image from the film Together: alison brie and dave franco trapped in a hole, the opening casting light down on them

Tone is such a fickle thing. So hard to maintain, and if you find it too late, it’s nearly impossible to get back and adjust the rest to match, either in reshoots or the edit. Together is a case in point: beautifully acted, some truly gnarly effects work, an overarching theme about co-dependency…and yet. All of those don’t matter if the tone is off, and my biggest issue with Together is that by the time it really finds its footing we’ve spent an awkward first half of the film that lingers a bit too long, marring an otherwise outrageous and fun second half.

ChrisSeptember 28, 2025September 28, 2025Leave a comment

28 years later header - a desiccated zombie rises in a fields of flowers

Reviews

Hooptober 12.0 – 28 Years Later (2025)

Being Film #8 for Hooptober 2025

23 years later from 28 Days Later we get 28 Years Later, and while I loved writing that sentence, I didn’t love it as much as I loved the film itself. Danny Boyle and Alex Garland return to their 2002 “fast zombie / don’t call it a zombie film” film, in the process not only setting the stage for a new trilogy of films (28 Year Later: The Bone Temple is already shot and set for January 2026) but also bursting every seam of the movie with cutting criticism of English politics while solidly building out the mythology of the world, utterly investing us in its characters, and once again using smartphones both in and on the film to marry the themes of the movie to its execution. Oh, and it’s balls out scary, to boot. This is how you do it.

ChrisSeptember 20, 2025Leave a comment

Reviews

Hooptober 12.0 – Clown In A Cornfield (2025)

Being Film #7 for Hooptober 2025

Well, it had to happen sooner or later. Not so much a dud as a “well, I was definitely expecting more from this” kind of letdown. Maybe I finally hit the age where I just can’t relate to the kids of today, because despite coming from a guy who’s proven to successfully subvert the tenants of horror with comedy before, Clown In A Cornfield can’t get over the gulf of some seriously unlikeable kids. That and some clunky jokes combine to make a film that looks good, wraps up succinctly, but ultimately leaves you empty in the end.

ChrisSeptember 20, 2025September 20, 2025Leave a comment

Reviews

Hooptober 12.0 – The Black Phone (2021)

Being Film #2 for Hooptober 2025

I had the bar set low for The Black Phone, the latest horror collaboration between the writing/directing team of Scott Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill. On one hand, I wasn’t the biggest fan of either the Sinister films or Deliver Us From Evil, save for the gnarly exorcism. On the other hand, I’ve enjoyed Cargill’s novels and this latest film comes with some true horror bonafides, being an adaptation of a Joe Hill short story. The result is a tight, thrilling film that might be my favorite Derrickson showcase to date, visceral and honest without resorting to funneling in needless exposition or backstory. It’s creepy urban legends mixed with the usual King small-town supernatural, and I fell for it hard.

ChrisSeptember 15, 2025September 20, 2025Leave a comment

Reviews

Hooptober 12.0 – Monster Island (2025)

Being Film #1 for Hooptober 2025

There’s a lot that goes into choosing the first movie in this marathon: do you get the requirements out of the way first? Look at runtimes? Or is it something more ephemeral? I wanted to start with the simple things that made me a fan of the genre as a kid, and that is monsters. Specifically monsters that are practical, man-in-suit creations. And so here we are with the aptly named Monster Island, a small period piece that makes the most of its limited budget, cast and location to craft a fun if slightly underwhelming creature feature.

ChrisSeptember 15, 2025September 20, 2025Leave a comment

Reviews

Hooptober 11.0 – Hell Hole (2024)

Being Film #26 for Hooptober 2024

It’s rare, but sometimes the situation just calls for a low budget yet earnest splatterfest involving Lovecraftian cephalopods who get into your body and just…incubate. Then explode your body at the first sign of danger. This was one of those times, and Hell Hole, the latest feature from the filmmaking family of John Adams and Toby Poser, who brought the similarly cook Hellbender to audiences a few years ago, was the film. The TL;DR is this is fun, rocking with a nice metal soundtrack, and has LOTS of people splattering. It also weirdly has things to say about environmental concerns, body rights, and whether French people can be shot indiscriminately. I’m not so sure about that last point, but the rest is definitely there for interpretation.

ChrisOctober 9, 2024Leave a comment

Cinema Dual (TEST SITE)

Examining a life through the media we consume. In other words, I’m reviewing all of my physical music media in alphabetical order, one day at at a time. Except when I don’t, as has been the case for the past few years. Still, we march onwards…Coffee essential, but not mandatory

Tag: 2020s

Hooptober 12.0 – Together (2025)

Hooptober 12.0 – 28 Years Later (2025)

Hooptober 12.0 – Clown In A Cornfield (2025)

Hooptober 12.0 – The Black Phone (2021)

Hooptober 12.0 – Monster Island (2025)

Hooptober 11.0 – Hell Hole (2024)