‘The Last of Us’ episode one is a triumph of television adaptations
By Ben Konuch
“Billions of puppets with poisoned minds fixed on one unifying goal: to spread the infection to every human alive by any means necessary. And there are no treatments for this, no preventatives, no cures, it’s not even possible to make them.”
When I was fourteen, I was able to experience PlayStation’s “The Last of Us” for the first time, and it changed how I looked at storytelling. When the game was first released in 2013, what first appeared as a fairly generic ...
‘Matilda the Musical” is far from revolting
By Janie Walenda
Musical adaptations of Roald Dahl’s books have been hit or miss, with an emphasis on the miss. “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” has had more commercial success, but that and “James and the Giant Peach” live fondly only in the hearts of theater kids who performed them in high school.
“Matilda,” on the other hand, has been better received, with multiple Tony and Olivier awards, and is still performing in London’s West End after 12 years. Therefore, the ...
‘Emancipation’ walks to the finish line when it could have run
By Ben Konuch
“They cut me. They burn me. They burn my neck. They burn my feet. They break the bones in my body more times than I can count. But they never, never break me.”
“Emancipation,” the new historical drama from Antoine Fuqua starring Will Smith, follows the story of Peter, an enslaved man who embarks upon a daring escape and a perilous journey to get his freedom and his family back. The film is loosely based on the real-life events of Peter and Gordon, two men who ...
‘Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio’ is a triumph of melancholic and meaningful storytelling
By Janie Walenda
What do you get when you combine Guillermo del Toro, stop-motion animation and the darker elements of a classic fairytale? You get a creepy, existential and charming film.
As in the plentiful other versions of Pinocchio, the titular character is lively, irresponsible and ultimately has a big heart. However, only del Toro’s version has Pinocchio’s creation shot like the creation of Frankenstein. His first living moments are creepy instead of cheery.
What ...
Is ‘Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery’ really a mystery?
By Caroline Stanton
I approached this movie with a completely open-minded and fresh perspective because I had never seen the original “Knives Out” movie that premiered in 2019. “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” is a spin-off of the original, and followed the same protagonist Benoit Blanc, played by Daniel Craig, as he worked to solve a classic tongue-in-cheek murder mystery. I haven’t seen a lot of movies that compared to this one, but I enjoyed it for what it was. The cast all ...
‘1899’ is a paradox of a thriller – and not in a good way
By Ben Konuch
“May your coffee kick in before reality does”
“1899” is the newest mystery thriller from Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese, the minds behind the German Netflix series “Dark.” One look at a trailer or any marketing images and you’ll see what I saw, that “1899” looks like a dark, mysterious, mind-bending thriller. While this is true on paper, watching “1899” went from excitement to intrigue to indifferent boredom as the script and the pacing lost any ...
‘The Wingfeather Saga’s’ first three episodes build an expansive world
By Sophia Monastra
Forget movies, an author’s new dream is to have his or her book series turned into a TV show. Because of the episodic nature and length of the medium, shows are the best way to stay faithful to the books and allow enough time for meaningful development.
The popular semi-allegorical four-book children’s series, “The Wingfeather Saga” has recently become Angel Studios’ latest show. It follows the adventures of siblings Janner, Tink, and Leeli as they are ...
‘Puss in Boots: The Last Wish’ is an unexpected masterclass of animation
By Ben Konuch
"The legend will never die!"
“Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” is the newest installment in the “Shrek universe,” and the second film to focus on its iconic fighting feline. As a character, Puss in Boots has captured the love of audiences from his first appearance in 2004’s “Shrek 2” as a “Zorro” parody voiced by the same actor as Zorro, Antonio Banderas. While Puss had his solo film debut in 2011’s “Puss in Boots,” this installment was suitably ...
‘Dragon Age: Absolution’ is a mildly entertaining but empty three hours
By Ben Konuch
"Beware, boy. Memory unheeded can only bring enmity."
I absolutely adore the "Dragon Age" series. The video game franchise from Bioware quickly became one of my favorite pieces of fantasy within my first few hours of playing the first title, "Dragon Age: Origins" back in 2020. As I've played the rest of the games and delved deep into its novels and comics, my love for its story hasn't changed. Set apart from other fantasy worlds with its dark nature and tone and ...
Season three of ‘The Chosen’ begins with an emotional aftermath
By Sophia Monastra
“The Chosen” is the world’s largest crowdfunded TV series, and from the launch of the first episode of its third season, it’s easy to see why.
Episode one, “Homecoming,” begins with a look at the disciple Matthew’s backstory before cutting away to the Sermon on the Mount, where Season two leaves off. A few of these shots are weirdly formatted, with Jesus voicing over clips when he has stopped speaking. This may be an artistic choice to signify time ...
