Theatrical Reviews

Reviews of selected general release films

SLAMDANCE 2023 Reviews: Emily Kaye Allen’s CISCO KID looks at a queer woman creating an unexpectedly American paradise

By Luke Y. Thompson 3 years ago

The movie’s more concerned with her making the place reasonably functional first, without as much emphasis on the artistic nature of it. But as the kind of fly-on-the-wall doc that doesn’t offer additional context nor narration, it shifts that burden to the viewer. It matters less what the artist thinks than whether you see the art there, even if the hands that form it appear more practicality minded.

Alex Liu’s A SEXPLANATION goes to places pleasantly and informatively in a way that you wouldn’t expect when we talk about sex

By Luke Y. Thompson 4 years ago

Beginning and ending with his Catholic parents, who chuckle like Beavis and Butt-head when the subject turns to their own sex life, Liu tests the theoretical carnal knowledge of his family and friends. He then converses with many experts, self-professed and otherwise. From scientists who do MRI scans of orgasms to sex advice hotline staffers, Utah Republicans, to a surprisingly liberal Catholic priest, some perspectives may seem predictable, but most offer some level of surprise, and all maintain a level of civility one might not expect, if one is regularly on social media.

Ham Tran’s MAIKA is a surprising and very entertaining spin on the alien and child buddy movie

By Luke Y. Thompson 4 years ago

With strong music cues, simplistic villains, extremely broad acting, and a fairly simple story, Maika might be an insufferable movie if it were made by an American studio. (There is an English dub, which I’d be afraid to watch.) What helps make it compelling is to see the same beats of something like E.T. filtered through a different culture (or two, if you count the source material). When the kids make Home Alone-style improvised weapons to fight the villains, for example, one of their schemes is to repeatedly slap people in the face with kimchi.

Oualid Mouaness’ 1982 provides a snapshot of Lebanon through a child’s eyes processing a landscape beset by war and the threat of it

By Luke Y. Thompson 4 years ago

The title 1982 has specific meaning in Lebanese history, but it also serves as a reminder that this is a period piece. Because aside from one kid obsessed with his Walkman and cassette collection, nothing about the movie feels dated. Calculator watches may be confiscated instead of cell phones, but otherwise this could be a tale of Ukraine today, or an American act of terrorism tomorrow.

Nicole Mejia’s A PLACE IN THE FIELD: Santa Barbara Film Festival Review: us through a veteran’s redemptive journey back to himself

By Luke Y. Thompson 4 years ago

Part of Mejia’s goal in making the film was to represent the Latino veteran point of view, using magical realism and other cultural touchstones. The result feels nonetheless universal, though the coyote metaphor that reoccurs feels specific. In addition to being desert creatures who howl, coyotes are also symbolic of tricksters, and the nickname for folks who smuggle migrants across borders. Without spoiling, those meanings all come into play.

From Screamfest 2021: Ben Charles Edwards’ FATHER OF FLIES is a nightmarish creep-out

By Luke Y. Thompson 4 years ago

here’s nothing quite like the rush a viewer can have when a film that was seemingly just plodding along suddenly pulls everything together, clicks into gear, and hits the gas. Whether one thinks it consciously, or feels it subliminally, that “I wasn’t sure this filmmaker knows what they’re doing, but yeah, they actually do” beat is what makes festival viewing so satisfying sometimes. It’s often unknown territory, and buried treasure is not always there to be found. But Ben Charles Edwards knows what he’s doing in Father of Flies. And that’s reenacting his own nightmares, and giving them to you instead.