The Brutalist contains some impressive performances and technically great filmmaking, but the chaotic second act and overly bloated runtime left me feeling it’s massively overhyped.
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A Complete Unknown Review
A Complete Unknown is a film that folk fans can appreciate this holiday season. Timothée Chalamet is an acting powerhouse as the enigmatic Bob Dylan.
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Red One Review
Besides that, I didn’t find much to enjoy in this odd and overstuffed mess. I would not recommend Red One this holiday season. Unfortunately, it is neither festive nor fun. It is game over though, so that counts for something.
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Atlanta Film Critics Circle Announces 2024 Awards
The Atlanta Film Critics Circle Announces 2024 Awards
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Anora Review
Anora is a gritty tale of excess, classism, and the hope of the American dream. The film contains great performances with a star-making turn by Mikey Madison.
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A Real Pain Review
A Real Pain is a fantastic character study on generational trauma, family dynamics, and complicated grief. It toes the line of comedy and drama to create a truly impressive film.
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Conclave Review
Conclave has some repetitive sequences, but it is an intriguing slow burn character thriller that keeps you guessing until its final moments.
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Here Review
Here is a very ambitious high-concept film with a messy narrative structure, but I walked away appreciating the performances and story as a whole.
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Saturday Night Review
Despite a chaotic script, Saturday Night is an engaging movie with great performances all around.
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Agatha All Along Review
Agatha All Along
Starring: Kathryn Hahn, Joe Locke, Patti Lupone, Jennifer Kale
Streaming on: Disney Plus
Who remembers the days of WandaVision? When we all waited each week and theorized (often wrongly) on what would happen next with Wanda Maximoff and Vision in the town of Westview? Those were good times. Following the hype of WandaVision, a spin-off was in order for Westview’s resident witch Agatha Harkness.
Agatha All Along follows Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn) and Teen (Joe Locke) as they assemble a Coven to travel down the treacherous Witches’ Road.
Just like WandaVision, a lot is going on in this show. The genre shifts frequently from comedy to horror to musical. (Yes, there is singing.) Some of it is campy fun and some of it doesn’t work…like the many attempted comedic one-liners (in true Marvel fashion.)
Showrunner Jac Shaeffer (who also helmed WandaVision) begins the show with a creative framing device. The first episode, “Seekest Thou The Road” cleverly plays into small-town mystery procedurals like True Detective and Mare of Easttown. In the episode, “Agnes” believes she is a detective solving a high-stakes murder investigation. Everything is turned upside down when the seemingly familiar Rio Vidal (Aubrey Plaza) shows up. It isn’t long before Agnes realizes that her detective persona is a facade and Agatha resurfaces.
Episode Two, “Circle Sewn With Fate/Unlock the Hidden Door” documents Agatha and Teen’s attempts to recruit a Coven to travel the Witches’ road. They meet up with some interesting characters including Lilia Calderu (Patti LuPone), Alice Wu-Gulliver (Ali Ahn), Mrs. Hart (Debra Jo Rupp), and Jennifer Kale (Sasheer Zamata).
Kathryn Hahn steps right back into the role of Agatha like no time has passed. She was a scene stealer in WandaVision and has no problem taking the lead in Agatha All Along. Hahn is wildly theatrical and entertaining.
Joe Locke is a good addition as Teen, Agatha’s eager sidekick, hoping to learn all that he can about Covens. Locke and Hahn have endearing mentor/sidekick chemistry that is a bright spot in the show.
Agatha All Along is sure to be a popular series among those who like the darker side of Halloween. Its early episodes try to bring magic and scares (plus a little singing) to the Marvel universe, but the tonal shifts and clumsy one-liners often fall flat.