Catching Up On Cinema

In this week's installment of Catching Up On Cinema, Kyle introduces Trevor to Rose Glass' psychological horror film, Saint Maud (2020)!

A British A24 production, and considered part of the vaunted “elevated horror” subgenre, the film is a feverish and truly unsettling descent into madness.

Headlined by Morfydd Clark as the titular Maud, and featuring Jennifer Ehle as a prickly cancer patient who Maud becomes obsessed with saving, both physically and spiritually, the film is an intimate character study that pulls no punches in exploring the darkness that can manifest from trauma, isolation and despair.

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In this episode of Catching Up On Cinema, Trevor is joined by Harrison from the Grief Burrito podcast to review Luc Besson's, The Fifth Element (1997)!

Featuring costuming by Jon-Paul Gauthier, design work by Moebius, and a colorful and varied score composed by Eric Serra, the film is an audio-visual treat for every frame of it's 126 minute runtime.

Check out Harrison and his buddy Jordan at griefburrito.com or hit up Harrison on social media @griefburrito or @HazzWild

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In this episode of Catching Up On Cinema, Trevor and his brother Matt sit down to review Darius Marder's 2020 Oscar darling, Sound of Metal (2020)!

Headlined by Riz Ahmed, and co-starring Olivia Cooke and 2020 best supporting actor winner, Paul Raci, the film is a weighty but refreshingly organic drama focusing on the events that unfold when a young drummer/recovering addict discovers he is going deaf.

While Ahmed's character of Rubi is featured in virtually every scene, the production makes frequent shifts in perspective, both audio and visual, that show a level of care and attention to detail that is truly commendable.

An actor's film, the movie is never hurried, and often allows incredible cast of actors truly inhabit and and embody each scene, such that one often feels that any one of it's characters could easily headline a compelling film/story of their own.

Beautifully written and edited, the film is streamlined and thought provoking, making for an easily digestible, but densely layered experience that is difficult to find fault with.

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*WARNING!* This episode contains total spoilers for Mortal Kombat (2021) *WARNING!*

A reboot of the videogame adapted movie series that began with Paul W.S. Anderson's 1995 live action iteration, the film serves the dual role of being both a delivery system for fanservice and Easter eggs, as well as a radical new take on the early chapters of the established franchise canon.

Curiously headlined by Lewis Tan as Cole Young, a character not featured in the game series, the remainder of the cast is comprised of fan favorite characters (as well as a few obvious expendables) portrayed by a diverse range of charismatic actors and true blue martial artists.

While the snappy, largely improvised dialogue of Josh Lawson's Kano will likely see the actor walking away from the production as the fan favorite, Joe Taslim and Hiroyuki Sanada blow the majority of the cast out of the water when it comes to the martial arts and emotionality components of performance quality.

An example of a rare American martial arts blockbuster, the film was one of Trevor's most anticipated of 2021.

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In the finale of Catching Up On Cinema's Action April event month, Kyle and Trevor review Steven Seagal's, On Deadly Ground (1994)!

To date the only film directed by Seagal himself, On Deadly Ground is far from the best film in the martial artist turned actor's less than stellar filmography, however it is the film that best represents the man and his oddly specific brand of indulgences and quirks.

Notorious for it's bizarre combination of environmentalist/ecoterrorist messaging and brutal action spectacle, the film is often sloppy, always silly, yet surprisingly sincere in it's closing minutes.

While On Deadly Ground would serve to herald the impending doom of Seagal's silver screen exploits, it exists today as an ironically entertaining novelty, and as a grim reminder of what can happen when a grossly untalented, egocentric bully is given the keys to his own destiny.

Truly, the only man that could defeat Steven Seagal, on screen or otherwise, was Steven Seagal.

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*This episode was recorded during a brief stretch of time wherein the absolute best source for physical media news, blu-ray.com, was down*

It's once again time for Catching Up On Cinema's monthly Catching Up On Blu-Ray episode!

This time around, Trevor is once again joined by his good friend Brad from the Cinema Speak podcast in reviewing the month's physical media releases.

Check out Brad's podcast, Cinema Speak on Libsyn at Cinema Speak, or on Twitter and Instagram.

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In this week's installment of Catching Up On Cinema's Action April event, Kyle, Trevor and Matt review Jean-Claude Van Damme's, Hard Target (1993)!

The first American production to be directed by prolific Hong Kong wunderkind, John Woo, the film serves both as a showcase for JCVD's talents as a legitimate action star, as well as a solid introduction for Western audiences to Woo's knack for framing artful action choreography.

Packed to the gills with peculiar quirks and flourishes particular to both the leading man as well as his director, the film is somewhat tonally uneven and melodramatic at times, though never boring and often spectacular in it's third act.

Make sure to check out Matt's "book club for video games," podcast, Couch Co-Op!

He also has a new wrestling podcast, The Hollywood Brunettes, so check that out too!

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It's once again time for Catching Up On Cinema's monthly Tales from the Shelf episode!

In this installment, Standout Scenes, Trevor is joined by his good buddy Brad from the Cinema Speak podcast in reviewing movies from their collection that have exceptional set piece moments.

Check out Brad's podcast, Cinema Speak on Libsyn at Cinema Speak, or on Twitter and Instagram.

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In this very special, "theatrical" edition of Catching Up On Cinema, Kyle and Trevor review Adam Wingard's eagerly anticipated daikaiju blockbuster, Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)!

The equivalent of The Avengers for Legendary studios' Monsterverse franchise, the film is a briskly paced, crowd pleasing affair that wisely delivers no more or less than it's almost comically simplistic title offers.

Probably the least ambitious of the Monsterverse films in terms of worldbuilding and human/monster integration during it's battle sequences, the movie is nevertheless offers visceral thrills and visual splendor, well suited for the theatrical experience.

Pairs well with pizza and beer.

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In this week's installment of Catching Up On Cinema's Action April event month, Kyle and Trevor are joined by the former's brother Nik in reviewing Mark L. Lester and Arnold Schwarzenegger's cheesy action classic, Commando (1985)!

Seemingly produced in direct response to the success of the Rambo series, and indeed the emergence of the over-the-top jingoistic action films of the day, the film embraces the larger than life qualities of it's headlining star, trading in patriotism and political commentary for one liners and absurdism.

Not exactly regarded as being a top tier movie in the storied career of the Austrian Oak, the film is nevertheless a campy and fun diversion that serves as perhaps the best example of what most (ignorant) people assume his films to be.

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