Filmlosophers

The Filmlosophers, Eddie Villanueva, Chad Riley and Spencer Williams, welcome back guest host Laura Sirikul and live like a bunch of multi-billionaires with this week’s review of Crazy Rich Asians (2018). Based on the popular novel by Kevin Kwan, the film adaptation boasts an all-Asian cast and appears to mark the return of the contemporary romantic comedy genre. Starring Constance Wu, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeoh, Gemma Chan, Lisa Lu, Awkwafina, Ken Jeong, and Nico Santos, the film provides a lavish look at one of the wealthiest locations on earth: Singapore.

The Filmlosophers, Eddie Villanueva, Chad Riley and Spencer Williams, dive into hot bag of time-hopping crazy with this week’s review of The Last Sharknado: It’s About Time (2018). The popular made-for-TV movie series, which has been delivering B-movie laughs and eye rolls every year since 2013, pulls out all the stops for a shark-infested cameo-fest that spans history and strains the nearly invisible veneer of believability that has characterized the entire series.

The Filmlosophers, Eddie Villanueva, Chad Riley and Spencer Williams, take a fresh tour of Oakland, California, with this week’s review of Blindspotting (2018). Filmed in 2017 in the rapidly-gentrifying neighborhoods of West Oakland, Blindspotting stars Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal as lifelong friends who wrestle with personal challenges and societal ills as they try to come to grips with the changes that are transforming their home turf. Bursting with angst at a variety of levels, the film manages to blend timeless themes and traditional pacing with contemporary spurts of spoken word verse, rap and vivid cinematography.

The Filmlosophers, Eddie Villanueva, Chad Riley and Spencer Williams, stick to the shallows for this week’s review of The Meg (2018). The Meg stars Jason Statham as a deep sea rescue diver who tangles with a prehistoric super-shark called the megalodon more than 200 miles off the coast of China. Billed as a modern-day thriller in the same vein as Jaws (1975), the film features an international cast and borrows heavily from some of its predecessor’s most beloved moments. The question remains, however, whether it will stand the test of time or sink quickly.

It's been awhile, but we're back! In this bonus episode, we discuss whether or not B-movies are actually worth watching, and why Spencer loves them so much. What do you think? Listen in to hear our thoughts!

The Filmlosophers, Eddie Villanueva, Chad Riley and Spencer Williams, get a little sentimental with this week’s review of Christopher Robin (2018), the latest in a series of live action adaptations of famous Disney cartoons. Starring Ewan McGregor, Hayley Atwell and a slew of famous voices including Jim Cummings, who has voiced Winnie the Pooh and Tigger for more than 30 years. Whether you’ve followed the ongoing adventures of Pooh and his friends for years or you’re just now getting to know the characters, there’s a lot to appreciate in this tale of friendship and family.

The Filmlosophers, Eddie Villanueva, Chad Riley and Spencer Williams, race against time to face a series of challenges head-on with this week’s review of Mission Impossible: Fallout (2018). Tom Cruise reprises his role as Ethan Hunt in the film franchise’s sixth installment, alongside a slew of returning performers including Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Michelle Monaghan, Sean Harris and Alec Baldwin. The action thriller is filled to the brim with breathtaking stunt sequences and features only a few new faces - Henry Cavill, Angela Bassett, Vanessa Kirby, and Henry Cavill’s mustache - but it may just be too full with a runtime of nearly two and a half hours.

The Filmlosophers, Eddie Villanueva, Chad Riley and Spencer Williams, face the towering inferno and come out the other side for this week’s review of Skyscraper (2018). Starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Chin Han and Neve Campbell, the story centers on a private security contractor hired to certify the safety of the world’s tallest building, the fictional Pearl in Hong Kong, and its suitability to house new residents. Featuring numerous death-defying moments for Johnson’s character, the story pushes the boundaries of logic and challenges even the most gullible audience member’s ability to suspend disbelief.

The Filmlosophers, Eddie Villanueva, Chad Riley and Spencer Williams, hop on the Neighborhood Trolley for a trip down memory lane with this week’s review of the feature length documentary Won’t You Be My Neighbor? (2018). Directed by Academy Award winner Morgan Neville, the film chronicles the career of Fred Rogers, creator and star of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood on PBS. Utilizing a collection of archival footage and in-depth interviews with family and friends, Neville weaves a winsome tapestry of the motivation and mission of one of American television’s pioneering voices.

The Filmlosophers, Eddie Villanueva, Chad Riley and Spencer Williams, embark on a subatomic rescue mission in this week’s review of Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018). Directed by Peyton Reed, this is the first Marvel Cinematic Universe film to drop since Avengers: Infinity War (2018). Fittingly, it explains what the size-shifting protagonists (played by Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly) were doing as the rest of the MCU heroes chased down the Infinity Stones and battled against Thanos. The film also provides audiences with our longest look yet at the quantum realm, a layer of reality that Kevin Feige admits will be a key factor in future films.