#REVIEW: “GLADIATOR II”
Review by Justin Waldman for Mr. Will Wong
How amazing is it that well into his 80s, Sir Ridley Scott still is delivering some of his best work? Gladiator II proves well worth the 26-year wait for a sequel. The CGI may be a little messy and over the top, but the performances, acting, Script and direction all come together masterfully, to create an entertaining bounty of excellence.
The Film now focuses on Lucius (Paul Mescal) some twenty years after the first Gladiator film, as Rome has ...
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#REVIEW: “HERE”
Review by Nicholas Porteous for Mr. Will Wong
Consider your home, and how many things have happened in that space over years and decades, with or without you. Robert Zemeckis takes that thought and stretches it a few steps further in nearly every possible direction with his time and generation-spanning mini-epic Here. It's about a small patch of land, observed from a fixed angle, chronicled from the extinction of the dinosaurs up to the present day. It's about civilizations, families, life, ...
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#REVIEW: “VENOM: THE LAST DANCE”
Review by Nicholas Porteous for Mr. Will Wong
When we left Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy), host of the rascally and rambunctious Venom symbiote, he was unwittingly warped into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, watching Tom Holland's Spider-Man on a tiki bar tv. Would our hero transform into Spidey's villainous counterpart in his "last" outing?? Cut to Venom: The Last Dance, the third and supposedly final chapter, which begins moments later... and instantly rescinds any possibility of a shared universe ...
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#REVIEW: “SMILE 2”
Review by Justin Waldman for Mr. Will Wong
While I was *very* much a fan of Parker Finn’s 2022 hit SMILE, despite its treatment of mental health, its Sequel is truly something spectacular stepping-up its scale, even if it is a bit of the same at the core. This, and a career-defining performance from its star, Naomi Scott.
This terrifying Sequel focuses on Skye Riley (Scott), who is a huge superstar singer who is trying to reclaim her life after a horrific accident that occurred a year ago, ...
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#REVIEW: “THE APPRENTICE”
Review by Amanda Gilmore for Mr. Will Wong
The Film takes place in New York during '70s and '80s, following a young Donald J. Trump (Sebastian Stan) as he learns how to be a ‘winner’ from cut-throat Lawyer Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong). With these two divisive subjects, it’s little wonder that Director Ali Abassi’s The Apprentice has people divided.
We begin in the '70s, with Trump going door to door at a housing complex his father owns, demanding rent to be paid. We learn those residents ...
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#REVIEW: “WOMAN OF THE HOUR”
By Mr. Will Wong
WOMAN OF THE HOUR is a story so sensational it just had to be true. Anna Kendrick not only stars, but also produces and directs this magnificent Thriller which premiered at TIFF '23 to raves and already has garnered her an award at the Palm Springs International Film Festival.
Set in the late '70s, this story based on true events sees Cheryl Bradshaw (Kendrick) struggling to make it as an Actress in Hollywood. And not for a lack of effort. She is auditioning, but just not ...
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#REVIEW: “JOKER: FOLIE À DEUX”
By Mr. Will Wong
Let me preface this by saying that I enjoyed 2019's JOKER very much. Joaquin Phoenix's transformative and humanizing portrayal of DC Comics' most iconic villain was chilling and changed our concept of the origins story forever. Let me also state that none of the issues affecting Todd Phillips' followup, are due to the the outstanding work of its two lead actors. Disappointingly, the Film swings big... and misses.
Following the events of JOKER, we reunite with Arthur Fleck ...
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#REVIEW: “BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE”
Review by David Baldwin for Mr. Will Wong
Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder) has just returned to Wind River with her Step-Mother Delia (Catherine O’Hara) and her estranged Daughter Astrid (Jenna Ortega). Lydia is still haunted by her experiences from decades past, and the rest of the family just wants to leave quickly. But when Astrid gets mixed up in a plan involving the Afterlife, Lydia is forced to turn to the absolute last person she wants to ask for help from: the obnoxious demon Beetlejuice ...
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#REVIEW: “THE CROW”
Review by Justin Waldman for Mr. Will Wong
Here is a secret shame I am admitting to, I never saw Brandon Lee’s The Crow until I watched the 4k this year. So with that being said, I had no nostalgic point of reference for its 2024 reboot. When I watched it, I was *not* a fan, so when the advertisements and discourse surfaced around Rupert Sanders directing Bill Skarsgard and FKA twigs in this retelling, I felt no which way about it. But after seeing this reimagining of the cult classic, I ...
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#REVIEW: “BLINK TWICE”
Review by Justin Waldman for Mr. Will Wong
Actors-turned-Directors are often hit or miss and get even more questionable when they also write their directorial debut. However, there are always exceptions to the rule and Zoe Kravitz gets to join the elite list of Actors-turned-Directors who succeed in crafting a solid directorial debut. For something that is better left not seeing any of the promo materials for, there are a lot of surprises in the Movie and a twist that is slightly predictable ...
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