Author: Mark Salcido

Say what you will about Rian Johnson and his take on the Star Wars franchise, the guy gets the craft of filmmaking. The director has been making a name for himself since his 2005’s film Brick and people around Hollywood want to work with the man. Knives Out is Johnson’s return to his routes of showcasing colorful characters and lively direction that is flashy and pushes the limit of compelling storytelling. Some of those things that I mention can work at times during the movie, however, it seems like Johnson might have taken a few missteps when trying to emulate…

Stephen King’s The Shining is a classic novel. It goes without saying but I did so to get this review started. What is equally a classic is Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 film version of the psychological horror story that is still being discovered by new cinephiles to this day. It’s no secret that the King considers Kubrick’s vision of his novel an insult but through some major convincing from director Mike Flanagan, the sequel to The Shining, Doctor Sleep, was put into production. I’m a fan of King’s and Kubrick’s work of the sequel’s predecessor, so my curiosity was peaked when…

Takaki Waititi is one of those guys that gets the joys of filmmaking. The director, writer, actor, and sometimes mocap wearer made his start with short films and few indie movies. The guy was offered a chance to prove himself to Marvel and the masses when given a chance to bring the Thor franchise from the brink of early death. Yet, Waititi turned the franchise around, and to some extent, made Thor: Ragnarök one of Marvel’s best installments—even Quentin Tarantino likes the movie. Having proved himself to Hollywood, Waititi was given—what some directors have taken decades to achieve—a chance to…

Todd Phillips’s Joker has been hitting every branch falling down the news tree. Information about the film had been steadily released online for so long that you swore the movie had already been released in theaters, at home, and already working on the third sequel. The character that the film is based on has a had long history of news well before Phillips’s even tinker with the idea of tackling the character and it hasn’t always been positive. The legacy of Batman’s arch-nemesis has faced wins and lose and recently stirred up quite a bit of controversy because of the…

Ridley Scott’s Alien has been called a masterpiece in the horror genre and the world of cinema. Scott’s collaboration with H. R. Geiger, Ron Cobb, Dan O’Bannon, Sigourney Weaver and many of the other cast members brought to life a cultural impact that is rarely done. The film kicked started a series of sequels, comics, novels, art, and obsession that has lasted—and will continue—for many generations. Different filmmakers from all walks of life have said that these movies have given the inspiration and jumpstart to a career in the film industry. The 40th anniversary of Scott’s classic occurred this year…

Bruce Campbell is a legend among horror and cult film enthusiast. The man has had a long career that spans through the decades and his fanbase has been him following along the way since he swung an ax to kill some Deadites in Evil Dead. The Sam Raimi directed film has been seen a classic over the years and has warranted sequels, comics, video games, a remake, and even a TV series on Starz. Some of the levels of popularity towards the film can be contributed to Campbell’s great acting and comedic timing. Though the actor has popped in other…

Avengers: Endgame was a well-deserved wrap up for Steve Rogers and Tony Stark. The two characters have been a huge part of the MCU and it was only fitting for these characters to a proper ending to their over-arching story. It was a heartbreak to see Stark make the ultimate sacrifice – but the gut hitting blow was softened by the display of Rogers’s happy ending. Though Rogers’s time-traveling actions were with good intentions, fans of Endgame are still arguing whether the hero changed history. Fortunately for us, writer of the film, Christopher Markus has given his take on the…

The Disney and Sony debacle was a shock to everyone. EVERY-ONE. The fallout has fans of both studios pointing fingers at one another. The biggest casualty of this event is Spider-Man’s place in the MCU and some are speculating that we may never see the web-slinger interact with that world ever again. It seems like the ramification of what has happened has bled over to theaters showing the re-release of Spider-Man: Far From Home. The sequel to the hit movie, Spider-Man: Homecoming, was a box-office smash over the summer. Far From Home ranked in a cool 1.110 billion dollars over…

Todd Phillips’s Joker is expected to be a big hit with audience members at the theater. The Joaquin Phoenix led movie has an impressive list of cast members with talks of the film making a possible run for the Oscars. The film hasn’t been out for regular moviegoers, but the WB production has already premiered it at this year’s Venice Film Festival. Now, we are getting reports that the movie is being heralded as a masterpiece in the art of cinema and evidence of that was an eight-minute standing ovation at the premiere. WB/DC has had a series misstep along…

Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame was a wild ride that put a lot of people in a glass box of human emotions. The plot of two films was a culmination over a decade of build-up with the big baddy, Thanos, being the focus of Infinity War and the heroes of the MCU play catch in Endgame play catch up. Both films featured a huge collection of characters from Marvel Studios 20 movies and might lead some people thinking who had the most screen time. Someone took on the mission of finding that out and now curious minds can know.…