Derrick Murray is a Los Angeles based stand up comedian, writer, and co-host for The Jack of All Nerds Show.
While “Wicked: For Good” may share in the similar narrative stumbles on stage, all of those misgivings are melted thanks to Cynthia Erivio and Ariana Grande’s tremendous performances. These women possess immeasurable talent and not even the big screen is large enough to fully contain it.
I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed.
The fall festival season may have come to an end, but Oscar season is in full swing and the fall box office is starting to get more and more crowded as studios start up their campaigns and get their films into theaters for a qualifying run. I’d love to review all of the films I saw at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) 2025 individually, but there are just too many in addition to non festival releases to do that. But that doesn’t mean we can’t put a few films on your radar and cover them with some quick reviews!…
Once in a while a film comes along that sits in your brain for days, unable to fully process or comprehend the experience. Thoughts feel nearly impossible to put into words even as they fire a mile a minute inside the mind and getting it all out there seems like an impossible task. That’s the case with “Die My Love,” a visceral, impressionist examination of depression, postpartum, disassociation, the fallacy of normalcy and the longing to be seen made as an unsettling tapestry of vignettes that blur the lines between reality, dreams and nightmares. I genuinely don’t know what to…
“Predator: Badlands” is the lesser of the latest three helmed by Trachtenberg, lacking the grit and rawness of “Prey” and the blood soaked adventure of “Killer of Killers.” It’s not so much that it’s bad – it’s not and actually a whole lot of fun – but more so that it feels like a standard sci-fi action hero film reformatted to fit a Predator into it.
Sure to frustrate the historical purist crowd, the latest iteration of “Nuremberg” trades out accuracy for thrilling court room drama, fueling its reimagining of historic events with big time dad movie vibes. This is a rare moment where TNT energy is a compliment, the kind of film that has so many rousing (albeit predictable and by the numbers of the genre) moments that when it inevitably plays on cable endlessly, you’ll most likely kick your feet up and watch it through to the end. “Nuremberg” gives the sham trial the “A Few Good Men” treatment, using genre tropes as a…
It’s a rare thing to see both a break out lead performance from an ever reliable performer and a break free moment from franchise shackles for a director. In “Hedda,” whatever glass ceiling limitations are set on these women are shattered with brute force. Tessa Thompson solidifies her already solid career as a true leading women, delivering an electrifying, tour de force performance and Nia DaCosta (“Candyman,” the upcoming “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple”) directs the hell out of this classic reimagining, proving that she is best when not constrained by the IP studio machine. For Thompson, she has…
“Bugonia” pulls the rubber band until it snaps, and before you have a chance to gather your senses it unfolds with unrelenting insanity – a staple of Yorgos and a welcomed explosion of WTF.
“Blue Moon” is a character study of genius, brought to life by a powerhouse performance from Hawke, a sharp script and a soft touch from Linklater’s hangout direction.
“House of Dynamite” simply attempts too many things without saying anything for itself, leaving it in a sort of limbo where its highs are rocket ships in space but the lows are scouring the bottom of the Titanic.
