Monthly Archives: July 2025

Movie Preview: Brit Horror with serious bonafides — Listen for the “Whistle” 

Posted on July 28, 2025 by Roger Moore

IFC plucked this one and has it set for 2026 release. Looks excruciating, but in a good way.

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Movie Review: Insomnia Cure? “Invincible Swordsman”

Posted on July 28, 2025 by Roger Moore

“Invincible Swordsman” is a slick, beautifully-designed Chinese action fantasy that never escapes the trap of “time suck” that so many Wuxia thrillers fall into. That’s the period piece martial arts genre that revels in flying fighters and supernatural skills, polished … Continue reading →

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Classic Film Review: Burt, Booty, Brigands and Brigantines — “The Crimson Pirate” (1952)

Posted on July 28, 2025 by Roger Moore

“The Crimson Pirate?” Yarrrrr, there’s a pirate picture with teeth! Gore Verbinski borrowed from a parade of pirate movies when he concocted Disney’s “Pirates of the Caribbean” franhcise, none more than this jaunty romp from 1952. Warner Bros. gave star … Continue reading →

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Movie Preview: Love, Longing and Song-catching in Appalachia — “A History of Sound”

Posted on July 27, 2025 by Roger Moore

Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor star in this Bluegrass “Brokeback,” narrated by Oscar winner Chris Cooper (perfect) as an old man of the mountains who remembers that first great love — music — and the second, a fellow he met … Continue reading →

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Documentary Review: Teens ease the transition to adulthood via The Outdoors, Sled Dogs and “Folktales”

Posted on July 26, 2025 by Roger Moore

It’s billed as “the best years of your life,” the teenaged Romain complains in “Folktales,” the new documentary about teens, sled dogs and the wilderness “Folk” schools of Norway. Socially maladjusted, shy and withdrawn Romain has figured out that the … Continue reading →

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Netflixable? Sandler’s back in the Sandtrap — “Happy Gilmore 2”

Posted on July 26, 2025 by Roger Moore

Any hopes that Adam Sandler would use his Netflix contract to remake himself in movies like “Hustle” or “The Meyerowitz Stories”were dashed a couple of “Murder Mysteries” ago. But he’s still doing numbers for the streamer, as his audience aged … Continue reading →

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BOX OFFICE: “Fantastic Four” has a Fantastic opening — $118 million

Posted on July 26, 2025 by Roger Moore

No doubt about it, comic book film fans are rooting for Marvel to finally deliver a “Fantastic Four” worth celebrating. A more innocent, optimistic and juvenile franchise that has proven hard to start, restart and reboot, the thinking this time … Continue reading →

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Movie Preview: Something to see in a cinema this weekend? The second trailer to the all-star “One Battle After Another”

Posted on July 25, 2025 by Roger Moore

Leo and Benicio, Sean and Wood Harris, Teyana Taylor and Regina Hall, ex-revolutionaries, a little longer in the tooth, reunite to fight an evil old foe. And Alana Haim is here to remind us that sometimes Paul Thomas Anderson isn’t … Continue reading →

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Movie Review: For these Gen Z daters, it’s all downhill from “Oh, Hi!”

Posted on July 25, 2025 by Roger Moore

The mating rituals, commitment phobia and communication issues of a much-maligned generation are sent up, with amusingly mixed results, in “Oh, Hi!” — a rom-com that almost goes for it and almost comes off before losing its nerve. Writer-director Sophie … Continue reading →

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Movie Review: This “Fantastic Four” take their stumbling, humorless “First Steps”

Posted on July 24, 2025 by Roger Moore

Comic book cinema goes Mid Century Marvel for “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” a sleek and gorgeous looking reboot of this franchise that harks back to Fantastic 4 comic and TV cartoon’s heyday. The film’s true star is production designer … Continue reading →

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