Article by: Josh Bradley https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frdj1zb9sMY Almost exactly a year ago, I was the guy who excitedly pulled up the live stream of The Force Awakens red carpet premiere, grinning like a stupid little kid as Anthony Daniels and Oscar Isaac answered Star Wars trivia. I was the guy who had bought his

Article by: Josh Bradley   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obdKk_sYQNI Manchester by the Sea is a masterfully-crafted misdirect. Judging from the trailers (or any of the marketing), it clearly presents itself a certain way and establishes certain audience expectations, namely that it will be an emotionally-taxing, grief-stricken journey that ultimately proves to be uplifting(ish) if not a little

Article by: Josh Bradley https://youtu.be/33g-ZHBQdNU Jeff Nichols’ movies all seem to be about normal people that find themselves pushed into extraordinary circumstances. It was the Bard who said “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon ‘em”, and looking at Take Shelter, Mud, and Midnight Special, it’s

Article by: Josh Bradley The following contains spoilers for the ending of Arrival (2016) and assumes the reader has seen the film. If you haven’t, go do so immediately. If you have, might I suggest some background music while you read? I don’t know, maybe this? In a meaningless discussion of semantics,

Article by: Josh Bradley   About half an hour into Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight, 10-year-old Chiron is sitting with Juan, the man who sells crack to Chiron’s mother, at Juan’s kitchen table. He timidly asks Juan, “What’s a faggot?” Juan and the audience both know where this question is coming from, and so he

Article by: Josh Bradley   Considering that Nate Parker began writing his Nat Turner script seven years ago, it’s remarkable that the timing of The Birth of a Nation is both the movie’s biggest draw but also one of its biggest hindrances (even setting aside the behind-the-scenes controversy). Black Lives Matter, a

Article by: Josh Bradley   There’s something refreshing about a simple setup. Here’s what a character wants/needs; here’s what’s preventing him from getting it; here’s why we care. You can pare most stories down to something this basic, but few arrive already that pared down. However, Hell or High Water does everything

Article by: Josh Bradley   The Academy Awards are still five months away, and while “Oscar season” doesn’t begin for most people until nominations are announced in January, it begins in September for people with way too much time on their hands. That’s when award season contenders premiere every year at the