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Subtext | The Curious Case Of The Two Yin Yang Masters
Netflix users at the beginning of 2021 were justifiably confused when they noticed two new movies, both Chinese fantasy films, and both with almost identical names. One was The Yin Yang Master, while the other was The Yin-Yang Master:…
what is This is GWAR good For? Some, But Not Enough | Shudder Review
This is GWAR is a straightforward rock doc. After an introductory section detailing the genesis of the titular art collective cum metal band, the filmmakers take us through a chronological survey of the group’s history. We meet the…
Subtext | European Gothic
Born in the 18th century, “gothic fiction” is a genre defined by three key elements: supernatural elements (either actually present or implied), the fear of the unknown, and the idea of the present being haunted by the past. While we most…
I Know That Face | Juno Temple
In I Know That Face's last episode before taking a summer break, we cover the career of Juno Temple. Temple first broke through in Joe Wright's Atonement opposite Saoirse Ronan and Keira Knightley. As her career gained steam, she chose to…
Still More Human Than human | Blade Runner at 40
Blade Runner is the best designed and most meditative American science fiction film this side of 2001: A Space Odyssey. However, this statement is not without qualification forty years after its initial release. For my purposes here, I may…
Nazi sa Ghaeltacht | TG4 Investigates International Espionage
Nazi sa Ghaeltacht tells the astonishing story of Dr Ludwig Mühlhausen, a folklore scholar from Germany who visited Teileann, a small village in the Donegal Ghaeltact, to learn Irish in 1937. Long been considered a figure of suspicion and…
Top Gun: Maverick | Tom Cruise Fights A Losing Battle
On March 7th, 1987 James ‘Bonecrusher’ Smith went 12 rounds with Mike Tyson. James Smith lost the fight, unanimously, but going 12 rounds with Iron Mike is an achievement in itself, especially as Smith shouldn’t have been there in the…
Good Luck to You, Leo Grande | Let’s Talk About Sex
In Good Luck to You, Leo Grande, written by Katy Brand and directed by Sophie Hyde, Emma Thompson stars as Nancy Stokes, a widow and retired Religious Education teacher who hires handsome young sex-worker Leo Grande (played by rising Irish…
Everything Went Fine Film Review | Beautifully Measured Euthanasia Drama Thrives in Moments of Wit
Emmanuèlle (Sophie Marceau), having received an urgent phone call, is on her way out of her building before realising she isn’t wearing her contacts. Her father, André (André Dussollier), we soon learn, has had a stroke. When Emmanuèlle…
Norm Macdonald: Nothing Special | A Touching Send-off For One of Comedy’s Greats
This isn’t going to be a traditional review or an opinion piece on the Netflix’s Nothing Special. I can’t be objective about it. I’m a deep fan of comedian Norm Macdonald. I have been since I was 14 years old. I borrowed a lot of his act…