High-Def Digest: The Bonus ViewOctavia Spencer Archives - High-Def Digest: The Bonus View

Ma Review: Don’t Make Her Drink Alone

Deirdre Crimmins — Fri, 31 May 2019 12:00:57 +0000

Ma is a rare gem of a horror film. Its cast is award-winning and its premise is promising, but despite this pedigree it never takes itself too seriously. Maggie and her mom Erica (Diana Silvers and Academy Award nominee Juliette Lewis) are moving back to mom’s hometown after a divorce. We get hints through their...

The post Ma Review: Don’t Make Her Drink Alone appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Sundance Journal: Luce

Jason Gorber — Tue, 12 Feb 2019 16:00:24 +0000

It’s rare to see a film so courageous as Luce. The movie demands a lot from its audience. It mercilessly refuses to be easily constrained, consistently undermines conventions and expectations, and delves deeply into moral uncertainty. Like other Sundance selections including Get Out and Sorry to Bother You, Luce is a powerful examination of the...

The post Sundance Journal: Luce appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Instant Family Review: Missing Ingredients

Deirdre Crimmins — Fri, 16 Nov 2018 18:00:33 +0000

Neither families nor films behave like instant soup. One cannot simply combine the ingredients, stir, and expect a delicious outcome. Instant Family provides the evidence for this on both fronts. A semi-autobiographical film from writer/director Sean Anders, Instant Family follows a couple in the months leading up to and just after they foster three siblings....

The post Instant Family Review: Missing Ingredients appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Weekend Roundtable: Worst Movies by 2018 Oscar Nominees

Josh Zyber — Fri, 26 Jan 2018 20:00:34 +0000

When Oscar season comes around, we like to play a little game where we remember that not all of the celebrated actors and directors have had spotless track records for quality entertainment. Let’s look back at some of the worst movies made by this year’s batch of Oscar nominees. Specifically, we have our eyes on...

The post Weekend Roundtable: Worst Movies by 2018 Oscar Nominees appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

‘The Shape of Water’ Review: Amelie Meets the Creature from the Black Lagoon

Philip Brown — Thu, 07 Dec 2017 20:00:10 +0000

Guillermo del Toro’s latest film is a stunning achievement and easily one of his finest works. At once a profoundly personal fairy tale love story and a perversely entertaining monster flick, ‘The Shape of Water’ is destined to be loved by those who live their lives and find their loves on the fringes. Sally Hawkins...

The post ‘The Shape of Water’ Review: Amelie Meets the Creature from the Black Lagoon appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

TIFF Journal: ‘The Shape of Water’

Philip Brown — Thu, 14 Sep 2017 18:00:20 +0000

Throughout his strange career, Guillermo del Toro has made it a mission to fuse horror and fairy tales until they become indistinguishable. The guy has done a remarkable job weaving those dreams together so far, but something about his latest feature ‘The Shape of Water’ feels even more special. Fully embracing his latent whimsy while...

The post TIFF Journal: ‘The Shape of Water’ appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

‘The Shack’ Review: No Love for This Shack

Philip Brown — Thu, 02 Mar 2017 20:00:59 +0000

It’s possible that we’ll see a worse movie released in 2017 than ‘The Shack’, but that’s only because life is full of surprises, not because this complete failure is remotely redeemable. As I must any time that I rip apart a Christian-sploitation movie, I must now take a moment to make clear that tearing down...

The post ‘The Shack’ Review: No Love for This Shack appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

‘Hidden Figures’ Review: Soft Sell Inspiration

Philip Brown — Thu, 22 Dec 2016 18:00:42 +0000

‘Hidden Figures’ is a nice movie, a sweet movie, an inspiring movie, an Oscar movie. It’s destined to make people in mall movie theaters across the land smile. It will be shown in history classes on days when teachers are behind in lesson planning. It will get nominated for awards. It will be discussed fondly....

The post ‘Hidden Figures’ Review: Soft Sell Inspiration appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

‘The Divergent Series: Allegiant’ Review: Mediocrity Minus an Ending

Philip Brown — Thu, 17 Mar 2016 19:00:36 +0000

The second ‘Divergent’ movie made slightly more money than the first in the global market, so now we have a third chapter. The main knock against the series thus far is that it feels rather redundant to ‘The Hunger Games’, and whoo-boy that sure hasn’t changed! If fact, now that the whole “faction” concept has...

The post ‘The Divergent Series: Allegiant’ Review: Mediocrity Minus an Ending appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

‘Black or White’ Review: Could Have Used Some Gray

Philip Brown — Fri, 30 Jan 2015 15:00:02 +0000

‘Black or White’ takes on the messy issue of contemporary race relations in America. The filmmakers so desperately want this to be a Big Important Movie about Big Important Things that they forget to bother with more simple concerns like credibility or coherency. It’s a whale of a melodrama filled with raging performances, and tries...

The post ‘Black or White’ Review: Could Have Used Some Gray appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

‘Get On Up’ Review: Good God, Y’All

Philip Brown — Fri, 01 Aug 2014 15:00:50 +0000

James Brown’s insane and turmultuous life is just too grand and bizarre for a conventional bio-pic. Thankfully, the folks behind ‘Get On Up’ don’t even try to fit that square peg into a round hole, delivering a non-linear and deeply odd movie that suits the man and his music. Toss in a simply astounding central...

The post ‘Get On Up’ Review: Good God, Y’All appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

‘Snowpiercer’ Review: Unjustly Neglected Sci-Fi Thrill Ride

Philip Brown — Fri, 27 Jun 2014 13:00:31 +0000

Thrilling, satirical, beautifully designed and packed with stars, ‘Snowpiercer’ is one of the finest and most satisfying movies of the summer. And yet, because it’s a Korean production that landed in the hands of the Weinstein Company, it’s barely getting released at all. Seek it out. You won’t regret it. 2013 should have been the...

The post ‘Snowpiercer’ Review: Unjustly Neglected Sci-Fi Thrill Ride appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.