Morning Reel

"Five Nights at Freddy's" is a film I never thought would ever be made especially at the fact it's from a famous video game and even more so that Blumhouse made it. All right, well, you did it. It's a success in the box office coming out during the week of Halloween 2023. Great job on that too. However, this film suffers from a screenplay we are expected to believe everything we see. A lot of logi...

"Before Midnight" is the third and final installment of the "Before" Trilogy directed by Richard Linklater. We all know his work of "Dazed and Confused", "A Scanner Darkly", "School of Rock" and "Boyhood". His film tackles existentialism between relationships and their own with the characters of Jesse and Céline as they are older and they are parents. I dig the film for it's realism, how deep it g...

"A Nightmare on Elm Street 03: Dream Warriors" is a solid slasher film that actually has depth compared to other films of the genre and for its time the special effects are very good. The film has a balanced screenplay with great characters that carry their own weight but I wish there was a bit something different for this film plot. They really generalized the plot where people can dream together...

"The Shining" is a great horror film directed by Stanley Kubrick that's adapted by Stephen King's "The Shining". I never read the book and don't care too much of it so I couldn't compare and I wouldn't, to be honest. I'm reviewing films and this film puts you on the edge of your seat. Not a complex plot but how the events play make somehting so simple very exciting and scary at the same time. You...

"House" is one of the wackiest but complex horror films of all time. It's not your typical psychological horror film, you really need to look past what is presented to you. It has symbolism deals with innocence and the loss of a loved one be it a mother or a lover. Both hurt just as hard and we are shown the permanent shards of it. The film, as experimental as it is, it makes sense. It does actual...

The iconic slasher film didn't have Jason Voorhees as the major character but the major catalyst in "Friday the 13th". Stupid teens were warned by locals to stay away from Camp Crystal lake. Shit happens and all of a sudden nobody knows what to do. A lot cool killings and a few were shown on camera. It looked very convincing. I wish the plot was a bit more convincing. It's a one-by-one cat and mou...

Diablo Cody teamed up with Karyn Kusama and they came up with a Twilight that was catered to emo/goth teens and alike, and lets face it, those who graduated from high school. It's called "Jennifer's Body" and it's about hot chick who becomes possessed after hanging with a band she was obsessed to see. She starts killing dudes from her high school and her best friend is trying to figure out what to...

David Gordon Green co-wrote "The Exorcist: Believer" with Danny McBride but ultimately directed this attempt of horror that deals with spiritual/demonic possession. It's a subgenre that he hasn't been too. This film has a simple plot where overall kids skip school, go to the woods and decide to do a ritual and BOOM- possession. This film is a bit more more than what I just described. It lightly ex...

John Singleton showed us 1991 America in less than two hours and he was relentless. The f-ed up part of it all is that even though it's a fictional film, what you see in the film happens everyday. What sucks even more is that it still happens to this day. This is my favorite film from this director who took a chance and he dragged us along with it and we can't look away. I talk about how impactful...

"I Love You, Man" is a great bromance film. It's a rom-com made for everyone when usually it's aimed for women. We all know how Hollywood works. Is it hard to say "I Love You" to a good friend, expecially if he's a best man for your wedding? XG is my featued guest today as we dissect this hilarious film that does a good job being relatable to relationships and those who aren't in one. it's good to...

M. Night Shyamalan loves mystery and science fiction. He definitely is a filmmaker who loves to mix those genres together and push boundaries. He's known for twists and turns. Sometimes, he likes to put that twist almost at the end of the film. He really likes you to sit through it. It worked in this film called "Old". Not that much of a complex film as far as plot and even premise but it's enough...

William Friedkin is an underrated filmmaker and he took "The Exorcist" and gave the film its own spiritual cleanse on screen. He made a film that's iconic and will stand the test of time. It's very in-depth, the characters show great sense of purpose and their purpose pushes the film. The film's tone goes all over the place. It can be dark, uplifting, and even humorous. The devil can play tricks o...

Regina King debuted "One Night In Miami..." in various film festivals and have received nothing from praise, adapting a play into a visual experience of four legends all in one screen and in the same area. It's very impressive. I dig the film for its message of unity, equal rights, and staying true to yourself because fame can get you and turn you into the opposite of you. I did wish the film had...

David Cronenberg is a great filmmaker, a legend in sci-fi film community but he also makes these dark, undertone thrillers where little action goes in the film but the one big violent scene is suppose to make it up for it all. In some cases, it works. In this film, it didn't work too much for me. It is a sold crime/gangster film. I love the fact how Anna who is played by Naomi Watts goes into the...

Sofia Coppola, daughter of Francis Ford Coppola, started her directing film career with "The Virgin Suicides". She created a good film about teen sisters growing up in a very strict and religious household. Their parents are weird and it's their fault the girls died. Now, I don't discuss that but the main focus of the film centers on a family gets through death of their own. I love how Coppola did...

The Coen Brothers are master of filmmaking. They can make a crime film funny but at the same time they don't hide the bleakness of what can happen when a insecure/beta car salesman purposely sets up to have his wife kidnapped for ransom. What can't go wrong, right? "Fargo" puts us in a cold world where not only is there crime but life also awaits. I love the cast of this film, they made the screen...

Alejandro González Iñárritu created a beautiful film called "Biutiful" but as beautiful as it is, it's dark, sad and relentless. We follow a man who's involved in the counterfit business as well as guiding lost/broken spirits into the next life as a medium. The two professions do not coincide. Uxabl, the main character, found out that he has prostate and he doesn't have much time. What to do? The...

A24 finally released a normal film called "Past Lives" about the re-connection and absolution of two people who, at one point, were in love with each other although time and distance were not in their favor. it's hard to tell where relationships can go especially if one is willing to go the extra mile. These people hadn't seen each other for years, almost a decade and one of them is looking for a...

Christopher Nolan's 2014 "Interstellar" is the perfect film and I consider it the best film of last decade. The perfect film where all aspects of filmmaking blend very well together to deliver a great film. It has a great story, a lot of information thrown at you where you shouldn't except yourself to know, you just trust the people on screen and HOPE they save humanity and by saving humanity you...

Christopher Nolan is back and he's back with "Oppenheimer", and adapted biographical film abut J. Robert Oppenheimer, the "father" of the atomic. It's wild film both visual and audio. It's a film made to be experienced in the theater and the screenplay itself is just as good. I like how the film tackles with the psychological effects and politics scientists go through with such a notion that we ha...

Kenneth Lonergan wrote and directed "Manchester by the Sea" A great film that earned Best Original Screenplay and Best Male Lead Actor and the film deserves. It's a film that heavily deals with guilt and grief due to a tragic loss of family. As heavy the emotions are in the this film, Lonergan was able to write some comedy in the film, almost making into a black comedy. We need some type of releas...

"Tár" is a film driven by paranoia from the titular character. I liked the theme about being the talk of the town to almost a half-recognized talent. And all of it is due to allegations to where we see this character scramble for some type of security. In her world, there isn't any. People in her field of work and expertise all play a role where they all back stab each other. I dug "Tár" for it's...

Miranda July is known to weird out, to stretch what we call normalcy. I feel like she is David Lynch's daughter. She'd be the comedy version of him. Anyways, Mildred Fernandez and I reviewed "Kajillionaire" about Old Dolio who never had a chance in life. I mean, her name says it all. All she wants is someone to meet her beyond what is just equal. We want to feel special. July created a film where...

E-Zone asked me the other day is we can review this film. Of course we can and we did. Eva Longoria in directorial debut, released "Flamin' Hot", the story of how Richard Montañez made the hot cheetos that eveybody in the world knows about and loves. In her debut, she a made a good film about ambition, following goals and proving yourself. The things that me and E-Zone is generational trauma. I wa...

A24 put out a great film with a great cast that rightfully earned "Best Picture" at the Oscars n 2017. "Moonlight" is a coming-of-age film written & directed by Barry Jenkins. It's a gay film about identity that centers around Chiron, who grew up in a very dysfunctional household with his single mother who's struggling with her own addiction. The only nuture Chiron has is through a drug dealer...