Star Wars: The Last Jedi – 2017

There is a certain danger to sequels. There is even more danger in the second film of a trilogy. The weight distribution is always uneven since the first movies sets up the dominoes and the last movie knocks them down, there is often a mystery in the purpose of the middle part. In The Last […]

Star Wars: The Force Awakens – 2015

32 years. I took 32 years to return to the beloved characters from the greatest sci-fi saga of all time. Sure, there were the prequels, but it never felt right when there was a universe of Skywalker and Solo that needed to be revisited. The great J.J. Abrams took a swing at this film and […]

Moonlight – 2016

As beautiful as it is tragic, Moonlight offers a look into the life of a man so conflicted by his identity that he’d rather deny who he is. There is so much struggle and pain in this film and it is spread over the life of a young man named Chiron. Chiron spends much of […]

Lady Bird – 2017

Coming-of-age dramas are a staple of every generation. And every generation lives in a different world that no one could understand. Lady Bird takes its viewers back to the long-forgotten days of 2002, using this time to paint a unique picture of a girl in the throes of adulthood. Saoirse Ronan is “Lady Bird”, a […]

Million Dollar Baby – 2004

There are movies that are tragic because they are bad and movies that are tragic because they are good. Million Dollar Baby is tragic because it is great. This film follows a young hopeful named Maggie (Hilary Swank) who seeks training to become a great boxer. She is trained by the reluctant Frank Dunn (Clint […]

Lost in Translation – 2003

Bill Murray is a funny guy. His dry delivery and slick sense of humor have served him well for the last forty years, but it is his dramatic ability that deserves the most praise. Sofia Coppola delivers on a long-standing promise to direct this movie only if Murray is involved and her gambit pays off […]