MOVIE: Shutter Island (2010)

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Shutter Island Year: 2010 Rating: R Length: 138 minutes / 2.30 hours Over time, it becomes difficult to avoid spoilers for twist endings in movies. While it took me over a decade to watch Martin Scorsese's Shutter Island (2010), I had already heard about the twist a few times and had prepared myself for it. Of course, only the best films like Shutter Island can have this twist spoiled and still provide enough subterfuge to hide this revelation for most of its runtime. I knew it was coming, and it still blindsided me. Of course, knowing the twist of Shutter Island made me watch it with a modicum of awareness as I tried to spot the cracks in the narrative that would hint at this revelation. Part of how this film expertly hides this twist is by following Edward "Teddy" Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio) and showing the audience what he thinks is happening. It's not until near the end of the film that we get a...
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MOVIE: Don’t Look Up (2021)

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Don't Look Up Year: 2021 Rating: R Length: 138 minutes / 2.30 hours I've only recently come to appreciate Adam McKay's films. Granted, this is a statement about the movies he's made after 2014—mainly, The Big Short (2015) and Vice (2018). His cynical and satirical take on complex topics like the 2008 mortgage crisis or former vice-president Dick Cheney positioned him for the "fictional" dark comedy of Don't Look Up (2021). This pointed examination of an apocalypse scenario is strangely possible despite all the bizarre turns the plot ultimately takes. While I can understand how this movie is polarizing, I am in the camp who thought it was one of the best expressions of our current global situation. As a Millennial, Don't Look Up speaks to the frustration many of us have with the current political and societal system. We can't change anything in United States politics because politicians surround themselves with nepotism and sniveling "yes men" who made significant donations to the politicians' campaigns....
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MOVIE: Blood Diamond (2006)

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Blood Diamond Year: 2006 Rating: R Length: 143 minutes / 2.38 hours For years, I had heard about Blood Diamond (2006) from a variety of different viewpoints. Many friends would mention it about either Leonardo DiCaprio’s accent, the tense action, or the diamond industry as a whole. After a while, I made it a point to eventually see this film, even if I wasn’t sure when that would be. It took a while, but I did eventually have this chance, and I’m glad that I took it. Sure, Blood Diamond is a little difficult to watch in the sense that there are aspects of the African diamond industry that are straight-up human rights violations. However, it is important to know these things are going on to become informed about our world. The fact that there have been (and likely still are) child soldiers being brainwashed by ruthless rebels to overthrow the governments in Africa is a sobering thing to watch and a heartbreaking realization when you see how it...
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MOVIE: Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood (2019)

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Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood Year: 2019 Rating: R Length: 161 minutes / 2.68 hours Quentin Tarantino has changed. While I loved Inglorious Basterds (2009) for its alternate history, and Django Unchained (2012) was another strong showing, it seems like he’s just getting out of his western phase. For his latest film, Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood (2019), Tarantino seems to have continued his trend of making very long movies but chose to condense his trademark graphic violence down into an intense sequence that only lasts a few minutes at most  (like The Hateful Eight (2015)). Perhaps he has matured as a director, but that’s what makes this film so jarring compared to his previous work. Anyone familiar with the Tarantino aesthetic knows that he’s particularly fond of the pop culture of the ‘60s and ‘70s. Consequently, it’s interesting to see how real he’s made this era feel on the big screen. That being said, some of the “fake” movies appearing in this film are...
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