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Donald Trump knows his way around a pop culture meme. It's one reason the real estate mogul thrives in today's political marketplace. It's often more about memes and vibes than policies. It explains why he tapped Stanley Kubrick's 1987 masterpiece 'Full Metal Jacket' in a recent X post. WE WILL NOT HAVE A WOKE MILITARY! pic.twitter.com/zpWZhSKcEs — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 13, 2024 'Trump is always seeking to end wars and use peaceful methods. However, that’s primarily what is about, the shocking and complicated paradoxes of human nature... 'Truthfully, I believe my father (who supported Reagan), would very much
Horror movies follow a tried and true rule: less is almost always more. Give genre directors 90 minutes and they'll get the job done. 'Smile 2' shatters that rule into a million little pieces. What's worse? The film's ending offers exactly what we expect when almost any other resolution would have made the film matter. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FU_bAopCcSE The action picks up where 'Smile' ended. Young, troubled Joel (Kyle Gallner) is trying to remove the Smile curse bestowed upon him in the previous film. What follows is taut and terrific, extending the story and proving writer/director Parker Finn knows how to craft a
Donald Trump's media blitz included some of the biggest names in podcasting. That includes 'Flagrant,' the show hosted by Andrew Schulz and Akaash Singh. That episode went live Oct. 9. This week, Schulz reveals the fallout from that interview in the latest 'Flagrant' episode. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kqp05BTgZiw Brooklyn Academy of Music, where Schulz planned to shoot his next comedy special, canceled the gig hours after the Trump interview went live. The podcasters laughed about the decision. That couldn't cover up how it impacted his entourage's efforts to secure a fitting backdrop for his follow-up to 'Infamous.' 'We've had these venues locked in
Film critics bring their biases into the theater. Every time. Political. Cultural. Social. Heck, this critic adores horror movies and avoids period dramas when possible. (That said, 'The Favourite' was wonderful.) It's the critic's job to acknowledge and set aside those biases. Films deserve nothing less. The same holds for film analysis. And it's here where Variety's Owen Gleiberman loses the plot. Why? All together now: 'Trump Derangement Syndrome.' https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pb2Cjg637z0 The veteran critic is sad to see that the anti-Trump hit piece 'The Apprentice' bombed in its theatrical debut. The movie follows a young Trump (Sebastian Stan) learning the crooked
We’ve seen countless killer shark movies, from “Deep Blue Sea” to “Santa Jaws.” The sillier, the better. After all, what filmmaker can compete with 1975's 'Jaws,' the definitive shark attack thriller? That's why it's time kangaroos got a little genre love. Too bad “Rippy,” an Aussie shocker about a rogue ‘roo, packs neither scares nor laughs. Either would have been welcome given the critter in question. Instead, the film focuses on a hero’s emotional trauma and relies far too much on its CGI wizardry. Sadly, there's little magic to be found. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSVXbWFaJnA Sheriff Maddy (Tess Haubrich) wants to be a local
The team behind 'The Apprentice' wants it both ways. The film is a fair and balanced look at President Donald Trump that humanizes the real estate mogul. Oh, and it's a supervillain origin story and you should vote accordingly. Which is it? Count Sebastian Stan as part of that mixed messaging machine. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3kIia_QD3k This week, Stan promoted the film at the film's BFI London Film Festival premiere. It's already tanking stateside, and it's unlikely the film's UK release will change that pattern. Stan plays a young Trump rising up through the real estate ranks in the late 1970s and '80s.
Wes Craven’s “Shocker” (1989) opens with a strong case of déjà vu. We see the close-up of crud-smudged hands putting something together in a workshop, while a bloody knife sits unattended to the side. It looks so much like the opener of Craven’s “A Nightmare on Elm St” (1984) that only the slick cinematography and busy heavy metal soundtrack indicate we’re watching a different movie. From the opening moments, Craven’s comic horror film declares its intentions to meet and possibly surpass the Freddy Krueger standard, as well as set itself up as a polished studio film and a possible mainstream
Collider said the quiet part out loud. 'Whatever I can do to help people watch , I will do' - Steven Weintraub, Collider He tried. And he wasn't alone. The corporate press pulled out all the stops to promote 'The Apprentice,' Hollywood's latest attack on Donald Trump. Story after story after story. Fawning interviews. False claims that the film is a fair assessment of Trump's rise to power. The latter is Hollywood fiction. And it all failed. Miserably. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvPRxy9kmSg 'The Apprentice' couldn't crack the Top 10 in its debut frame, earning a pathetic $1.5 million from 1,740 screens for 11th
“Line in the Sand” and ‘Treason” examine stark moral questions in the handling of the U.S./Mexico border. The documentaries reveal the agents overseeing the border and the lives affected by illegal immigration. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAevPLL1zEQ 'Line in the Sand’s' morality concerns the hearts and minds of Customs and Border Patrol (CPB) agents. Their work, not surprisingly, consists of identifying, detaining, recording, housing and releasing human beings in accordance with orders from higher-ups. What might be surprising are the ethical conundrums that their job puts on them and their claims of being hamstrung by agency policy. What jumps off the screen is how
Neil Jordan’s “Interview with the Vampire” (1994) begins with dreamy aerial shots of San Francisco, drawing us in with Elliot Goldenthal’s beautiful, melancholic score (similar to his music for “Alien 3”) and Phillipe Rousselot’s lush cinematography. We push in on an empty room, inhabited by a bespeckled Christian Slater, playing the Interviewer, about to bear witness to the story of the lifetime from the longhaired figure staring out the window. It's Brad Pitt playing a vampire named Louis. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCmYN6TLd8A So begins “Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles” (the full onscreen title), the most anticipated film of its year and
We almost didn't see 'The Apprentice' before Election Day. Most distributors wanted no part of the anti-Trump feature. President Donald Trump threatened legal action for what he deemed false depictions of him, including a controversial rape scene in the film's third act. Before then, A-list directors like Clint Eastwood and Paul Thomas Anderson reportedly passed on the project. Briarcliff Entertainment took a chance on the finished film which earned an eight-minute standing ovation at the Cannes Film Festival in May. Turns out that gamble might not pay off. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lx1EzAtslIE 'The Apprentice' earned just $150,000 at Thursday screenings from 1,750 screens.
The 'Not Ready for Prime-Time Players' earned their nickname. 'Saturday Night,' a wild look back at 'Saturday Night Live's' 1975 debut, shows the cast careening around the studio with little idea what to do next. The same held for Lorne Michaels, the maestro behind the sketch institution. The film's ingenious conceit - it's the 90 minutes before the 90-minute show's debut - gives director Jason Reitman license to cheer counter-culture comedy in 2024. Imagine that. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZ9O_tl5Npk&t=2s TV needed 'Saturday Night Live' more than it realized. So did American culture. Lorne Michaels (Gabriel LaBelle) agreed. It's why he created a rag-tag
Genre TV shows strive for one crucial goal. Keep you watching at all costs. Sure, that’s the plan for any series, but horror/sci-fi yarns have an ace up their sleeves. Just ask the team behind “Lost.” You had to keep watching to uncover the mystery, even if the final reveal lets down well, almost everyone. That’s the best reason to stick with “Teacup,” now playing on Peacock. The head-scratcher stars Yvonne Strahovski as an animal vet whose micro-community comes under attack. By what? We haven’t a clue. How? See above. The purpose? Keep watching. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlgFApr-VLA Strahovski stars as Maggie, a
Sweet Baby Ray’s tag line says it all: “The Sauce Is the Boss.” Something similar holds for “Caddo Lake.” The Max thriller’s best asset is its title – the swampy landscape where the story takes place. It’s a character unto itself, a sprawling vista that can swallow up someone if they’re not careful. If only the rest of the film proved as compelling. “Caddo Lake” boasts solid acting, strong production values and a story we haven’t seen before. Yet the narrative never gets under our skin. The same applies for its small-town characters. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rrx_lZxzjbQ&t=56s Young Ellie (Eliza Scanlen), is having
Some of The Babylon Bee's funniest work boils down to a perfect headline. Consider: FEMA Warns They Don’t Have The Resources To Block Humanitarian Aid For Next Hurricane The accompanying faux news article is almost superfluous (it's still worth a read). That one line cuts through political malfeasance like a Ginzu knife. It's why corrupt fact checkers pounce and seize on the Bee so often. So can the right-leaning Bee's brand of satire extend to a feature-length film? 'January 6: The Most Deadliest Day' answers that question. Absolutely. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6HnqV6jzTU Babylon Bee Editor-in-Chief Kyle Mann anchors the mockumentary as ace reporter
The joke is on us with “Terrifier 3.” The twisted franchise gave us Art the Clown, the best serial killer since Freddy sharpened his nails. Its torture-porn aesthetic felt almost quaint given Art’s shtick. He’s still yukking it up in the third and demonstrably weakest installment. What’s missing? Tension. Surprise. Coherency. Everything series creator Damien Leone lovingly slathered onto the first two chapters. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYMTzx2Qcmw The film opens in the present, with Art gussied up like ol’ St. Nick to skewer an unsuspecting family. The sequence plays out longer than necessary and there’s nary a chill to be had. Leone is
'Love Bound' explores love, loneliness and the quest for connection at a time when romantic bonds are undergoing a seismic upheaval due to evolving cultural, economic and technological forces. Extended Trailer: Love Bound is a short film about a lonely man struggling with mental health, struggling with dating, and struggling with money. It explores many questions, such as why are so many men frustrated with dating? Do men struggle more than women? Do men cheat more… pic.twitter.com/Ebfmjk3g1F — Dek Webber (@DekWebber) September 11, 2024 'Love Bound' is more than just a short film; it's a commentary on love in the
Howard Stern is in a race against himself. How fast can the radio legend tarnish his legacy? Abandon free speech? Check! Turn his SiriusXM show into a DNC platform? Check! Cancel crackerjack guests like Adam Carolla? Check! Stern, 70, doesn't resemble the pioneer who changed the face of radio. It's like two different broadcasters. This week, he proved there's still a new low for the aging legend. Howard Stern to Kamala Harris: “When — when you said you don't nap, I get it because, like, what you've taken on is extraordinarily difficult. And I — I mean, do you feel
Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, killing nearly 1,400 people and leaving thousands without power, homes or both. Hollywood took less than a week to officially respond to the 2005 crisis. 'Scores of musicians and Hollywood celebrities,' according to far-Left NPR, rallied to raise funds for those impacted by the natural disaster. 'A Concert for Hurricane Relief' may be best remembered for Kanye West's race-based attack on then-President George W. Bush. Hollywood's charitable efforts extended to the corporate level. In addition to the multiple telethons and fund-raising events, media companies such as Walt Disney, DreamWorks, GE (parent of NBC Universal), News
Take that, Bart and Lisa. 'The Simpsons' greets each October with a 'Treehouse of Horror' installment. 🎃'The Simpsons' first 'Treehouse of Horror' episode aired 31 years ago tonight, October 25, 1990, on Fox pic.twitter.com/Q0NLZQx29W — RetroNewsNow (@RetroNewsNow) October 26, 2021 Now, It's 'Family Guy's' turn to christen Halloween. The 'Peter, Peter, Pumpkin Cheater' Halloween Special, streaming exclusively on Hulu starting October 14, lets the Griffin clan grapple with seasonal tidings. Pumpkins Costumes Candy Murder... The half-hour isn't just a sweet treat for 'Family Guy' fans with not one but two celebrity voice cameos. It arrives on the show's 25th anniversary.
There's a fascinating story to be told about Donald Trump's Big Apple ascendancy. 'The Apprentice' sniffs around the edges but isn't interested in that yarn. It's about channeling nearly a decade of anti-Trump rage into one film. Mission ... accomplished? That devalues bravura turns by Sebastian Stan as Donald Trump and 'Succession' alum Jeremy Strong. Their performances are taken out at the knees by partisan fury. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tXEN0WNJUg Trump's meteoric rise begins in the 1970s, a time when we're told he had to collect rent payments in person for his aloof father Fred Trump (Martin Donovan). This Donald Trump isn't as
No one's smiling over 'Joker: Folie a Deux' this weekend. The anticipated sequel got crushed by critics and fans alike and will make just $47 million in its opening frame. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OKAwz2MsJs The 2019 original generated $96 million in its first weekend en route to a U.S./international split of $335 million/$743 million, according to BoxOfficeMojo.com. The musical sequel will be lucky to break $80 million domestically given the tepid opening and tortured word of mouth - witness that 'D' CinemaScore. Mild spoilers ahead. You have to hand it to director/co-writer Todd Phillips. He didn't follow the sequel blueprint. He held it
Bruce Willis never made the jump from actor to director that contemporaries like Kevin Costner and Denzel Washington did, but he was still no slouch behind the camera. Besides some writing on projects like “Hudson Hawk,” Willis built a unique filmography as a producer. He worked behind the scenes on his own films like “Hostage” in 2005 and even helped bring Steve Irwin to the big screen with 2002’s “The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course,” all through his Cheyenne Enterprises with producing partner Arnold Rifkin. The strongest project Willis focused on as a producer that did not involve him as an
M. Night Shyamalan’s “The Sixth Sense” (1999) arrived with such a quiet, understated amount of hype at summer's end that no one expected it to be the durable classic that it became. I have an embarrassing story about “The Sixth Sense” that I’ve shared many times - I was at an early screening of the film, a test screening taking place not long before the film’s wide release at the tail end of the busy summer of 1999. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CY67NA5EJlk Once I left the theater and found myself in the lobby, I was approached by a lady holding a clipboard, who
Phelim McAleer and Ann McElhinney were working around Hollywood gatekeepers long before Matt Walsh rocked the documentary scene. The Irish journalists knew the progressive arts world wouldn’t help them set the record straight on the death of Michael Brown or the Russian collusion hoax. So they did it on their own, with a little help from crowdfunding. “Gosnell” “Ferguson” “FBI Love Birds: UnderCovers” 'My Son Hunter' And, most recently, “October 7.” The harrowing play lets Israeli survivors of Hamas’ barbaric attack share what they experienced on Oct. 7, 2023. The couple produced the play for a six-week run in New
The villain in 'Saturday Night' isn't a thug, oil tycoon or politician. It's a church lady armed with a bright red pen. The Oct. 11 release recalls the frantic 90 minutes before the first 'Saturday Night Live' episode changed TV. We meet The Not Ready for Prime-Time Players as they scramble to bring counter-culture comedy to life. It wasn't easy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZ9O_tl5Npk There's plenty to chew on during the film. The cast members do good-enough impressions of Lorne Michaels, Chevy Chase and John Belushi. It's fun to see comedy institutions like 'Weekend Update' in their earliest forms. Another takeaway? How much
Todd Phillips’ “Joker: Folie a Deux” (hereafter referred to as “Joker 2”) defies expectations and will put to the test all of the pre-packaged welcome and fanboy glee that greets it. The return of Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck, aka Joker, isn’t another opportunity to watch Phoenix murder in the name of nihilistic comic book authenticity, nor another attempt to mimic (or steal outright from) Martin Scorsese’s “The King of Comedy” (1983) and “Taxi Driver” (1976). Instead, Phillips has made an honest-to-goodness musical, with visual allusions to “The Umbrellas of Cherbourg” (1964) and “Dancer in the Dark” (2000) as just a few
Director Todd Phillips said goodbye to big-screen comedies with 2019's'Joker.' The director of 'Road Trip,' 'Old School' and the 'Hangover' trilogy cut his teeth on big, bawdy romps that drew a crowd. Why leave the genre behind for a supervillain origin story? He blamed the woke mind virus for his curious career pivot. “Go try to be funny nowadays with this woke culture...There were articles written about why comedies don’t work anymore—I’ll tell you why, because all the f***ing funny guys are like, ‘F*** this s***, because I don’t want to offend you.’ It’s hard to argue with 30 million
Chris Sanders’ “The Wild Robot” has emerged as a true sleeper in an age where animated movies are mostly sequels or spinoffs of toys or games. Based on Peter Brown’s 2016 book, Sanders’ CGI-animated comedy is about a robot stranded in nature, but also about resisting the way we are programmed. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67vbA5ZJdKQ Lupita Nyong’o is the voice of Roz, an advanced, physically capable robot who can hold her own when marooned on a planet. Once she realizes there is wildlife around her, Roz’s mission isn’t just survival from desertion but avoiding being torn apart. The first act, in which Roz
Whoopi Goldberg attempted to fact check 'Chuck' alum Zachary Levi on 'The View' this week. Let's hope the 'Sister Act' alum doesn't give up her day job. Levi, speaking at a Reclaim America event in Michigan, said coming out as a Donald Trump supporter could be 'career suicide.' Goldberg used her 'View' perch to allegedly set him straight. “From the beginning of Hollywood, it’s always been a very right-leaning town, but I know you don’t know much about the Hollywood history, so let me school you... “We are, like America is, we’re a mixed bunch. And sometime it may seem
Singer Chappell Roan is getting the Taylor Swift treatment. The rising star is under intense pressure by progressives to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris. She did everything but do just that, and she's faced a withering social media blowback as a result. She even canceled gigs to protect her mental health in the 'scandal's' wake. Chappell Roan cancels NYC & DC festival shows due to health concerns amidst backlash over political stance. Prioritizing well-being to ensure her best performance for fans. https://t.co/8I1rey2ZKi pic.twitter.com/dE2KeuHnRE — Digital Dynamo (@digitalDynam0_) September 30, 2024 Some suggested a recent 'Saturday Night Live' skit targeted Roan
Bob Clark’s “Black Christmas” (1974) is a petrifyingly scary film, easily one of the all-time most unsettling to take place during the yuletide holiday season. While not a hit upon release (it left a very small impression), it was among the first of the Canadian Tax Shelter films made, so called because a budget was established to help create a Canadian film scene and allow budgets for films with commercial potential. “Black Christmas” and the early works of David Cronenberg were among the Canadian Tax Shelter films; while Cronenberg eventually broke through to widespread success and acclaim, neither his earliest
The word 'brave' is thrown around liberally in Hollywood. He was 'brave' to gain 30 lbs. for an Oscar-bait role. She showed 'bravery' with a vanity-free performance in an indie film. The word feels diminished in that context, even if the people uttering it have the best intentions. For true Hollywood bravery look no further than Zachary Levi. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=12&v=H4zcJU2EjxY&embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.breitbart.com%2F&source_ve_path=MjM4NTE The actor, best known for his work on NBC's 'Chuck' and the recent 'Shazam!' features, just came out in support of Donald Trump. That's brave in and of itself. The new Hollywood blacklist discriminates against conservatives in ways both large and
Harvey Weinstein played his ace in the hole when the media finally caught up with his sexual assaults. The Democratic bundler vowed to make a movie eviscerating the gun lobby after the 2017 New York Times expose broke. Surely that would buy him some grace from journalists, he hoped. Nope. He went from the King of Hollywood to just another prison inmate. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xnFg7F_gnM Ellen DeGeneres' transgressions were far from anything Weinstein did. The affable comic oversaw a toxic work environment at her hit 'Ellen' talk show. She was distant, detached and downright mean, her growing legion of critics cried. The
Julia Louis-Dreyfus has more in common with Vice President Kamala Harris than you think. Yes, the “Seinfeld” alum played a clueless Vice President on HBO’s “Veep.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2HoCG_iyhU The similarities proved so uncanny even the far-Left “Daily Show” drew a direct comparison between the two. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72vUngNA9RM And the show wasn’t alone. The Ruthless Variety Progrum also hilariously connected the pair. The actress recently admitted she doesn’t know much about political matters during a chatty appearance on MSNBC. If you’ve heard Harris talk about the core issues facing voters this year you know her political acumen is akin to a high school
Natalie Erika James’ “Apartment 7A” is a 1965-set prequel to “Rosemary’s Baby” (1968). It stars Julia Garner as Terry, a dancer whose foot injury has made her undesirable to casting directors. Things seem to turn around for her when she is befriended by a nice couple, Minnie and Roman Castevet (Dianne Wiest and Kevin McNally). The older couple gives her a room in their high-rise apartment, free of charge. They’re awfully nice, those Castevets, especially when they offer Terry thoughtful life advice and that necklace full of Tanis root… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kj2GqMvhbNM Look, if you’ve seen “Rosemary’s Baby,” or any of the
Tobe Hooper’s “Salem’s Lot” (1979) was the first televised miniseries based on the 1975 Stephen King novel and a successful, influential one at that. In fact, despite content restrictions for 1970s television and having varying spinoffs, sequels and remakes, it's still one of the best long-form movies based on any King book. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f27iJTxhPX0&t=4s After a brief prolog, establishing where the story is going eventually, we are brought to the town of Jerusalem’s Lot, two years earlier. David Soul stars as Ben Mears, a successful novelist who returns to his childhood home and is full of dread over his memories of
Ellen DeGeneres risked plenty when she came out both on and off camera. That's no joke. The comic used her '90s 'Ellen' sitcom to take a stand for gay rights. At the time, an actress faced serious repercussions for simply being seen with an openly gay star like DeGeneres. The late Anne Heche learned that lesson in the cruelest way possible. Against all odds, DeGeneres emerged triumphant. By the time she snagged her eponymous talk show she was one of Hollywood's comedy heavyweights. That was then. Today, she's scarred from the behind-the-scenes scandal that ended her talk show. Her new
Dinesh D'Souza rides the zeitgeist like a California surfer. The pundit's '2000 Mules' tackled election integrity worries tied to the 2020 election. Last year's 'Police State' described how America resembles a Soviet-style nation. Now, he's exploring not just Donald Trump's final fight for the White House but the powers bent on taking him down. 'Vindicating Trump' is as rah-rah as you might expect from D'Souza. This time, he expands his use of scripted scenes with surprisingly funny results. Said elements prove sharper than expected, but they aren't the snug fit the narrative demands. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJuF2RNkyGk&t=8s The docudrama fuses traditional talking head
Howard Stern doesn't lose any sleep over the fight to save free speech. Joe Rogan does. The Spotify superstar nearly lost his signature show during the pandemic after the Left labeled his COVID-19 views as problematic. The same scolds looked the other way as corporate media bent the pandemic truth into a pretzel. Hold the salt. Rogan upholds free speech in several ways. He invites 'canceled' guests onto the wildly popular podcast, including Alex Jones and comedian Shane Gillis. He routinely defends our right to free and fair conversations. And, most recently, he warned of a looming threat that could