Author: Derrick Murray

It’s that time of year again! The fall festival season is upon us, with big and small titles hitting Venice, then Telluride, and then the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). It’s the festival’s 50th anniversary, so the lineup is stacked with all of the most anticipated titles and awards contenders from all over the world. With nearly 300 films slated over roughly 2 weeks, there is simply too much to see and too many films to wrap your head around. Luckily we’ve had the privilege of being able to check out a few films before the festival, and wanted to…

“Caught Stealing” feels so inconsequential and forgettable you barely remember things as they happen and it can’t seem to pair its propulsive energy with any kind of longevity or entertainment value.

“Highest 2 Lowest” is Lee at his most reflective and sentimental, using masterpiece source material to deliver a thrilling and deeply funny love letter to cinema, music, New York, creativity, legacy, and black excellence. One of the greats doing what he does best with all the love in his heart poured out in every frame.

…even at its funniest and horniest it fails to jolt any electricity into its disjointed and purposefully convoluted plot, leaving “Honey, Don’t” feeling as flat as its Bakersfield desert setting.

“Relay” is a well crafted, taut, clever thriller that works best when operating within its genre confines. It manages to blend formulaic thriller tropes with unpredictability and arresting intrigue, something we just don’t see in cinema all that often anymore.

“Nobody 2” feels half baked and undercooked, and while there’s some fun to be had sometimes it’s all but forgotten by the time you get home.

I’m not ready to call “Weapons” a masterpiece, but I am ready to call it an evergreen brain worm that – if you’re willing to let it – stays with you indefinitely and will be a film we talk about for a long, long time.

Sure, it’s not quite as good as the original, but it doesn’t have to be so long as it honors its legacy and does right by the classics. “The Naked Gun” does both of these things, and if you’re looking for a good riotous time at the movies, you really can’t go wrong with this one.

I enjoyed the hell out of “Together,” a wild, repugnant (again, compliment) ride that left me squeamish and uncomfortable in the best of ways. It also sports one of the best needle drops of the entire year, and I can’t even begin to describe how hard I laughed.

“The Fantastic Four: First Steps” is a tale of two films; one that attempts to take its first steps into new directions and one that backtracks into the same old tired Marvel machine.