Mark McPherson's Blog, page 26

“All of Us Strangers” Review

There are moments when it’s great to get lost within the haze of All of Us Strangers. One of the best scenes is where the two leads are dancing and making out with a night of partying, drinking, and sex. When realizing this is a story of surprises in perceptions and dwelling on the spirits of the past, one might question whether this scene is genuine or not, asking if this is all in the main character’s head. The answer is that it doesn’t matter. At that moment, the only thing that matters is t...

“Freud’s Last Session” Review

Films about conversations between unique individuals can be fascinating. Be it the simplistic staging of My Dinner with Andre or the provocative debates with One Night in Miami, a mere meeting of minds can be enough to hold a film. Perhaps Freud’s Last Session could have been that if it didn’t meander as much as it did.

This historical fiction depicts a rumored series of meetings between Sigmund Freud () and C. S. Lewis () right around the start of World War II. B...

“The Zone of Interest” Review

Evil can live and fester if it is not seen. Films about the atrocities of humanity often come loaded with the grotesque shock to make that evil sink in. We look at films with gritty violence and tearful victims with sadness, evoking empathy and horror at what we’re capable of. The Zone of Interest is a challenge to the audiences, whether they can still see all that when stripped of their presence. It’s that absence of witnessing genocide that forces us to question how much of it we can feel and...

“American Fiction” Review

The most hilarious moment of American Fiction occurs when character attempts to see how far he can take this joke in his satirical book. He says he wants to change the title when negotiating over the phone. When the publishers ask what new title he’d prefer, he tells them bluntly, “Fuck.” In his mind, this is too far and will likely kill his project. It doesn’t. So long as his book feeds into the stereotype white liberals gobble up with black authors writing “black” stories, he...

“Night Swim” Review

A haunted swimming pool is not the worst concept in the world. It has some potential for the premise of something dark lurking under waves, playing on fears of drowning. There are components within Night Swim that could make for a compelling horror film in terms of stylish frights and thematic allure. Sadly, this film doesn’t very far into the deep end with its premise.

The Waller family hopes their move to a Minnesota suburb will yield some rest and healing for the former baseball player Ra...

“Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire” Review

It’d be too easy to declare Rebel Moon an unoriginal idea of Seven Samurai in space, considering we’ve already had that very film with Battle Beyond the Stars. That’s not the main problem with a film like this. Numerous films have ripped the concept of a rebellious misfit ensemble coming together to defend a village. The biggest problem with ‘s latest sci-fi epic is that it’s a film more interested in its stylized worlds than any of the characters who occupy it.

It’s strange how a...

The Best Movies of 2023

10. Perfect Days

Only director Wim Wenders could make this quiet drama of a Japanese toilet cleaner compelling and beautiful. Kōji Yakusho is absolutely stunning as the patient and sweet Hirayama, an old man who doesn’t talk much while on the clock. He lives a simple life of listening to classic rock while driving in the morning and reading every night before sleeping. He’s not completely mute as he does talk, but he chooses his words wisely. Slowly, his past is revealed, but also his ph...

“Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom” Review

As the DCEU ends, Aquaman’s exuberant nature arrives like the party animal far too late to get in on the party. The superhero swings by for his sequel with a six-pack of beer and the same bravado he brought from the last film. While some of that energy from the previous blockbuster resonates here, there’s only so much Aquaman can do with so little to work with, especially within a narrative where it feels like the engine is out of control and can’t slow down.

It’s almost merciful that this f...

“The Boy and The Heron” Review

masterful work in animation is something he can’t seem to tear away from. In the late 1990s, he intended the environmental fantasy Princess Mononoke to be his final film. Still, he changed his mind soon after when looking at the famine of good animation for young girls (thus, we got Spirited Away). In 2013, it was proclaimed that his historical drama The Wind Rises would be his final film. Here we are in 2023, and we have another Miyazaki movie. Although expected at this point,...

“Godzilla Minus One” Review

While the American Godzilla ongoing cinematic series continues to make the Japanese giant monster more palatable and simplistic for the American blockbuster-seeking audience, Toho seems to have a firmer grasp on how to continue with their notable film saga. They proved as much in 2016 with Shin Godzilla, a film that used the giant monster well in its theme of critiquing how bureaucracy handles disaster. They prove it again with Godzilla Minus One, a film that is even more superb for weaving God...