Author: Caillou Pettis

Renowned horror writer Shirley Jackson (Elisabeth Moss) is on the precipice of writing her masterpiece when the arrival of newlyweds upends her meticulous routine and heightens tensions in her already tempestuous relationship with her philandering husband. The middle-aged couple, prone to ruthless barbs and copious afternoon cocktails, begins to toy mercilessly with the naïve young couple at their door.

To say that the filmography of Josephine Decker is weird and imaginative would be a massive understatement. With films such as Madeline’s Madeline and Thou Wast Mild and Lovely under her belt, she has made quite the name for herself in the film community throughout the years.

For some, her style and vision may be a bit too wild and outlandish to be considered enjoyable, but there’s no doubt that she has a clear voice, and that is heavily clear with her newest feature film Shirley, a quiet, oftentimes cold and somber thriller that does feel too pretentious but is nevertheless a mystery worth unraveling.

It sadly starts off quite slow with a first act that exists to set up the plot and introduce our lead characters. The film’s style is a bit jarring at first and it did take me quite a while to get settled into what the movie was going for, as there are numerous scenes at the beginning that came across as over-the-top and pretentious. Really, the whole film could be described that way. Style over substance would be a good term to describe some portions of the film, but after a while, the tension started to rise and the story became more intriguing and the style began to grow on me.

The highlight of the entire film however was the lead performance from Elisabeth Moss as the titular character. Moss is, in my opinion, one of the most incredible actresses working today. Having seen a large portion of her films, I am delighted to say that this is yet another win in her already impressive list of performances. With her role as Cecilia Kass in this year’s excellent horror feature The Invisible Man and now Shirley Jackson, this is Moss’ year.

But in addition to her, Odessa Young also delivers a strong and nuanced performance as Rose Nemser, who feels quite intimidating at certain times. The duality between Shirley and Rose was remarkably weird and fascinating. One scene in particular towards the second act involving mushrooms was so bizarre yet so well crafted that I just have to applaud it.

All of these elements combined make Shirley a little bit of a bumpy ride, although one that was admittedly worth it in the long run. It’s quite slow in the first act and it feels like a case of style over substance at times, but I’d be lying if I said that Josephine Decker’s latest didn’t leave me guessing.

Shirley may be a classic case of style over substance, but its incredible lead performance from Elisabeth Moss and bold vision from director Josephine Decker are too intriguing to ignore.

A Perfect Host: The BRWC Review – A group of friends rent an isolated lake house owned by a fitness-obsessed man with mysterious intentions.

One of the biggest tell-tale signs that A Perfect Host was going to end up being an amazingly bad movie is shown to us right in the opening scene as a deep-voiced narrator spouts endless expository dialogue and talks down to the audience while we witness a slew of shots of the outdoors and various different neighborhoods.

For some, this opening might set the tone for the rest of the film – a chilling, dark, cold opening that doesn’t give you any breathing room, and throws you in with the pack of wolves right from the start. But for others, it will come across as extremely lazy, incredibly rushed, and a poor form of storytelling. That’s how I viewed the opening, and really, the entire movie after it.

The instant it starts off, it is upsettingly obvious that the entire movie is going to be rushed. With a running time of only one hour and sixteen minutes, including credits, there really isn’t a lot of room for any kind of character growth whatsoever. In fact, the characters here are some of the most one-note characters I have seen in a horror movie in a long time.

They don’t have any sort of backstory solely because writer/director Chad Werner was too focused on keeping the film quite compact and tight that it created a problem. The movie feels relatively short and has some sequences that I’m sure people will enjoy if they are willing to turn their brains completely off, but for those that are looking for a genuinely fun and interesting horror flick are going to have to resist the urge to turn it off in the first ten minutes.

But all of the poor character elements aside, it just simply tells a boring and uninteresting story. It is painfully familiar and borrows off of so many other, and better mind you, horror films from the past. The premise of a group of people going to an isolated lake house is nothing new, that’s for sure. It would’ve been a little bit better had they taken that concept and injected some new life into it (such as the excellent Cabin in the Woods), but they never do that.

Instead, it goes the predictable and formulaic route at every possible turn. The “horror” scenes are completely unscary and rely far too much on jump scares. To make matters worse, the acting, line delivery, and the dialogue, in general, are all terrible are always come across as cringe-worthy.

Online, I have seen some people say the film is self-aware and admittedly over-the-top, and while that might be the case, it doesn’t benefit the film whatsoever. I’ve seen lots of great films that were silly and self-aware, but this wasn’t one of those movies. The only good thing it has going for it is its running time, which comes as both a blessing and a curse. It’s a blessing because it means you won’t have to put up with the film for long, but it is also a curse because it means that the film has absolutely no room for growth.

A Perfect Host suffers greatly from its short running time and boasts an incredibly silly, over-the-top script and features painfully boring horror sequences.

A journalist attempts to find his missing fiancee and uncovers the truth behind a sinister folklore that leads him down a dark and dangerous road.

Right from the opening scene of Blood Myth, I got a really weird and gross feeling in my stomach. A feeling that told me that I shouldn’t be watching this movie. Not because it’s a horror movie that’s so scary that, if I continue to watch, it will scar me for life. No. It was a gross feeling that told me that I still had over an hour left.

Despite the fact that this is billed as a straight-up horror flick, virtually nothing about it will give you any sort of thrill or will make you feel freaked out. It’s an extremely low-budget film that oftentimes feels more like a soap opera akin to Coronation Street rather than a “scary” movie. Right down to the cinematography, the dialogue, the acting, this just screams lazy filmmaking and it was painfully frustrating to watch.

It’s one of those movies where you can’t help but notice where certain scenes could have easily been so much better had the filmmaker stopped for a moment to think about things. It’s just riddled with too many problems scene after scene. I knew I was in for trouble when I noticed one of the actresses’ eyes darting back and forth as she was reading off of a teleprompter or a script.

All of the acting is incredibly weak and feels extremely wooden at all times. To be fair, I’m not sure whether or not the script is wholly to blame, or if the actors themselves just aren’t good actors. But I am willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

But all of the poor acting and dialogue aside, it’s simply boring and bland. It takes about half an hour for the film’s concept to even start to kick in. We never see our lead protagonist actually go on this journey of finding his missing fiancee until halfway through the film. The character development is basically non-existent here.

It feels like we meet our protagonist, and then, a scene or two later, he is off on his mission and for some reason, we are supposed to care about him and his plight. I understand that if your fiancee was missing, it would be a terrifying and stressful situation, but that’s kind of obvious. We should be given some other reason to care about his plight.

A large portion as to why we don’t care is because of the running time and the script. With a total length of eighty-one minutes, there isn’t any room for a slow-burning build. There’s no room for this story to bloom and to show what it really could have been. Instead, what we get is a drastically unscary, sometimes unintentionally hilarious horror film that misses the mark completely.

Blood Myth feels more so like an edgy soap opera rather than the terrifying horror film it wants to be, thanks to its weak acting and its familiar and underdeveloped story.

An assistant district attorney named Andrew “Andy” Barber (Chris Evans) and his wife Laurie (Michelle Dockery) are shaken up after their fourteen-year-old son Jacob (Jaeden Martell) is accused of murdering a classmate at school.

Before watching the newest Apple TV+ miniseries Defending Jacob, I had not heard anything about it. I had not seen any of the promotional materials accompanying the series such as a poster or a trailer, and I did not know that it was an adaptation of the novel of the same name by William Landay.

However, the one thing that hugely enticed me before watching it was learning who was in the lead cast. Chris Evans, Jaeden Martell, and Michelle Dockery are just a few of the names that line this star-studded show, and they are usually in projects that are worthy of their names and their talent.

Gratefully, I can say that this show is one-hundred percent worthy of the cast and its incredible director Morten Tyldum. Defending Jacob is not only the greatest television series I have seen since Breaking Bad, but it’s also one of the finest pieces of entertainment that I have seen in years, period.

It’s a non-stop, constantly moving series that will always leave you guessing with each and every episode. Screenwriter Mark Bomback does an absolutely phenomenal job at developing this story and our lead characters so much to the point where we eventually feel like we know them personally, and with each episode, we are glancing in at this crazy and chaotic moment in their lives.

Bomback’s work with the characters here is some of the best character development I have seen in years. We truly get to understand everybody’s point of view, whether it’s Jacob’s, Laurie’s, or Andy’s. Everybody feels completely well-rounded and incredibly well written in each episode.

But aside from all of the top-of-the-line character work that is certainly most impressive, it’s also a show that is extremely intense and gripping. With each passing scene, we learn more about the murder of Jacob’s fellow classmate Ben Rifkin (Liam Kilbreth), but just as we learn one thing, another question is brought up. Right when you may think you know all of the answers and have figured everything out, Bomback throws a curveball right toward you. It’s not the type of curveball that leaves you frustrated and angry, though. The exact opposite, actually.

One thing that was genuinely amazing about the series was how I could never truly tell who actually killed Ben Rifkin. There are moments where you may feel like you know the definite answer as to who it was. I was in the same boat. But then, other pieces of evidence start to emerge and now you start to question everything you have seen previously and re-evaluate for the future.

But besides all of the remarkable storytelling and character development, it’s also just an immensely stunning piece of entertainment, with the cinematography by Jonathan Freeman being exceptionally memorable. It often feels cold and is full of blue colors, but there are plenty of hopeful shots and lots of terrific uses of lighting that blew me away.

As a whole, Defending Jacob is about as good as any drama/thriller series can get. It’s a heart-wrenching, emotional, exhilarating, and stressful watch that will leave you shocked by the time the eighth and final episode comes. If you don’t already have a subscription to Apple TV+, Defending Jacob is worth signing up just for that alone.

Defending Jacob is one of the best television shows in years. It’s remarkably gripping, full of clever twists and turns, and has absolutely amazing character work on display.

When Odysseus left Troy it took him ten years to get back to his home in Ithaca. Steve and Rob have only six days on their own personal odyssey in The Trip To Greece. On the way they argue about tragedy and comedy, astronomy and biology, myth, history, democracy and the meaning of life! Featuring locations such as: Temple of Apollo at Delphi, the Ancient Agora of Athens, the Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus, the unique island of Hydra, the Caves of Diros, Nestor’s Palace, Niokastro Fortress in Pylos, and Ancient Stagira, as well as a lot of shooting in restaurants and hotels in Athens, Hydra, Lesvos, Chalkidiki, Pelion, Kavala, and at the Peloponnese.

Growing up as a kid, Michael Winterbottom’s original The Trip was playing at my house on a frequent basis. My parents are quite the movie buffs themselves. They try to watch at least two movies every weekend and occasionally, they will put some on during the weekdays as well.

Ever since I was a young child, I vividly remember my parents watching The Trip several times over because they just loved it so much. They would sit there throughout the entire running time laughing so hard they could barely breathe. I never found them to be hilarious or anything, but I would be lying if I were to tell you I didn’t find these films funny, because they can be quite humorous at times.

But something else I do deeply appreciate about this series is that it is not afraid to get dramatic and emotional at just the right moments, and Winterbottom’s conclusion to the series, The Trip To Greece, does exactly that. It makes you laugh, it relaxes you, then sneaks up on you with heavy emotion that surprises you and hits you in the gut.

The movie starts off a little bit slow sadly with Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon sitting at a dinner table, as per usual, it’s just that this time around, it’s not as fast-paced or witty. At least for a while. I remember glancing over at my parents to see what their reactions were and they seemed quite bored for the first little bit too.

I was genuinely worried that I wouldn’t end up laughing at the movie since a long portion of time passed where the only thing I was admiring deeply was the truly stellar cinematography by James Clarke. Gratefully though, after about half an hour or so, the jokes began to pick up the pace and I ultimately found myself smiling quite a bit.

The Trip movies are not for everyone though. These movies incorporate an incredibly specific type of comedy that a lot of people are not going to find funny, and a lot of these jokes are going to fly over a lot of people’s heads. Me personally, the humor works quite well, although it doesn’t make me belly laugh or anything.

Although the film as a whole is quite funny and amusing, the strongest aspect to this movie is without a doubt the chemistry between Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan. It is genuinely difficult to watch them goof around with one another and not have a smile on your face. Even a slight smirk. They are electric together just like usual and their banter is such a delight to behold, even if the movie can, at times, be a little bit lesser than the two of them.

The Trip To Greece sends the series off on a high note with more fun comedic banter between Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon, even if it is slowly-paced.