by Jake Triola Hot Rod, released ten years ago, embodies the Lonely Island’s emergence into mainstream comedy and, even more so, the dawn of a new generation’s sense of humor. After success on YouTube and then SNL (because of YouTube), the troupe, featuring Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, and Akiva Schaffer, decided to make a movie. … Continue reading
by Jake Triola Bee Movie is the tale of a young nonconformist bee named Barry B. Benson (Jerry Seinfeld), who’s fed up with the status-quo, which is, apparently, pretty harsh in the world of bees.Every bee goes to school, then to work, and then they die. Not only that, once a bee is assigned a … Continue reading
by Jake Triola James Gray’s latest, The Lost City of Z, is a bold attempt at hearkening back to perilous jungle-adventure classics. Truthfully, it is executed with great dignity. It comes with its own set of Amazonian horror stories, that plagued production, which also terrorized its influences, Aguirre, The Wrath of God, Apocalypse Now, and … Continue reading
by Jake Triola Sabrina, Billy Wilder’s 1954 fairy tale of a film, offers up a charming story of two rich brothers and their chauffeur’s daughter. It’s classic Hollywood romance with a cast as hefty as it is lovely; starring Humphrey Bogart, William Holden, and Audrey Hepburn, who had just experienced her breakthrough with Roman Holiday. … Continue reading
by Jake Triola Andrei Tarkovsky’s 1979 Soviet classic, loosely based on the novel Roadside Picnic by the Strugatsky brothers, evokes, in a manner you could only find in a Tarkovsky film, a swirling wonderland of post-apocalyptic psychological mayhem. It follows three men on a journey through “The Zone” to find “The Room,” a place where … Continue reading
by Jake TriolaDirector Pablo Larraín is on a winning streak. He’s made three films just in the past two years and seems to have effortlessly made his way on to the scene. Recently, he collaborated with producer Darren Aronofsky to make his widely-acclaimed English-language debut, Jackie, which received three well-deserved Oscar nominations. His latest film, … Continue reading
by Jake TriolaI had a high school calculus teacher who sometimes talked about the dreams she had as a girl to work for NASA. She always seemed to be one of those people who could do just about anything with aplomb; this is obviously due to a combination of natural ability and, focus. She picked … Continue reading
by Jake TriolaMascots, Christopher Guest’s latest installment of mockumentary magic, follows a group of mascots who compete for first prize in an annual competition. Like most of Guest’s characters, the people in this film are oddballs of a different breed and losers trapped in their own world. The story follows the typical “Guestian” formula, but … Continue reading
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