don’t Worry Darling. Sure, the whole thing soured a bit once certain politicians tried to get in on the…

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27 Jul

Haunted Mansion Review: Disney Tries to Break Theme Park Ride Movie Curse

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Disney’s interest in making films based on its theme park attractions stretches back to 1997 and the now-forgotten Wonderful World of Disney TV movie, Tower of Terror. Since then offerings like Jungle Cruise, Tomorrowland, and of course the one time it worked, the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, have all made it to the screen with varying degrees of success. And with each outing, filmmakers have tried to impose traditional narratives on experiences that are more sensory and immersive than story-driven. Still, one of the most enduring attractions at many of the Disney parks, the Haunted Mansion, would seem to…

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26 Jul

DC Arrowverse Creator Has Some Opinions on How to Fix Marvel

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“Kevin Feige, you have failed this cinematic universe.” Okay, Arrowverse co-creator Marc Guggenheim didn’t put it quite like that, but he does has some pretty strong advice for the head of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. “There’s just too much content,” Guggenheim said on The Aarthi & Sriram Show. “If I was suddenly in Kevin Feige’s role, basically I would do what [Disney President Bob] Iger was saying, which is prune the tree,” Guggenheim explained. “You know, there’s just too much content. I’m like the biggest Marvel nerd ever, and I haven’t seen Moon Knight. I just can’t keep up.” Opinions…

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26 Jul

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem’s Brady Noon Calls His Raphael a “Hothead with a Lot of Heart”

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This article is presented by Paramount Pictures. Master Splinter tells Raphael that he has “bravery,” which is a positive spin on Raph’s declaration that he “dreams of fighting every night.” He’s got a rage problem but sometimes you need a little of that in the family. Raphael is the big brother of the Turtles and very loyal to all of them, even if his aggression gets in the way sometimes. As the original theme song says, he’s cool but crude. Despite that his good heart shines through. Raph wants to experience life as a human, imagining what it might be…

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26 Jul

Calling Barbie ‘Anti-Male’ Is Ridiculous

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This article contains Barbie spoilers. Over the weekend, Ben Shapiro, a conservative media personality and perpetual online attention-seeker, likely made the kind of splash he was looking for when he scowled in a photo standing next to a Barbie poster. Clad head-to-toe in black, which either by coincidence or design resembled Ryan Gosling’s Ken at his most whiny in the movie, the conservative firebrand lamented to the world that his producers “dragged me” to Barbie. And he hated it so much, he felt compelled to make a 43-minute video screed that included him decrying that the film says, “The only…

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25 Jul

The Exorcist: Believer May Be Changing a Big Part of Franchise Lore

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Whether you saw The Exorcist: Believer trailer over the weekend in the previews before Oppenheimer, or you’re seeing it for the first time today as it’s released online, an impressive amount of callbacks, big and small, to the original 1973 masterpiece is there to greet you like the scarred lettering on Regan MacNeil’s tummy. There’s Ellen Burstyn, of course, finally returning for one of these demonic flicks for the first time in 50 years (and after she passed on John Boorman’s Exorcist II: The Heretic). But there’s also the way she’s greeted by one of the demonic girls in the…

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25 Jul

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem – Nicolas Cantu on Taking Charge as Leonardo

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This article is presented by Paramount Pictures. The original 1980s Ninja Turtles cartoon intro song described Leonardo quite simply as “Leonardo leads” and Mutant Mayhem is ready to expand on that. In the new film, the Turtles’ father Splinter tells Leonardo that he has “honor.” He does his best to keep the others out of trouble but is still a teenager after all, which means his role as leader comes with a lot of anxiety. Out of all the Turtles, Leonardo is the most okay with living in the sewer until he meets reporter April and discovers his desire to…

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25 Jul

Oppenheimer Is the Movie Christopher Nolan’s Whole Career Has Been Building To

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This article contains Oppenheimer spoilers. The first line of dialogue spoken by Leonardo DiCaprio during Inception compares the stuff of dreams and aspirations to the spoils of rot and decay. “What is the most resilient parasite?” DiCaprio’s Cobb asks. “A bacteria? A virus? An intestinal worm? [It’s] an idea; resilient; highly contagious; and once an idea has taken hold in the brain, it’s almost impossible to eradicate.” In the 13 years since that film’s release, Inception has become widely viewed as a manifesto for its writer and director, Christopher Nolan. Here is a cinematic spectacle structured around the literal concept…

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24 Jul

They Cloned Tyrone Crowns John Boyega as a True Sci-Fi King

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At first glance, They Cloned Tyrone seems to find John Boyega on well-trodden ground. For the first 20 minutes of the Netflix release, Boyega’s face never changes from a hardened scowl as his character Fontaine goes through his day. Fontaine’s actions will seem familiar to anyone who’s heard an “urban” narrative, as Hollywood once often called them; Tyrone buys a 40 and some scratch-offs, he beats up a competitor on his corner, and he threatens a pimp who owes him money.  More than the generic constraints of Fontaine’s day, however, viewers may recognize elements of Boyega’s breakout character from more…

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24 Jul

Oppenheimer: 11 More Movies to Watch About the Bomb and the Cold War

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Films about the end of the world are nothing new. But films about the real end of the world–the moments in human history that seem to have put us on an inevitable path toward our own self-destruction–are less frequent. In the 1950s, as the Cold War took hold and the threat of nuclear war escalated, most of the films that came out dealt with it in terms of metaphor, usually sci-fi ones, like giant irradiated lizards and insects standing in for hydrogen bombs. Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer addresses one of those moments in history head-on, giving us not just a glimpse…

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24 Jul

Who Was Florence Pugh’s Oppenheimer Character Jean Tatlock in Real Life?

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This article has Oppenheimer spoilers. At a whopping three hours and with a massively starry ensemble cast, Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer covers a lot of ground. The largest area of ground possible, in a way, since it charts the birth of humanity’s ability to completely wipe itself out. So it’s understandable why some of Oppenheimer’s real life characters don’t get the chance to be as filled out as they could be. One notable example is Jean Tatlock, brought to vibrant life by Florence Pugh. Tatlock is a communist Oppenheimer meets at a party, and who becomes his lover. Later Oppenheimer marries…

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24 Jul

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem – Shamon Brown Jr.’s Michelangelo Is a “Party Dude”

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This article is presented by Paramount Pictures. Michelangelo is a party dude and that’s been a core part of the character since the beginning of Turtles in animation. Mutant Mayhem is ready to expand on this, with Master Splinter declaring that Mikey has “heart.” Mikey’s the youngest brother of the four Turtles, and even though they all love pizza, Mikey has them beat in his devotion to it. He’s the fun spirit of the team and is always ready to look on the bright side of things. Still, when push comes to shove he’s ready to defend his brothers. He…

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24 Jul

Barbie and Oppenheimer Box Office Numbers Prove Audiences Want New Kinds of Movies

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As Barbie and Oppenheimer looked on their collective good works, the pair must have sighed, “Now I Am Become Barbenheimer, the destroyer of industry excuses and conventional thinking.” That is certainly what it feels like the Monday morning after what was the most significant weekend of the year at the domestic box office. The twin releases of Greta Gerwig’s Barbie and Christopher Nolan‘s Oppenheimer, two films likely pitted against each other because one studio was mad at the other for partnering with Nolan, has turned out to be the most consequential and illuminating example of how much the ground beneath…

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23 Jul

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle: Mutant Mayhem’s Micah Abbey on Playing “Genius Smart” Donatello

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This article is presented by Paramount Pictures. Donatello’s the brain of the four Turtle brothers. A genius with a love of technology (after all, the ‘80s intro did state that “Donatello does machines”), he’s also a massive nerd, more left-brained than right-brained. He runs off logic and tries to calculate every move in the hope of doing everything perfectly. Splinter tells Donatello he has wisdom and the Turtles will need it in their battles against the other mutants attacking New York. Donatello is also a massive fan of anime and K-pop. Donatello actor Micah Abbey states that the perfect place…

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22 Jul

Barbie: Ken’s Big Character Reveal Is a Disturbing Twist

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This article contains MAJOR Barbie spoilers…. When Ryan Gosling was announced for the role of Ken, Barbie’s eternally friend-zoned plastic boyfriend, there were two types of reactions. Those from folks who have seen the actor’s blistering comedy skills in The Nice Guys, and those who had not. For those who had, the idea of Gosling as a beach-blond himbo instantly seemed hilarious; the rest though were miffed that someone a little more Malibu-dreamy had not been selected for the part. Now that Greta Gerwig’s Barbie is at last in theaters, however, there’s no more debate. Gosling is fabulous in the…

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22 Jul

Why Aqua’s ‘Barbie Girl’ Isn’t in the Barbie Movie

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When Greta Gerwig’s Barbie was first announced, many fans expected Aqua’s popular song, “Barbie Girl,” to be featured. With the song’s upbeat tune and catchy lyrics, it seemed like a no-brainer for it to be included in the movie’s soundtrack. However, this excitement was squashed in 2022 when it was definitively revealed that the song wouldn’t be included in the movie or on the soundtrack.  The reason that “Barbie Girl” won’t be in Barbie is more than just a licensing or rights issue though. Some of it has to do with the fact that Barbie’s parent company Mattel sued the…

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