Awesome Movies

With a reverse dolly or reverse zoom the viewer backs away from its subject instead of moving towards it. Jim Casey of The Solomon Society put together this great edit of reverse shots set appropriately to Say Lou Lou’s cover of Tame Impala’s Feels Like We Only Go Backwards.

A lot of jokes have been made about Bill Murray’s penchant for blessing people’s lives with his presence. But filmmaker Tommy Avallone wanted to capture a more intimate and positive portrait of the actor through these interactions.

Susan Sarandon plays a mother whose son is a journalist who gets kidnapped while on duty overseas. The kidnappers are asking for a ransom, which the US government refuses to pay. A group of journalists step in to help her, but will she raise the money in time?

(PG-13: Language) Matthew McConaughey returns to comedy with the help of Harmony Korine (Spring Breakers). The actor plays Moondog, “a rebellious rogue who always lives life by his own rules.” Also starring Snoop Dogg, Isla Fisher and Zac Efron. Premieres 3/22/19.

Described by critics as “Shaun of the Dead meets La La Land“, Anna and the Apocalypse is based on Zombie Musical, a short film by Ryan McHenry. It’s about a group of high schoolers slashing and singing their way through a zombie apocalypse. Premieres 12/2018.

Steven Spielberg’s masterpiece Schindler’s List is getting a remastered theatrical release to celebrate its 25th anniversary. It will be shown in theaters in the USA and Canada beginning 12/7/18. There will also be a 4K Blu-ray release soon.

“Lorraine is a combination of Dr. Strange and Jean Grey, while Ed is… also there.” The Conjuring movies are legit scary, but there’s a lot to laugh about them as well. Screen Junkies points out the franchise’s love for children’s toys, expository dialogue and more.

Lessons from the Screenplay looks at how the screenwriters and sound designers created the sounds of A Quiet Place. The writers became creative with the screenplay, while the sound designers avoided extended silence, and used sound to mimic the flow of tension.

“There’s no before. There’s only from now on.” Peter Dinklage plays the only survivor in an apocalyptic event that wiped out his town. To his surprise, a young woman arrives. But she may bring more trouble than hope. I Think We’re Alone Now premieres 9/21/18.

Hugh Jackman stars as former American senator Gary Hart, who was a leading presidential candidate in the 1988 elections. But news of his extramarital affair broke, changing political media forever. Also starring Vera Farmiga, J.K. Simmons, Alfred Molina and Bill Burr.

Orson Welles never completed his final film, The Other Side of the Wind. Some of its crew eventually edited the footage according to Welles notes, and now Netflix has earned the rights to release the result. The film is about an aging director trying to make a comeback film.

“I hate being in a war zone. But I also feel compelled to see it for myself.” Rosamund Pike stars as the late Marie Colvin, who was a journalist for The Sunday Times and died while on the job. The film is based on the article Marie Colvin’s Private War.

Lessons from the Screenplay looks at how No Country for Old Men makes us put its story together instead of using dialogue alone. Characters are given depth and the plot is implied through actions, and the film’s progression clues the audience into its moral.

“Watching a Lau Kar-leung film is similar to watching an illustrated guide or documentation of kung-fu and its philosophy.” The Museum of Modern Art’s La Frances Hui talks about the history of kung-fu films before breaking down the work of legendary filmmaker Lau Kar-leung.

Movie and TV show merchandise shop Last Exit to Nowhere now offers caps with logos, references to and names from popular films and series such as Aliens, TRON and Stranger Things. They have flexfit caps, trucker caps and snapback caps.

CineFix presents its top 10 picks for best movie scores. There are ones that are great at setting the mood, ones at expressing or emphasizing ideas, ones at transporting us to a place or time, and the evocative theme song that’s stuck to a character or scene.

Jacob T. Swinney and Fandor dive into the film trope of an object of desire that its characters are searching for, but the audience doesn’t necessarily care about. It can drive motivations and momentum, but as we’ve learned before, MacGuffin’s aren’t always the best plot device.

Chris Pine stars as the King of Scots, Robert the Bruce, in Netflix’s action drama film Outlaw King. Robert the Bruce led Scotland to independence from England in the 14th century. Also starring Stephen Dillane (Stannis in Game of Thrones). Premieres 11/9/18.

(Gore) ScreenPrism talks about the trademarks of a Coen Brothers film. It often starts with a crime that goes awry, and eventually punishment gets dealt but in a roundabout manner, with random acts and vile characters as the jury. But it’s not totally hopeless.

(PG-13, Flashing Lights) From the twisted mind of director Gaspar Noé (Irreversible, Enter the Void, Love) comes a critically–acclaimed horror drama. In Climax, documentary-style profiles of young dancers give way to a horrifying party instigated by spiked drinks.

From writer and director Alfonso Cuaron (Gravity, Children of Men) comes a Netflix film that’s close to his heart. Shot entirely in black and white, Roma follows a year in the life of a family in 1970’s Mexico, based on the filmmaker’s memories of growing up there.

There are obvious reasons why works of science fiction are often set in dystopian scenarios. The setting makes for struggle, and magnifies our present problems and fears. But CineFix adds that it also gives us hope that love and kindness are the solutions.

Set in 1962, the Green Book sees an Italian-American bouncer from the Bronx driving a world class black pianist on a risky journey across the Deep South. Peter Farrelly directed this comedy drama starring Mahershala Ali and Viggo Mortensen. Premieres 11/21/18.