The Cory Baker Show

Coming into awards season, there were a lot of people talking about Fjord as an awards favorite and potential best picture nominee, so I had to go see it for myself. It tells the story of a Romanian/Norwegian family who moves to Norway to be closer to family. Sebastian Stan and Renate Reinsve star as the Father and Mother of 5 children, but when school staff involves Children Services in their liv...

I knew when I got the last seat in the theater for a sold out weekend for a documentary, we were dealing with something completely different. You Can See Everything is directed by Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim and follows convicted Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes and her family in the weeks that lead up to her stint in Federal Prison. It is unlike any documentary, and is filled with surpris...

It has been a decade and a half since The Social Network came out and it's spiritual sequel The Social Reckoning is now out and the response has been tepid to say the least. Aaron Sorkin is back writing and this time directing, along with stars Jeremy Allen White and Mickey Madison, not to mention Jeremy Strong playing Mark Zuckerberg, so why didn't this work. I take off my Sorkin fan club...

In one of my most anticipated movies of the year, Robert Pattison plays Chris Hansen from To Catch a Predator in the new movie Primetime. The first narrative feature from documentarian Lance Oppenheim, it explores the behind the scenes world of To Catch a Predator, and examines what it takes to compete in Primetime. Split between Robert Pattison as Chris Hansen, Merritt Wever as the producer, and...

To say I was surprised when I heard Zach Cregger, director of Weapons and Barbarian was going to the world of IP with a new Resident Evil movie would be an understatement. Despite no previous interest in Resident Evil as a video game or a movie, I felt like this was going to be different, and I'm so glad I saw it. In this episode of the Filmmaker Perspective, I talk about why it worked so well...

We are at an inflection point in the state of the US Film Industry and the future of the business depends on what happens over the next couple of weeks and months. In this episode of the podcast, I explain why this is important, what stands in the way of it passing, why all 50 states will benefit from the federal tax credit, and why it could set up American Film Production for a new golden age, bu...

In an alternate reality, the US Government has banned pre-marital relations, and permits people One Night Only to make the most of it. It's the premise for the new romantic comedy "One Night Only" starring Monica Barbaro and Callum Turner and despite there talents and chemistry, the movie has trouble holding up the myriad of questions I'm sure you already have. Despite it all, I...

It is time for the latest from Christopher Nolan, and I was worried I wouldn't like this movie. It is nothing against Nolan, but I have never enjoyed sword and sandal movies and I was worried that I wouldn't enjoy The Odyssey no matter how well made it was. Could Matt Damon and the star studded cast change my mind? How about the overwhelming talent and ability from the crew? Could the genr...

A rare adult comedy released in theaters? Sign me up! The Invite is the latest from actor/director Olivia Wilde and is a small self contained comedy staring Seth Rogen, Penelope Cruz, and Edward Norton. In this episode of the Filmmaker Perspective we talk about the benefits of an actor/director, and why this is the rare film to shoot in order. Intro - 0:00The Acting - 0:31Olivia Wilde as a Directo...

For the seventh time we have a minions movie, but for the first time I brought a kid. I was really glad I did, for one particular reason that might resonate with fellow movie lovers. Minions and Monsters is a really cute, funny love letter to old Hollywood. In this filmmaker perspective I go through what works and what didn't in the latest from Illumination. Intro - 0:00Some of the good 1:00So...

For the first time as a parent, I got to bring my daughter to see Toy Story just like my dad did for me. With Toy Story 5 in theaters, I look back at what has made this franchise a hit and what I thought of it as a parent of a toy playing aged child. In particular how this movie is more girl coded than previous installments, and how that played with Jessie more center stage. Don't worry if you...

The legendary Steven Spielberg is back on the big screen with another movie about Aliens in his latest film Disclosure Day. In this Filmmaker Perspective, I talk about why Spielberg is the ultimate high ceiling, high floor director. We also get into why movies don't work even when you have the best crew, access to actors like Emily Blunt, and the budget to do the movie the way you want. Intro...

For the second week in a row, a young horror director has made breaking box office records, and this time it is 20 year old Kane Parsons. His film Backrooms just became A24's biggest premiere ever, and the youngest person to have a number one film in the box office. I talk about what makes this film so fascinating, why we will see younger and younger directors, and if this is a sea change in H...

A movie with a $750,000 budget is going to pass $100 million in box office, how is that even possible? The new horror film Obsession is breaking all kinds of records, and putting up numbers we haven't seen since Paranormal Activity. What is the secret? Why does this movie succeed when massive blockbusters fail to make their money back? In this filmmaker perspective I break it down for you. Int...

In this week's episode, I get to combine my two great loves: filmmaking and politics. Specifically I take a filmmakers perspective on the Los Angeles Mayor's race and the California Governor's race. I try to keep things just to the platforms, but run through all the candidates including Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman, Xavier Becerra, Steve Hilton, Tom Steyer, Chad Bianco, Katie Porter and...

20 years ago The Devil Wears Prada came out and it was a cultural moment. Now we finally have the sequel in The Devil Wears Prada 2 as Andy (Anne Hathaway) comes back to Runway magazine to help turn things around with Miranda and Nigel (Meryl Streep, Stanley Tucci) potentially losing control from former assistant Emily (Emily Blunt). Does the sequel have the same heat as the original, or is it bou...

The King of Pop Michael Jackson finally gets the music biopic treatment, and it has everyone feeling something. While critics and fans might be divided, I share a filmmaker's perspective on why the movie is what it is. There are good things with Jaafar Jackson, Colman Domingo, Juliano Valdi, and an incredible soundtrack of Michael's biggest hits, but just as many negative things that drag...

It's time to enter the Mushroom kingdom once again with The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, but who should you listen to the critics or the audience? In one of the widest spreads in recent memory, critics and audiences are split on Super Mario Galaxy but with its huge opening over the weekend I look to take my filmmaker's perspective to explain why even though it's not a great movie, this is...

Markiplier has taken his talents to a new screen, the big screen! His debut feature is Iron Lung, a video game adaptation that he self financed and I discuss the movie itself, but more interesting than that is the fact that this indie movie was so successful in the box office it may change the game for film distribution. Is this the opening salvo to a radical shift in the business of movies or an...

Marty Supreme received 9 Oscar Nominations, is that enough to win Best Picture? The star vehicle for Timothee Chalamet is the first solo effort from Josh Safdie. It tells the story of Marty Mauser who is the number one ranked ping pong player in America in 1952. We follow him as he hustles his way to the top, or out of some very sticky situations on his journey to be the best player in the world....

As soon as I saw it was a movie about Shakespeare I was in. Hamnet tells the story of Agnes, the wife of William Shakespeare and the mother of his 3 children. It's a story of grief and parenting and art, and is a return to the contained pictures that made Chloe Zhao an Oscar winner. I'm Cory and I'm a Writer, Director, and On Set Sound Mixer in Los Angeles, CA with more than a decade o...

It's been a while since I saw an audience leave a screening this confused about a movie. Die My Love is the latest from Lynn Ramsay, and it is creating a lot of polarizing takes online. For every person who says they hate it there is another who says that Jennifer Lawrence should win an Oscar. In this video I try to cut through and tell you why it's working and why it's not and give yo...

Critics and the Letterboxd-erati are going crazy about One Battle After Another, so much so that all the conversations are about how excellent it is, and how many Oscar nominations it's going to get. This movie is really good, but its not for everyone. So I take a look at it from the angle of the filmmaker and what can be learned from it, but also get real about the people who should probably...

If you had a chance to not only be a quarterback in professional football, but to be trained by the Greatest of all Time, what wouldn't you sacrifice? In Him we follow Cameron Cade as he trains with Isaiah White for a shot to be signed by the San Antonio Saviors. An attack on Cade has made him un-draftable and this opportunity could be his only opportunity. Will he follow in the footsteps of a...

The wait was 41 years, the sequel to Cult Classic "This is Spinal Tap," has finally arrived in theaters. Is it as ground breaking as the original or is this a revival that we didn't need?"Spinal Tap II: The End Continues," finds the boys from Spinal Tap reuniting for one last contractually obligated gig with documentary filmmaker Marty DiBergi along for the ride. Though the...