-
“Modern Whore” Is an Entertaining and Necessary Doc on Sex Work | ForReel
•
Sex work is work. Let’s get that out of the way right off the bat. Society has traditionally looked down on sex work, and in particular sex workers, for various reasons rooted in dubious morality (and religion), but the fact remains that sex work is work, and sex workers are deserving of respect and…
-
“Noviembre” Is a Gripping Tour De Force That Turns History Into Harrowing Theatrical Experience | ForReel
•
On November 6th, 1985, a left-wing guerrilla group called Movimiento 19 de Abril (M-19, for short) stormed the Palace of Justice in Bogotá, Colombia. The intent was to hold the Justices of the Supreme Court hostage and force a trial against President Belisario Betancur. What happened instead was one of the deadliest attacks in…
-
“Burning” and the Art of Captivating Storytelling | ForReel
•
Storytelling has been a part of the human experience since the dawn of time. From cave paintings to campfire stories to novels to film, at our core, we want and need to tell stories, and our memory is key to the process. What we write is informed by our remembered experiences, as is how…
-
Spike Lee Retrospective: “Inside Man” | ForReel
•
Spike Lee is best known for racially and politically charged dramas like Do the Right Thing, He Got Game, Da 5 Bloods, and BlacKkKlansman. While these are some of the films that he might be best remembered for, he was not above more studio-friendly fare. In 2006, he also made one of the slickest…
-
A Familiar Narrative Holds “The Bearded Girl” Back | ForReel
•
There was a time when we regarded circuses with awe. – when we’d file into circus grounds to see trapeze acts and contortionists, and wonders from far-off lands. But those days are largely in the past now. The Bearded Girl is a coming-of-age story set among the remnants of those days. Centred on a…
-
“The Well” Walks a Well Worn Path Through an Intriguing World | ForReel
•
Post-apocalyptic stories tend to serve as warnings that come in many forms; sometimes they are about how the apocalypse might unfold, or about the resources we will fight over, or the people who will be doing the fighting. Whether the future is filled with robots or devoid of resources, there’s always human drama and…
-
Strong Performances Keeps “Horsegirls” on Track | ForReel
•
Horsegirls is a unique film about a young woman’s journey to find her place in the world. It hits several beats that you will see coming along the way, but it gets there with some important distinctions and directions that you perhaps won’t. Margarita (Lillian Carrier) is 22 and autistic. She lives with her…
-
“Superman” Revels in Goodness to Find Greatness | ForReel
•
There are those who will tell you that Superman is a difficult character to write. Because he’s so powerful, there’s no foe he cannot defeat, and no obstacle he cannot overcome. This is, of course, wrong. Superman is not a difficult character to write; he’s the easiest, since all that you need to know…
-
“Birthright” Goes Horrifyingly Wrong in All the Right Ways | ForReel
•
There is, it is fair to say, often generational divides. One that we are living through today is between millennials (who are now in their 30s and 40s) and boomers (who are now mostly retired). Boomers grew up in a world that had ample opportunity, and a more fair distribution of wealth, whereas millennials…
-
“Inside” Is a Compelling Prison Redemption Story | ForReel
•
Each of the men in this story exemplifies a part of these themes, both shared and individual. Warren (Pearce) is a scruffy older man serving time for violence he committed in the past. His parole is coming up, but he’s indebted to other inmates who will get what they’re owed one way or another…
-
Movie Review: “The Electric State” In A State Of Disrepair | ForReel
•
Where even to begin with The Electric State? The latest film from the Russo Brothers features an all star cast and is set in a 1990s-influenced retro future full of pop culture references, but fails at almost every turn to be anything interesting at all. Let’s not mince words here, The Electric State is a…
-
Sebastian Stan Stands Out, Adam Pearson Wins Audiences Over In “A Different Man” | ForReel
•
…This first layer of the story is fascinating, with Stan playing Edwrard playing Guy playing Edward, and crushing it. He threads a precise needle with this performance in which he is very visibly still the same man he was but can project confidence while never letting anyone know whom he was before –even going…
-
Movie Review: Gripping Thriller “September 5” Lead By Strong Performance From John Magaro | ForReel
•
Everything that happens has happened for a first time. Terrorism as we know it has been with us since the late 18th century, but on September 5th, 1972, something happened for the first time. As the Palestinian militant group Black September stormed the Munich Olympic Village, killed two members of the Israeli team and…
-
The Greatest Hits: A Predictable Flick to Vibe With | ForReel
•
The plot is also a touch predictable but that doesn’t matter because The Greatest Hits is a vibes movie, and you have to vibe with it. If you can approach it with this mindset, you will likely have a good time. Sure, there’s definitely a scene where Boynton and Min connect via singing along…
-
Civil War Is a Timely, Must-See Cautionary Tale | ForReel
•
And yet, throughout the film, one clear choice is made: it doesn’t take sides. Early in the story, Dunst’s Lee tells Spaeny’s Jessie that they don’t decide; they document so that others can decide, and that’s the entire film’s approach. It’s never confirmed who started the war or why, or indeed, in many cases,…