BROKEN DIAMONDS MOVIE REVIEW

“Your sister didn’t ruin your life, her illness did.” Family has a way of breaking us down, in little ways more often than big. And sometimes, it’s the little and the big all at once. In the case of “Broken Diamonds”, the new dramatic offering from Peter Sattler (his second feature following his debut “Camp X-Ray” with Kristen Stewart), we get to watch the unravelling of a family in every facet. In the wake of his father’s death, Scott, a young writer, sees his dream of moving to Paris put in jeopardy when he’s forced to temporarily take in Cindy, his wildly unpredictable, mentally ill sister living with schizophrenia. It’s a film with heart and a dash of brutal truth as we watch Scott try to figure out what to do with his life. Melina, Harmoni, Jordan, and T.C. have themselves an emotionally loaded group therapy session as they discuss the indie drama. They laugh, they cry, they awkwardly over-share to the point of having a hard time making eye-contact by the end. You know, family time.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE/TRAILER

DIRECTED BY: Peter Sattler

STARRING: Ben Platt, Lola Kirke, Yvette Nicole Brown, Alphonso McAuley, Lynda Boyd, Chad Willett, Amanda Fix, Debs Howard

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Melina Eames (Screener Squad)

Melina first discovered that she carried the nerd gene at the tender age of four following her exposure to a little film called A New Hope. In the twenty-some years that followed, Melina continued to grow into her geek identity through the discovery of Batman, Mst3k, Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings and The Mandalorian. But perhaps her most significant discovery came at the age of fourteen when a night of YouTube mining led her to the review site of Spill.com. Melina became a devoted follower whose fandom did not end with the site’s demise. By then, it had worked its dark magic and left her with a love and appreciation for film criticism that she has yet to shrug.

 

 

Harmoni Anderson (Screener Squad, Highly Suspect Reviews, Unstabletop Gaming)

Harmoni is a mermaid-haired, millennial, rum drinking, Section 31, Slytherin (who’s divorced J.K. Rowling) preschool/nursery teacher and multi genre geek who also loves all things film, tv, fashion, makeup, and an embarrassingly huge BTS stan. Like really embarrassing. As in, mention them and then sit back and watch the insanity. Harmoni likes being able to game and talk movies/TV with people that aren’t 3 feet tall or all that demanding of her. Plus she can curse at us and not get fired….so bonus!

 

 

Jordan Cobb (Screener Squad)

Born with a comic book in one hand, a camera in the other, and in front of the television as WrestleMania played out, Jordan Worth Cobb was thus birthed into this crazy world. A Digital Filmmaking major from the University of Central Arkansas, Jordan has done it all in film from directing, writing, editing, and producing in addition to skills involved in film and TV criticism, journalism, and years of podcasting experience. On any given day, her ADHD riddled brain bounces focus from film to pro wrestling to TV to superheroes to noir to video games to espionage and yes, even to sports. She played little league you know. For more of this eccentric nerd, you can follow her on Twitter here and read her original writings on Deepest Corners of My Notebook.

 

 

T.C. De Witt (Screener Squad)

T.C. De Witt is a multi-awarded writer/director originally from Wisconsin and now based in Los Angeles. His life has been devoted to the arts since he was a child. He’s been a stage performer, playwright, stand-up comic, film and television actor,

GUNPOWDER MILKSHAKE MOVIE REVIEW

In this new Netflix super-stylized action-comedy from the writer/director of “Big Bad Wolves”, Karen Gillan is Sam. She’s a nigh-unstoppable super-assassin, working for a shadow cabinet of masters called The Firm. When she futzes up an assignment by losing a huge stash of money she was supposed to retrieve in order to save an innocent little girl, the company wants comeuppance, and they serve her up on a platter to some Russian mobsters that want to find out who killed the boss’s son. Fortunately she’s got a trio of “librarians” with a giant weapons stash on her side as well as her long-absent mother, who returns to help with mega-doses of over the top violence. This is colorful, cartoonish, crazy, and ALMOST all of our critics really dug it. Listen to Chris, Rae, Ben, and Jennifer hash it out.

WATCH HERE

DIRECTED BY: Navot Papushado

STARRING: Karen Gillan, Freya Allan, Lena Headey, Carla Gugino, Chloe Coleman, Ralph Ineson, Adam Nagaitis, Michael Smiley, Michelle Yeoh, Angela Bassett, Paul Giamatti, Samuel Anderson, Mai Duong Kieu, Ivan Kaye, Jack Bandeira, David Burnell IV

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Christopher Lawrence Cox (Founder, Da Boss)

Born in the wilds of northern Virginia, in 1992 Chris managed to put all of his survival skills to use and barely escaped with his life to Austin Texas, where ever since he’s dabbled in everything from plumber’s assistant to sandwich maker, from band to bar management. An opportunity to see theatrical release films for free by becoming a critic on a local public access show called “The Reel Deal” turned into a full-time job when Chris and his friends decided to take it to the internet. They built the site Spill.com, adding multiple podcasts and animated features, to no small amount of success. During this time, a fortuitous friendship sprung up between Chris and young Brian Salisbury, who was also a local film critic, and they merged their forces of will, and their laundry list of ideas for shows, to eventually build this paradise you see before you. Follow Chris on Twitter and Facebook and check out his Amazon Wish List.

 

 

Lyrae Anderson (Screener Squad)

You can call me Rae. You can also call me a film lover. I’ll watch it all — small screen; big screen, and everything in between. I have attended and worked for Fantastic Fest and South by Southwest for many years. I married a film geek as well. While we don’t agree on everything, we agree on our love of movies.

 

 

 

 

Ben Glasthal (Highly Suspect Review, Screener Squad, Breakfast Pub, Unstabletop Gamers, Video and Audio Editor, Assistant Site Manager)

Born in Boston, then ending up in Dallas, Texas in the early 2000s, Ben has always had a passion for film. He started in film school not long after where he launched MovieReelizations.com where he still writes reviews to this day. He’s since moved to Austin where he has been also hopping on podcasts and both editing and shooting videos for One of Us. A fan of films from almost all genres, and many that predate him more than makes sense, he is anything if not eclectic in what he’s watching at any point. For the rest of his free time, he can be found biking, drinking craft beer, being an amateur photographer, and playing video games by himself or on Twitch.

FEAR STREET TRILOGY REVIEW

R.L. Stine continues to enjoy a revival of all the chills he gave plenty of young readers in the 90s with movie adaptations of his work. After two journeys to the world of Goosebumps, Netflix takes the audience to Fear Street where director Leigh Janiak has woven together a trilogy of films inspired by Stine’s iconic horror book series. Set in three distinct time periods (1994, 1978 and 1666), the trio of movies tell the story of the small town of Shadyside and the events which led to its reported curse at the hands of resurrected killers wielding knives, axes and witchcraft. Listen and find out if Frank, Tessa, Harmoni and Adrian were taken by this horror-filled bit of nostalgia, or if they felt cursed by the movies themselves.

WATCH HERE

DIRECTED BY: Leigh Janiak

STARRING: Kiana Madeira, Olivia Scott Welch, Benjamin Flores Jr., Julia Rehwald, Fred Hechinger, Ashley Zukerman, Darrell Britt-Gibson, Maya Hawke, Jordana Spiro, Jordyn DiNatale, Charlene Amoia, David W. Thompson, Jeremy Ford, Elizabeth Scopel, Gillian Jacobs, Sadie Sink, Emily Rudd, Ryan Simpkins, McCabe Slye, Ted Sutherland, Chiara Aurelia, Drew Scheid, Sam Brooks, Jacqi Vené, Michael Provost, Brandon Spink, Matthew Zuk, Randy Havens, Lacey Camp, Mark Ashworth, Emily Brobst

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Frank Calvillo (Highly Suspect Reviews, Screener Squad)

Born and raised in South Texas, Frank currently lives in Austin and has been in love with movies ever since his father showed him some Three Stooges shorts when he was five years old. Today he loves all kinds of film, regardless of era, country, budget or genre. He believes every film has an audience and is at least one person’s favorite movie. After writing for Sight & Sound and Slackerwood, he now writes for Cinapse where his increasingly random taste in all flavors of cinema (from Rashomon to Mars Attacks!) continues to thrive. His ultimate goal is to write a script for his boyhood crush, Michelle Pfeiffer.

 

 

Tessa Morrison (Highly Suspect Reviews, Screener Squad, Unstabletop Gamers)

Well-rounded nerd and artist, Tessa Morrison grew up in the misty mountains of West Virginia and was constantly ridiculed for being a “weirdo.” Then moved to Austin in 2009 where people said the same thing, but in an endearing tone. Tessa works an office day job, creates puppets and fiber art, cosplays, models for gaming and animation studios, and volunteers for various organizations. One of which is the Other Worlds Film Festival, Austin’s first SciFi film fest, working in the capacity of Outreach Director and programmer. Another is local DIY-comedy-wrestling league, Party World Rasslin’, where Tessa scrambles around stage-handing and doing art department nonsense. Wrote and contributed to website and magazine Strange Kids Club for five years reviewing films, video games, and Halloween candy. Co-hosted a Public Access show called Ladies of Fandom. Previously guested on podcasts Blood Over Texas, Threequel Club, Trash in the Can, Retro Movie Roundtable, and Nerds with Mics.

 

 

Harmoni Anderson (Screener Squad, Highly Suspect Reviews, Unstabletop Gaming)

Harmoni is a mermaid-haired, millennial, rum drinking, Section 31, Slytherin (who’s divorced J.K. Rowling) preschool/nursery teacher and multi genre geek who also loves all things film, tv, fashion, makeup, and an embarrassingly huge BTS stan. Like really embarrassing. As in, mention them and then sit back and watch the insanity. Harmoni likes being able to game and talk movies/TV with people that aren’t 3 feet tall or all that demanding of her. Plus she can curse at us and not get fired….so bonus!

 

 

ESCAPE ROOM: TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS MOVIE REVIEW

It’s “Escape Room 2”, although the studio snubbed the numeral and went with the more awkward, “Tournament of Champions” instead. (I would have went with, “Escape Harder”). The survivors of the first film, still haunted by the memories of their experience, are determined to find out the truth about the Minos corporation who created the death trap, and want to expose them to the world. Discovering a clue that leads them to a seemingly abandoned building in NYC, they find out that they’re exactly where Minos wanted them to be and before you know it, they’re back in for another round of ridiculously elaborate, implausible, deadly, but super-fun escape rooms. Only this time, they find the theme of the experience seems to be, all people who’ve previously survived one of Minos’s Escape Room traps. Chris, Neil, Adrian, and Drew all had different feelings about this one, and, as you probably know by now, that usually makes for the most fun reviews.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE/TRAILER

DIRECTED BY: Adam Robitel

STARRING: Taylor Russell, Logan Miller, Deborah Ann Woll, Thomas Cocquerel, Holland Roden, Indya Moore, Carlito Olivero

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Christopher Lawrence Cox (Founder, Da Boss)

Born in the wilds of northern Virginia, in 1992 Chris managed to put all of his survival skills to use and barely escaped with his life to Austin Texas, where ever since he’s dabbled in everything from plumber’s assistant to sandwich maker, from band to bar management. An opportunity to see theatrical release films for free by becoming a critic on a local public access show called “The Reel Deal” turned into a full-time job when Chris and his friends decided to take it to the internet. They built the site Spill.com, adding multiple podcasts and animated features, to no small amount of success. During this time, a fortuitous friendship sprung up between Chris and young Brian Salisbury, who was also a local film critic, and they merged their forces of will, and their laundry list of ideas for shows, to eventually build this paradise you see before you. Follow Chris on Twitter and Facebook and check out his Amazon Wish List.

 

 

Neil Anderson (Screener Squad)

I first got hooked on movies when I saw Star Wars at a drive-in theater as a kid. Growing up in a small, rural town meant not having access to a lot of movies. In college, that all changed. I couldn’t get enough. I love it all — flicks, films, movies, and cinema. I still have that wide-eyed wonder of that kid watching movies from the back of a pick-up truck at the drive-in.

 

 

 

Adrian El Critico (Screener Squad)

Though born and raised in Chicago, this film critic is Mexican to the bone. Adrian has been watching movies since he was a child, many of which might not have been age appropriate. Still, he couldn’t get enough. All throughout his life, friends and family would look to him for his recommendations and reviews on whatever films had come their way. Inspired earlier in life by the likes of Ebert and Roper at The Movies and then later Spill.com, Adrian decided film criticism and analysis provided a great outlet to further his love of film. He began to craft his reviews and thoughts on film in ways he thought would be accessible to devout film hounds as well as the casual viewer. Mixing in jokes,

LISEY’S STORY MINISERIES REVIEW

Stephen King’s novel “Lisey’s Story” is one that the author has referred to as his favorite and most personal of all his works. Unsurprising then that he wrote the entirety of the script for this eight-episode Apple + adaptation starring Julianne Moore as the titular character. Lisey is in mourning for her dead husband (Clive Owen), is uncertain how to move forward with her life, has a catatonic sister in a psychological institution, and a mystery her husband Scott left for her. Scott was a VERY successful author, and left behind a lot of boxes of notes, unfinished work, etc that some folks feel she is a bad person for not immediately donating to the world. One of those folks is a complete psycho (Dane DeHaan) who Scott seemed somehow to know that, from before the grave, might someday come for her. He left Lisey a treasure hunt that leaves her to search through memories of their life together, and to enter a mysterious other world that he taught her to be able to enter, in order to find her solution and her salvation. Chris, Jordan, Melina, and Robert gave this one the look-see and they have some thoughts.

WATCH HERE

DIRECTED BY: Pablo Larrain

STARRING: Julianne Moore, Clive Owen, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Dane DeHaan, Joan Allen, Ron Cephas Jones, Michael Pitt, Omar Metwally, Sung Kang, Peter Scolari, Will Brill

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Christopher Lawrence Cox (Founder, Da Boss)

Born in the wilds of northern Virginia, in 1992 Chris managed to put all of his survival skills to use and barely escaped with his life to Austin Texas, where ever since he’s dabbled in everything from plumber’s assistant to sandwich maker, from band to bar management. An opportunity to see theatrical release films for free by becoming a critic on a local public access show called “The Reel Deal” turned into a full-time job when Chris and his friends decided to take it to the internet. They built the site Spill.com, adding multiple podcasts and animated features, to no small amount of success. During this time, a fortuitous friendship sprung up between Chris and young Brian Salisbury, who was also a local film critic, and they merged their forces of will, and their laundry list of ideas for shows, to eventually build this paradise you see before you. Follow Chris on Twitter and Facebook and check out his Amazon Wish List.

 

 

Jordan Cobb (Screener Squad)

Born with a comic book in one hand, a camera in the other, and in front of the television as WrestleMania played out, Jordan Worth Cobb was thus birthed into this crazy world. A Digital Filmmaking major from the University of Central Arkansas, Jordan has done it all in film from directing, writing, editing, and producing in addition to skills involved in film and TV criticism, journalism, and years of podcasting experience. On any given day, her ADHD riddled brain bounces focus from film to pro wrestling to TV to superheroes to noir to video games to espionage and yes, even to sports. She played little league you know. For more of this eccentric nerd, you can follow her on Twitter here and read her original writings on Deepest Corners of My Notebook.

 

 

Melina Eames (Screener Squad)

Melina first discovered that she carried the nerd gene at the tender age of four following her exposure to a little film called A New Hope.

RESIDENT EVIL: INFINITE DARKNESS REVIEW

*PS1 voice* RESIDENT EEEEEEVIL! Off the success of the most recent game, the four-episode miniseries “Resident Evil: Infinite Darkness” has been dropped onto Netflix for our viewing pleasure. Set between the fourth and fifth game, this show reunites Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield as they team up for an international mission to stop a global crisis with the mysterious and dangerous T-Virus at the center. So, what did reviewers Davey, Justin, Lewayne, and Mike think of this CG side-story? Was it a cure for the Resident Evil dreck, or was it as brainless as the zombies our heroes are mowing down? Find out now!

WATCH HERE

DIRECTED BY: Eiichirō Hasumi

STARRING: English: Nick Apostolides, Stephanie Panisello, Ray Chase, Jona Xiao, Billy Kametz, Doug Stone, Joe J. Thomas, Brad Venable. Japanese: Toshiyuki Morikawa, Yūko Kaida, Fumihiko Tachiki, Megumi Han, Kenji Nojima, Aruno Tahara, Kazuhiko Inoue, Mitsuru Ogata

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Davey Peppers (Staff Writer, Audio and Video Editor, Screener Squad, Eye on the Prize)

Many words have been used to describe Davey Peppers. Words like “Eh” and “Please go outside, just once”. He studied film and advertising at Southern Illinois University – Carbondale, because two degrees in fields with terrible job placement is better than one, and currently runs the YouTube channel Game Mechanics. He is easily distracted by shiny things and even the most basic passing mention of a movie being sad. He can be found on Twitter as well as staring at a blank wall wondering what the point is, and if his spending so much time staring at walls is the reason he’s not funny.

 

 

Justin Zarian (Screener Squad, Eye on the Prize, Breakfast Pub, Assistant Site Manager)

Justin’s fate as a movie fanatic was written in the stars when his birth forced his parents to cancel their planned Oscar viewing party. While growing up in California, he was often seen in front of the television watching and re-watching Star Wars, Jurassic Park, classic Disney movies and a steady stream of animated shows. This eventually led to a B.A. in Film at Brigham Young University and an Outstanding Student Teacher Award for displaying a level of film knowledge so insane that even his fellow film students couldn’t compete. He received his M.A. from Syracuse University and is currently pursuing a teaching certificate, but still volunteers at One of Us every so often for the fun of it. His hobbies include non-stop film conversations, wondering how Mass Effect 3’s ending went so wrong, espousing the joys of shooting guns (but not hunting, as he’s quick to note), writing the next great American television show in his head, and anything else entertainment related. You can find him on Facebook once in a blue moon.

 

 

Lewayne White (Screener Squad)

Lewayne’s earliest memories are of watching movies and reading comics, which instilled in him a sense of wonder, a vivid imagination, and unrealistic expectations. It also means he spends a lot of time watching movies, writing scripts for them, and trying to get them made. He lives in the middle of middle America after landing there as a child, and has remained there mainly because he hates packing.

 

 

Michael Riojas (Screener Squad, Highly Suspect Reviews)

The man with the ever-changing nicknames. Born in Austin, Riojas was rocketed to Del Rio, Texas, a literal small ville. In his youth, he was bitten by a radioactive… okay, look. Mike is not very good at this whole “talking about himself” thing. But he has been so obsessed with comics, video games,

LOKI SERIES REVIEW

The third of the Marvel Cinematic Universe Disney+ tie-in shows is here as Tom Hiddleston returns as Loki. Yes, he died in “Avengers: Infinity War”. But if you were paying attention in “Avengers: Endgame”, that earlier version of Loki who was captured and still a big-bad right at the end of the original “Avengers” film took advantage of a situation and blipped out to parts unknown. Well, these parts are now known. Loki found himself at the mercy of a time and space controlling organization called the Time Variance Authority who capture folks who create alternate timelines by playing with time travel and usually send them off to die. But it turns out they’ve got a problem with a ‘variant’ (as they call these folks) who keeps beating them at every turn when they try to capture them and killing their agents. Owen Wilson is Agent Mobius who makes the case that maybe this Loki is exactly the right variant to catch the variant they’re looking for. What you end up with is a crazy, sci-fi, comedic, miniseries full of big surprises and laughs, and decidedly the anchor point to what’s coming in the MCU Phase 4 series of films. So to put it mildly: we loved it. Listen to Chris, Jordan, Ben, and Tessa give their praise.

WATCH HERE

CREATED BY: Michael Waldron and Kate Herron

STARRING: Tom Hiddleston, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Wunmi Mosaku, Eugene Cordero, Tara Strong, Owen Wilson, Sophia Di Martino, Sasha Lane, Jack Veal, DeObia Oparei, Richard E. Grant, Jonathan Majors, Neil Elice, Jaimie Alexander

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Christopher Lawrence Cox (Founder, Da Boss)

Born in the wilds of northern Virginia, in 1992 Chris managed to put all of his survival skills to use and barely escaped with his life to Austin Texas, where ever since he’s dabbled in everything from plumber’s assistant to sandwich maker, from band to bar management. An opportunity to see theatrical release films for free by becoming a critic on a local public access show called “The Reel Deal” turned into a full-time job when Chris and his friends decided to take it to the internet. They built the site Spill.com, adding multiple podcasts and animated features, to no small amount of success. During this time, a fortuitous friendship sprung up between Chris and young Brian Salisbury, who was also a local film critic, and they merged their forces of will, and their laundry list of ideas for shows, to eventually build this paradise you see before you. Follow Chris on Twitter and Facebook and check out his Amazon Wish List.

 

 

Jordan Cobb (Screener Squad)

Born with a comic book in one hand, a camera in the other, and in front of the television as WrestleMania played out, Jordan Worth Cobb was thus birthed into this crazy world. A Digital Filmmaking major from the University of Central Arkansas, Jordan has done it all in film from directing, writing, editing, and producing in addition to skills involved in film and TV criticism, journalism, and years of podcasting experience. On any given day, her ADHD riddled brain bounces focus from film to pro wrestling to TV to superheroes to noir to video games to espionage and yes, even to sports. She played little league you know. For more of this eccentric nerd, you can follow her on Twitter

CLARICE TV SERIES REVIEW

Does special agent Clarice Starling still wake up in the dark and hear the screaming of the lambs? CBS answers that question and more in this sequel series to Jonathan Demme’s classic film “The Silence of The Lambs”. The story follows Clarice being brought back into the field shortly after her run-in with Buffalo Bill (and Hannibal Lecter who can’t legally be referred to by name) and joins a task force working to track down serial killers, sex criminals, and murderers. Clarice must try to shake her traumatic experience with Buffalo Bill and to be able to stop more monsters in the future. Nathan is joined by Eliot, Jennifer, and Neil to talk about the first and final season of this show on its own principles… without ever referring to the iconic cannibal character by name.

WATCH HERE

CREATED BY: Alex Kurtzman and Jenny Lumet

STARRING: Rebecca Breeds, Michael Cudlitz, Lucca De Oliveira, Kal Penn, Nick Sandow, Devyn A. Tyler, Marnee Carpenter, Shawn Doyle, Jayne Atkinson, Tim Guinee, Douglas Smith, Simon Northwood

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Nathan Flynn (Screener Squad)

A recent transplant to Austin originally hailing from the wretched hive of scum and villainy that is the Midwest, Nathan Flynn has been a movie super freak since he saw “An American Werewolf in London” way too young and grew up worshipping the James Bond franchise and all things related to Cold War-era spycraft. When he’s not watching movies and being a constant defender of the Tron franchise, he can be found practicing his second biggest love: cooking (having been a chef for 10+ years) and hitting his head up against a desk to write screenplays that nobody reads. He also spearheads his own podcast on the Mission Impossible franchise titled “Mission: Impodible”. He can be found rarely posting on his personal twitter.

 

 

Eliot Nelson (Screener Squad, Staff Writer)

Soaked in the soggy rains of Seattle, Eliot developed a love of sci-fi, movies, cartoons, heavy metal, and all of geekdom. Pursuing his passion for the written word, he got his BA from The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. He has since worked exclusively in the foodservice industry, like any liberal arts major worth their salt. Eliot wiles away the hours listening to movie reviews, writing his epic sci-fi novel, and consuming as much media as possible. His favorite movies include The Lord of the Rings, City of God, Dawn of the Dead, and Groundhog Day. When not rambling to himself about the ineptness of entertainment executives, Eliot posts infrequently on Twitter and squawks regularly on his podcast The Debasement Tapes.

 

 

Jennifer Lynn Larsen (Giganticast, Highly Suspect Reviews, Screener Squad)

Born near Seattle, WA, Jennifer has transplanted to Austin TX and is equal parts Roller Derby Girl, Cosplayer, Dungeon Master, Mothra Priestess, and game nerd. She writes the weekly Cosplay beat for Bell of Lost Souls under the name Mayhem’s Muse and travels the world competing in traditional Ground and Horseback archery tournaments with The Eastern Contingent. She comes to OneOfUs by way of Rage Select, where she is part of the dynamic duo “Team JRPG” with magical girl and fellow contributor Matt Frank. (So, SO much fangirling). Jennifer is known for her love of Dragonlance, classic JRPGS, and all things 1980s. She is a regular contributor to Giganticast and is currently diving through every Mothra project ...

DIE IN A GUNFIGHT MOVIE REVIEW

Never was there a tale of more woe than that of and her . Yes, it’s another adaptation of Mr. Willy Shakes’ Romeo and Juliet, only this time, the classic romantic tale of doomed star-crossed lovers centers on two rival media conglomerates, the Rathcarts and Gibbons. Diego Boneta plays Ben, a rebellious young man who falls in love with Mary (Alexandra Daddario), the daughter of his father’s enemy, starting a battle full of love, lust, revenge and betrayal. But how closely does this modern spin on the Bard’s best known work play out? The title promises a death in an epic gun battle, so does it deliver? This review brings together four houses with Harmoni, Jordan, Spider-Mike, and T.C. to discuss the swooningly good moments that left some wishing for their own balcony scene with the movie, while others found themselves biting a thumb or two.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE/TRAILER

DIRECTED BY: Collin Schiffli

STARRING: Diego Boneta, Alexandra Daddario, Justin Chatwin, Travis Fimmel, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Wade Allain-Marcus, Billy Crudup, John Ralston, Michelle Nolden, Stuart Hughes, Nicola Correia-Damude, Renée Willett

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Harmoni Anderson (Screener Squad, Highly Suspect Reviews, Unstabletop Gaming)

Harmoni is a mermaid-haired, millennial, rum drinking, Section 31, Slytherin (who’s divorced J.K. Rowling) preschool/nursery teacher and multi genre geek who also loves all things film, tv, fashion, makeup, and an embarrassingly huge BTS stan. Like really embarrassing. As in, mention them and then sit back and watch the insanity. Harmoni likes being able to game and talk movies/TV with people that aren’t 3 feet tall or all that demanding of her. Plus she can curse at us and not get fired….so bonus!

 

 

Jordan Cobb (Screener Squad)

Born with a comic book in one hand, a camera in the other, and in front of the television as WrestleMania played out, Jordan Worth Cobb was thus birthed into this crazy world. A Digital Filmmaking major from the University of Central Arkansas, Jordan has done it all in film from directing, writing, editing, and producing in addition to skills involved in film and TV criticism, journalism, and years of podcasting experience. On any given day, her ADHD riddled brain bounces focus from film to pro wrestling to TV to superheroes to noir to video games to espionage and yes, even to sports. She played little league you know. For more of this eccentric nerd, you can follow her on Twitter here and read her original writings on Deepest Corners of My Notebook.

 

 

Michael Riojas (Screener Squad, Highly Suspect Reviews)

The man with the ever-changing nicknames. Born in Austin, Riojas was rocketed to Del Rio, Texas, a literal small ville. In his youth, he was bitten by a radioactive… okay, look. Mike is not very good at this whole “talking about himself” thing. But he has been so obsessed with comics, video games, and anime since childhood- that if one has to choose between listening to Joe Quesada or Mike over any obscure Spider-Man trivia, they go to him (or, at least Martin Thomas once said so). He is also a big fan of “Ghostbusters” (he even owns his own jumpsuit and two, that’s right, TWO proton packs!), collects toys and video games, and will defend “Superman IV: The Quest for Peace” if provoked. He lives in Austin with his beloved Dachshund-Maltese and trusted sidekick, Dean. He can also be heard on RageSelect. He can be found on Twitter and Instagram.

 

 

THE CALL MOVIE REVIEW

In a small town somewhere in the 80s, four teens torment an elderly woman at night, throwing rocks through her windows. Edith Cranston (Lin Shaye) formerly ran a child care service out of her voluminous home but when one of her charges, the younger sister of one of the vandalizing teens, went missing, many pointed to her as the cause. Well, Edith has had enough and she kills herself, but with the Obi-Wan goal of becoming MORE POWERFUL THAN YOU CAN POSSIBLY IMAGINE. Her husband Edward (Tobin Bell) contacts the teens with an offer: come to the house and I’ll give you $100,000 but only after you, one at a time, ascend to the top floor of this very spooky manse, go to a room with an antique telephone, and call the number next to it. You see, Edward buried a phone with Edith and she has a few things left to say to her tormentors and oh, such sights to show them. If only this movie had shown Chris, Adrian, and Lewayne any sights worth seeing. Check out their review here.

OFFICIAL TRAILER

DIRECTED BY: Timothy Woodward Jr.

STARRING: Lin Shaye, Tobin Bell, Chester Rushing, Erin Sanders, Mike C. Manning, Sloane Morgan Siegel, Judd Lormand, Randy Charach

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Christopher Lawrence Cox (Founder, Da Boss)

Born in the wilds of northern Virginia, in 1992 Chris managed to put all of his survival skills to use and barely escaped with his life to Austin Texas, where ever since he’s dabbled in everything from plumber’s assistant to sandwich maker, from band to bar management. An opportunity to see theatrical release films for free by becoming a critic on a local public access show called “The Reel Deal” turned into a full-time job when Chris and his friends decided to take it to the internet. They built the site Spill.com, adding multiple podcasts and animated features, to no small amount of success. During this time, a fortuitous friendship sprung up between Chris and young Brian Salisbury, who was also a local film critic, and they merged their forces of will, and their laundry list of ideas for shows, to eventually build this paradise you see before you. Follow Chris on Twitter and Facebook and check out his Amazon Wish List.

 

 

Adrian El Critico (Screener Squad)

Though born and raised in Chicago, this film critic is Mexican to the bone. Adrian has been watching movies since he was a child, many of which might not have been age appropriate. Still, he couldn’t get enough. All throughout his life, friends and family would look to him for his recommendations and reviews on whatever films had come their way. Inspired earlier in life by the likes of Ebert and Roper at The Movies and then later Spill.com, Adrian decided film criticism and analysis provided a great outlet to further his love of film. He began to craft his reviews and thoughts on film in ways he thought would be accessible to devout film hounds as well as the casual viewer. Mixing in jokes, entertaining observations and robust critical analysis, Adrian El Critico may be new to OneOfUs, but he is already making a name for himself on our site. If Horror movies are your thing, get ready to hear his voice.

 

 

Lewayne White (Screener Squad)

Lewayne’s earliest memories are of watching movies and reading comics, which instilled in him a sense of wonder, a vivid imagination, and unrealistic expectations. It also means he spends a lot of time watching movies, writing scripts for them, and trying to get them made. He lives in the middle of middle America after l...