Cinematic Sommelier
4.5
I’ve heard this was made as a middle finger to those who liked the original… mission accomplished. “Insulting” is the one word I would use to describe this movie. And not in a good way. There have been films that challenge an unhealthy point of view or hold a mirror up to something and force the audience to think. This isn’t that. It’s just as sad as the guards beating up on Arthur the entire runtime. Unnecessary and sad.
You’ll notice this one doesn’t have a score. I’m not proud of this, but in the spirit of transparency… I walked out with ~1 hour left. It’s that bad. I couldn’t do it anymore.
I admire than Francis Ford Coppala putting his own money on the table and truly swinging for the fences with a daring piece of art… but I’ll be damned if it wasn’t one of the toughest watches of my career. And I’ve watch Tommy Wiseau’s “The Room” multiple times.
The dialogue is childish, the story is a mess at best, and the special effects are laughable (especially given the budget). Save yourself the 2 hours and go see literally anything else.
7.7
Let’s get this out of the way right off the bat – Art killing children is only one of the absolutely abhorrent things that happens on screen during this one. Author Jason Pargin put it perfectly on Tik Tok recently – we go see these movies because we wish that evil was as simple to spot as Art the Clown. There’s definitely something deeper going on with this series, as it begins to not only out-gross large studio blockbusters (I’m looking at you “Joker”) but influence recent studio horror films (Smile 2’s level of gore was at an 11 all of the sudden).
Coming back to the feature, Art the clown has fun brutally murdering and dismembering everyone within any given frame for over two hours. The creativity of kills here is starting to give the “Saw” series a run for its money. Our new final girl Sienna comes into her own against the axe wielding jester, and the series itself finds its sea legs. Krampus is no longer the only horror icon here to ruin your holiday season by going after kids.
Technically speaking, you’re going to be hard pressed to find a better modern slasher. If you can stomach the blood and gore (which even I was surprised by), you’re in for a wild ride. I definitely understand if it’s not your bag, though. This is a love it or hate it type film to its core.
8.5
This one hurts, but is also one of the most inspirational documentaries I’ve seen in a LONG time. It was a beautifully told story that solidifies the legacy of Superman of the screen and of the mortal world in many ways. So much impact and such valuable perspective. The family being brave enough to go back through this and to not shy away from the tough spots along the way was extremely admirable and valuable in the final product on-screen. A definite must watch!
8.2
With Aaron Sorkin level dialogue and walk and talks, this one won me over almost immediately. Then, you get into the fantastically realistic representations of the cast and the chaos of live TV, and I was on the edge of my seat the entire runtime. I knew it would be good, but I didn’t expect it to be great. Every member of the cast is perfectly paired with their role and every single frame of film is used to its fullest potential. There’s a beautiful chaos alongside the razor sharp writing that balance each other out much better than expected. Highly recommend, and look forward to this cast making their way into more projects in Hollywood!
Brett Garten, Movie Extraordinare 