Monthly Archives: December 2023

“Lisa Frankenstein” Love Never Dies… It Just Gets Weird

comedy, fantasy, horror, , , , ,

You may consider Lisa Frankenstein the funniest, goriest undead romance seen all year. 

A Monstrous Teen Romance

Surviving high school is hard enough on its own—add in the trauma of your mom being ax-murdered in your living room, and it becomes virtually impossible to cope. 

She Built the Perfect Boyfriend

Just ask Lisa Swallows, played by Kathryn Newton, the awkward 17-year-old trying to adjust to a new school and a new life after her mother’s death and her father’s hasty remarriage. 

Despite the unwavering support offered by plucky cheerleader step-sister Taffy, played by Liza Soberano, Lisa only finds solace in the abandoned cemetery near her house. She finds her commonality with a young man who died in 1837, tending his grave. 

Kathryn Newton stars as Lisa Swallows and Cole Sprouse as The Creature in a Focus Features release. Credit: Michele K. Short / © 2023 FOCUS FEATURES LLC.

A Love Story Unearthed

But everything changes one dark and stormy night in the fall of 1989. After being humiliated, Lisa makes a desperate and heartfelt wish—to be with the young man in the world beyond. When a monstrous-looking corpse, played by Cole Sprouse, turns up the following evening, Lisa realizes a cosmic misunderstanding has happened. 

Prom Night Meets the Afterlife

Still, she feels obligated to help the poor soul regain his humanity, and she embarks on a quest to breathe new life into her long-dead companion. All she needs to succeed is some freshly harvested body parts and Taffy’s broken tanning bed.

Cole Sprouse stars as The Creature and Kathryn Newton as Lisa Swallows in a Focus Features release. Credit: Michele K. Short / © 2023 FOCUS FEATURES LLC.

Synths, Screams, and Sweethearts

A genuinely electrifying new horror-comedy, coming-of-rage romance, comes from Oscar-winning screenwriter Diablo Cody. The film also stars Carla Gugino, Joe Chrestnd, and Henry Eikenberry.

Reanimated Romance Gone Wrong

Director Zelda Williams makes her feature debut with the wildly inventive film, produced by Cody and Mason Novick under his MXN Entertainment banner.

“Scrambled”Hilarious and Heartfelt Journey

comedy, drama, , , , ,

Overview of Scrambled

Written and directed by Leah McKendrick, Scrambled is about a quintessential eternal bridesmaid, Nellie Robinson, played by Leah McKendrick. She constantly finds herself between weddings, baby showers, and bad dates. 

When she feels like the clock is ticking and faces bleak romantic prospects, Nellie freezes her eggs — setting her on an empowering journey to a brave new world where she ultimately discovers “the one” she’s looking for might be herself.  

Characters and Cast

The supporting cast includes Ego Nwodim, André Santini, Adam Rodríguez, Laura Cerón, and Clancy Brown.

Singer, actress and filmmaker, McKendrick’s films include:

Bad Moms

M.F.A.

Baby Steps

A Nice Girl Like You

Organize Chaos

“Housekeeping for Beginners” A Quietly Political Film

drama, foreign, foreign movie, , , , , , , ,

Filmmaker Goran Stolevski delivers a story exploring the universal truths of family, both the ones we’re born into and the ones we find for ourselves.

Visual Style and Realism

Gradually, we learn in Housekeeping for Beginners that Dita never wanted to be a mother. Yet circumstances force her to raise her girlfriend’s two daughters, tiny troublemaker Mia and rebellious teen Vanesa.

Samson Selim stars as Ali, Vladimir Tintor as Toni, Anamaria Marinca as Dita and Sara Klimoska as Elena in director Goran Stolevski’s HOUSEKEEPING FOR BEGINNERS, a Focus Features release. Credit: Viktor Irvin Ivanov / © 2023 FOCUS FEATURES LLC.

Complex Relationships That Drive the Narrative

The story turns into a heartfelt drama. A battle of wills ensues as the three continue to butt heads and become an unlikely family that must fight to stay together.

The foreign language film with subtitles features Anamaria Marinca, Alina Serban, Samson Selim, Vladimir Tintor, Mia Mustafa, Dzada Selim, Sara Klimoska, Rozafë Çelaj, and Ajse Useini.

Director Goran Stolevski on the set of his film HOUSEKEEPING FOR BEGINNERS, a Focus Features release. Credit: Viktor Irvin Ivanov / © 2023 FOCUS FEATURES LLC.

Goran Stolevski’s Intimate Filmmaking Approach

“I’ve always been drawn to moments that feel ‘found’ or ‘discovered’ as opposed to ‘staged.’ A lot of my filmmaking background has, from necessity, been built around shoestring budgets and skeleton crews. I’ve embraced this reality, developing a ‘verité’ style that has now become an important element of my work. I am a big believer in working with what’s there, rather than against it — assessing the means at my disposal and shaping the most exciting imaginable story around them,” explains Stolevski.

Films by Goran Stolevski:
Of an Age
You Won’t Be Alone
Would You Look at Her

“Ferrari” Love, Loss, and Legacy Behind the Wheel

based on a book, biography, drama, historical, true stories, , , , , ,

It is the summer of 1957. Behind the spectacle of Formula 1, ex-racer Enzo Ferrari is in crisis. Bankruptcy threatens the factory he and his wife, Laura, built from nothing ten years earlier.

Chemistry, Conflict, and Character Depth

Cruz and Driver play the husband and wife drama brilliantly. Showing how volatile their marriage suffered because of the loss of their son, Dino, a year earlier. Ferrari struggles to acknowledge his son, Piero, with Lina Lardi.

Meanwhile, his drivers’ passion to win pushes them to the edge as they launch into the treacherous 1,000-mile Mille Miglia race across Italy.

The True Story Behind Ferrari’s 1957 Crisis

Based on Brock Yates’ 1991 book Enzo Ferrari: The Man, The Car, The Races, The Machine, with a screenplay by Troy Kennedy Martin, Michael Mann directed Ferrari as a character study unlike anything else the director has done on the big screen.

Michael Mann’s Vision: Precision Meets Emotion

Discovering what the director of the movie helps understand the carmaker’s life, “… Enzo Ferrari, one of the most famous yet inscrutable and complex men of the 20th century. For Mann, that was a perfect hook. “There is no equilibrium in his life, and that’s the whole point of Enzo Ferrari,” says Mann. “That fascinated me because that’s more like the way life actually is,” Mann continues. “Life is asymmetrical. Life is messy. Life is filled with chaos. Ferrari was precise and logical, rational in everything to do with his factory and race team. In the rest of his life, he was impulsive, defensive, libidinous and chaotic. This asymmetry and wonderful contradiction are what made him and the other characters in this unique story so human to me.”

“IF” Fantasy Comedy for the Family

animation, children movies, family movies, fantasy, kid movies, , , , , , , ,

Writer and director John Krasinski brings together an all-star cast for IF, a fanciful movie about saving imaginary friends.

The story follows a young girl named Bea. After a difficult family situation, she discovers she can see everyone’s imaginary friends. She teams up with a neighbor to help forgotten, abandoned imaginary friends reconnect with the children who created them.

The film blends live action and animation, emphasizing imagination, grief, and childhood wonder.

The film cast includes Ryan Reynolds, John Krasinski, Cailey Fleming, Fiona Shaw, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Louis Gossett Jr., Alan Kim, Liza Colón-Zayas and Steve Carell.

“The American Society of Magical Negroes” Sharp Satirical Comedy

adventure, comedy, , , , , ,

Produced, written and directed by Kobi Libii, The American Society of Magical Negroes follows Aren, played by Justice Smith. He joins a magical group of negroes whose mission is to help keep white people happy and comfortable. That way, Black people stay safe.

Forbidden Romance

Aren receives training to effectively soothe white discomfort. One challenge is Jason, a nervous white coworker, as he navigates his blossoming feelings for Lizzie. She also works at the company.

Price of Staying Silent

Everything seems fine until Aren follows his heart instead of what the ASOMN tells him to do. He finally pushes back and asserts his desire to exist on his terms.

The ending has an appropriate twist discovered when Aren reunites with Lizzie.

The satire premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival.

The cast includes Justice Smith, David Alan Grier, An-Li Bogan, Drew Tarver, Michaela Watkins, Aisha Hinds, Tim Baltz, Rupert Friend and Nicole Byer.

American Erotic Thriller “Miller’s Girl”

thriller, , , ,

Cairo Sweet and Jonathan Miller

Written and directed by Jade Halley Bartlett, starring Jenna Ortega and Martin Freeman, Miller’s Girl follows a talented young writer played by Ortega. She embarks on a creative odyssey when her teacher, played by Freeman, assigns a project that entangles them both in an increasingly complex web.

Jenna Ortega as Cairo Sweet in Miller’s Girl. Photo Credit: Zac Popik

Power, Ambition, and Boundaries

The creative writing class turns into a teacher student affair. Where lines blur and their lives intertwine, professor and protégé must confront their darkest motives while straining to preserve their individual sense of purpose and the things they hold most dear.

Ending Explained

Cairo later uses the circumstances to her benefit, while Miller’s marriage and friendship suffer as the consequences of his choices unfurl. The ending leaves an imbalance because the issue remains unresolved. Cairo emerges as the victim but writes about the experience as her “greatest achievement.”

The supporting cast includes Dagmara Domińczyk, Bashir Salahuddin and Gideon Adlon.

“Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga”

action, adventure, prequel, science fiction,

George Miller continues his Mad Max franchise, with Anya Taylor-Joy taking on the lead role of Furiosa. Chris Hemsworth plays Dementus, the main villain. Nick Lathouris and Miller wrote the screenplay Miller directed.

Furiosa’s Origin Story

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga follows the original story of renegade warrior Furiosa before she teamed up with Mad Max in Fury Road. Mad Max fans are sure to get their fill in this latest installment.

Dementus and Immortan Joe

Dementus is a warlord in the Wasteland. The deaths of this family shattered him, which explains his rage, instability, and fixation with power. He tries to manipulate Furiosa, claiming he can protect her or strengthen her. Still, the story shows he uses that as a reason for violence and possession.

Immortan Joe has military experience, which helped him rise to power after civilization collapsed. He captured the Citadel and established it as the core of his empire in the wasteland. His ultimate goals are domination, legacy, and survival. Joe has radiation sickness, which has caused him to obsess over creating a healthy heir. Dementus and he battle for control of the Citadel, Gastown, and the Bullet Farm.

Action and Visual Style

Miller orchestrates the action as large-scale, composed set pieces that deliver an epic and kinetic experience. The film’s visual design uses dramatic landscapes, emotional lighting, and striking imagery to create a mythical post-apocalyptic world.

Other cast members include Tom Burke, Angus Sampson, Daniel Webber and Nathan Jones.