Author: Rob Dean

Ever since televisions have become a staple in most households, there has been an odd and at times adversarial relationship between TV and film. As more people stayed home to watch shows on their TV sets in the late ’60s and early ’70s, Hollywood opened up the floodgates of artistic freedom to try something, anything to lure people to theaters. But there’s also been a weird back and forth between the two mediums as well, including TV shows based on movies, movies based on TV shows and even the occasional extension of a series into a film sequel, with shows…

Ang Lee makes films around familiar archetypes and universal themes – love, aging, isolation, war, family – and the pairs them with impressive, poetic visuals to make them seem almost mythic in nature. While 2003’s “Hulk” is not very good, it uses comic book paneling and split screens in ways that Brian De Palma and “Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse” could only dream of, all while centering its story of the green behemoth on the toxic legacy of a horrible father. Sometimes Lee’s approach works wonders, laying out these modern myths that will resonate for generations. But other movies feel as…

It’s pretty hard to make a film that comments on the current social zeitgeist in a timely fashion. Putting aside the nebulous amount of time it takes to write a script and secure funding, it usually takes 12 to 18 months from the start of pre-production to release. A lot can happen in that time with today’s rapidly moving news cycle, which means that if a filmmaker is looking to comment on a current trend in culture or how they perceive society as a whole, it requires a very tight balancing act. The movie needs to be specific enough so…

Pointing out that there’s “still life” in the zombie genre has become one of the most worn-out tropes and hackneyed bits of punmanship in discussing the subject matter. But it’s surprisingly applicable that there is constantly something new coming from the world of zombies given just how much content there is focusing on the living dead. Multiple TV shows, books, comics, films, video games, memes and toys feature the shambling corpses every year, and yet there’s usually only two or three truly surprising entries that figure out a fresh approach which proves there’s still more to mine from the genre.…

“Cleave” is a fascinating word in the English language, because it is its own antonym. It means to come together as well as to pull apart. It’s also an apt term for the social atmosphere that seems to dominate the world these days. Mass communication through ever-present cell phones, social media and more means that people can find others of similar interests and connect with them. But that also gives way to a lot of bubbles in which the most important topic in that community doesn’t even register for the vast majority of the population. Ahead of the release of…

We’re deathly afraid of that stabbing word “pretentious,” the word that students use to curse each other’s ambition. It’s a young person’s word, a shortcut-to-thinking word. I’m a big fan of pretension. It means “an aspiration or intention that may or may not reach fulfillment.” It doesn’t mean failing upward. It means trying to exceed your grasp. Which is how things grow. – Warren Ellis “Ad Astra,” the new film directed and co-written by James Gray (“The Lost City of Z,” “We Own the Night”), is not for everyone. In fact, days after seeing it, I still don’t know if…

When making a film based on a true story, it’s hard to know when to adhere to reality and when to take liberties for storytelling or entertainment purposes. 2013’s “Pain & Gain” found Michael Bay repeatedly underscoring that all the insanity depicted onscreen actually happened… even though it was largely a conflation of multiple people into three main characters and whole events were taken out of sequence. Similarly, Adam McKay’s “The Big Short” constantly undercuts its verisimilitude by having actors break the fourth wall to explain that certain scenes didn’t unfold the way they were shown. Any movie with its…

The concept of turning off one’s brain while watching a movie is an oversimplification of the joys of schlock and popcorn fare that conflates simplicity with stupidity. Though the underlying intent is clear – many people turn to film for some sort of escape from the drudgery of life – the expression is an inaccurate perspective of how people consume entertainment. Even if it’s predictable or formulaic, a movie can engage viewers’ minds with nostalgic elements, spectacle or some other facet. “Angel Has Fallen” is not a challenging film to watch – there is little to no ambiguity or inventiveness…

A fascinating element of movie watching is the indefinable math that each viewer uses to decide if they like a particular film. Everyone applies a different value to the various aspects of what they’re watching; while some care more about plot or dialogue, others just want to be entertained. That’s what makes the filmgoing experience so subjective, as each viewer has a unique set of criteria formed by their own interests and knowledge. Take, for instance, the new horror movie “Ready or Not.” Though it’s a muddled film with many flaws, it still manages to be entertaining due to a…

As a storyteller, Quentin Tarantino is more interested in the characters he creates than anything else, no matter how many pop culture references, narrative tricks or visual styles he employs. Those characters, who may have a few minutes of screen time yet an entire family tree’s worth of history and background, are the lifeblood of his films. “Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood,” Tarantino’s ninth film remains in the vein of his previous work if only because it’s so intrigued by these people he’s dreamt up (or plucked from reality). There is still a mountain of winks and nods to…