Saxon Whitehead

#NowWatching Bugonia

'Ballad of a Small Player': A Shallow, Yet Stylish Gambling Drama Filmmaker Edward Berger has experienced a sharp rise in his career ever since his international breakthrough with All Quiet on the Western Front. That film, a German language adaptation of Erich Maria...

Ballad of a Small Player looks good, but has hardly any heart or depth to back it up. Despite its visuals and a great Colin Farrell performance, this film is a mess and largely feels empty.

Check out my review:
www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/ballad-...

'Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere': Jeremy Allen White Shines in Otherwise Standard Biopic There are few artists as ubiquitous as Bruce Springsteen. For decades, he has steadily put out hit records and sold out stadiums, earning his place as one of the most legendary figures in the history ...

Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere does its best to be an insightful portrait of The Boss, but plays things too safe. At the very least, it’s worth watching for Jeremy Allen White’s performance, but the rest is pretty much what you’d expect.

full review:
www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/springs...

Anniversary may not be the sharpest in its political commentary, but it still gets some good digs in. It does have a tremendous ensemble cast, though, and is a rather engaging blend of family dramas and political thrillers.

Check out my review:
www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/anniver...

#NowWatching Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere

'After the Hunt': Luca Guadagnino's Latest Aims to be Provocative, But Ends Up Being Hollow and Muddled Considering that Luca Guadagnino’s latest film After the Hunt comes with the tagline “Not everything is supposed to make you comfortable”, it is clear that he and screenwriter Nora Garrett hope to del...

After the Hunt wants to be a provocative commentary on a number of topics, but it doesn’t exactly have much to say. Not even its talented cast can fully save it, and it ends up being little more than a confused collection of ideas.

Check out my review:
www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/after-t...

#NowWatching After the Hunt

'Black Phone 2': A Chilling Horror Sequel When you make a successful horror movie, a sequel is practically guaranteed. But what happens when you make a successful horror movie that doesn’t have a clear path to a sequel? If you’re Scott Derric...

Black Phone 2 improves upon its predecessor by leaning into its supernatural elements and evoking slasher films of the 80s. It does get a bit shaky when examined closely, but it is still a good sequel that works far better than it should.

Check out my review:

www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/black-p...

#NowWatching Good Fortune

#NowWatching Black Phone 2

'Tron: Ares': Visually Stunning, But Narratively Shallow Considering that the Tron franchise already made their big legacy sequel with the aptly titled Tron: Legacy, it makes sense that the filmmakers behind any further entries would want to take a differen...

Tron: Ares is impressive on a technical level, but its broadness and lack of depth makes it more of a mixed bag. It doesn’t help that Jared Leto is lifeless in the lead role, but at least it has some fantastic visuals and a great score to fall back on.

www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/tron-ar...

'The Smashing Machine': Dwayne Johnson Gives His Best Performance in Mostly Solid Sports Biopic No matter how famous Dwayne Johnson has become, he will always be known by many as his ring name, The Rock. Johnson’s pro-wrestling career helped him break into the mainstream and led to a long, highl...

The Smashing Machine diverts from the usual sports biopic formula, which sometimes works and sometimes leaves the film feeling a bit cold. Thankfully, it still works well thanks to Benny Safdie’s direction and Dwayne Johnson’s best performance to date.

Review:

www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/the-sma...

'One Battle After Another': A Timely, Incredibly Crafted Epic from Paul Thomas Anderson Like other modern auteurs, Paul Thomas Anderson has mostly made period pieces over the past several years. From There Will Be Blood to Licorice Pizza, Anderson’s past several works have jumped to vari...

One Battle After Another is yet another triumph from writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson. It is bold, thrilling, and one of PTA’s best films yet.

My review:
www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/one-bat...

#NowWatching One Battle After Another

'Twinless': A Disjointed Study of Loss and Companionship Loneliness and grief are concepts that have been explored in film many times over, but still manage to connect and evoke deep emotions when done well. At times, Twinless seems to be heading down the r...

Twinless has some style, but it is a bit disconnected and struggles to maintain a good tonal balance. Dylan O’Brien’s performance helps make up for its other shortcomings, and it still does a decent job depicting loneliness and grief.

Check out my review:
www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/twinles...

I had two cookies and a Coke for breakfast, and I have to agree with David Lynch, it’s phenomenal.

'The History of Sound': A Meditative Romance That Feels More Minor Than Major As I started watching The History of Sound, I couldn’t help but think of Brokeback Mountain, as the two films share a couple of major similarities. Both films star a pair of popular actors of their re...

The History of Sound is a muted period romance that feels a bit too bland to really make an impact. The vision is clear, but it falls short of delivering on its promises, with only brief moments of beauty and poignancy to break up the monotony.

Full Review:
www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/the-his...

'Caught Stealing': Austin Butler Knocks It Out of the Park in Comedic Crime Thriller Darren Aronofsky has made a name for himself by making films that could be described as “cerebral” or “bummers”. When you hear his name, you have a good idea of the type of film you’re in for, as his ...

Caught Stealing is a bit of a detour for director Darren Aronofsky, but it is one that pays off for him nicely. This is easily his best film in years, and blends elements of comedy and dark crime thrillers to make one wild ride.

Check out my review:
www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/caught-...

'Lurker': An Uneasy, Extremely Compelling Exploration of Obsession and Fame Anyone who has spent a few minutes on the internet can tell you that modern fandoms are extremely toxic. From gatekeepers to parasocial relationships to stans rushing to defend their idols when faced ...

Lurker is a taut tale of obsession in the modern age, and announces first-time filmmaker Alex Russell as an exciting new voice in cinema. It is wonderfully discomforting, and one of the most assured debut features I’ve seen in years.

Check out my review:

www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/lurker-...

#NowWatching Caught Stealing

'The Roses': A Thorny, Yet Heartfelt Satire of Modern Relationships In theory, a modern take on Warren Adler’s novel The War of the Roses isn’t the worst idea, but it is one that seems a bit tough to pull off. For starters, you need a strong script, a duo with great c...

The Roses satirizes modern relationships with an acidic tone but still remembers to find the love between its two main characters. It strikes a balance that may not sit well with some, but worked really well for me.

Check out my review:

www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/the-ros...

#NowWatching The Fantastic Four: First Steps

#NowWatching Jaws (50th Anniversary Screening)

'Highest 2 Lowest': Spike Lee and Denzel Washington Reunite for a Riveting Remake It takes a bold filmmaker to attempt to remake a classic like Akira Kurosawa’s High and Low, and Spike Lee certainly fits that bill. A man who needs no introduction, Lee has made a name for himself as...

Highest 2 Lowest may give into a few of director Spike Lee’s worst tendencies, but it also has so much of what he does best on display. It’s also further proof that Denzel and Spike are one of the greatest actor/director duos of all time.

Check out my review:

www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/highest...

'Honey Don't!': A Sloppy, Mildly Amusing Misfire Since The Coen Brothers decided to part ways and pursue their own projects, we have received one film from each of them. Joel gave us 2021’s The Tragedy of Macbeth, while Ethan gave us 2024’s Drive-Aw...

Honey Don’t! has all the ingredients of a good film, but they sadly don’t come together in the most satisfying way. Margaret Qualley is excellent as a quippy detective, but the film around her is messy and borderline incoherent.

Check out my review:

www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/honey-d...

'Ne Zha 2': A Stunning, Overstuffed Animated Epic The average filmgoer might not realize that the highest-grossing film of the year worldwide isn’t a Marvel movie, a Disney movie, or A Minecraft Movie, but a Chinese animated film about a mythological...

Ne Zha 2 is full of stunning spectacle, but doesn’t have much else to offer beyond this. It is still wildly entertaining, and it is nice to see an animated film that feels rather fresh and unique in this day and age.

Check out my review:

www.doctorpopcorn.net/post/ne-zha-...

#NowWatching The Roses

#NowWatching Highest 2 Lowest

#NowWatching Honey Don’t!

#NowWatching Ne Zha II