Nicolas Cage headlines in Mandy, a drug-addled hallucinogenic ride in this revenge horror (?) thriller. Set in the early 80s, but filled with 70s sensibilities in sense of style and set design, Cage is Red Miller who lives out in the woods with Mandy Bloom (Andrea Riseborough). They have a quiet life, he works is…
Tag: 2018
Artificial Condition (2018) – Martha Wells
Martha Wells delivers another entertaining entry in the Murderbot Diaries with Artificial Condition. Much like the first story, this is only a novella as well and it rips along at warp speed, filled with action beats, laughs, and a small exploration of the worlds that Wells is building. The story picks up shortly after the…
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018) – J.A. Bayona
Five films in you can’t expect the series to forge too much new ground. They have a formula that works and people love seeing dinosaurs running amok. This story brings back Dr. Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) to bookend the film, and puts Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard – bit of a crush) and Chris Pratt…
Red Sparrow (2018) – Francis Lawrence
Jennifer Lawrence trusts to Francis Lawrence, who directed her in the final three Hunger Games films. As such, she bares it all in this taut spy thriller. Based on the novel by Jason Matthews the story introduces us to Dominika Egorova (Lawrence). Her promising career as a ballerina is brought to a brutal end when…
Record of a Spaceborn Few (2018) – Becky Chambers
After how much I enjoyed the first two books in the Wayfarer series by Becky Chambers, I didn’t even read the blurb for the third book. I just jumped into it, waiting to see where Chambers would take me this time. Record of a Spaceborn Few explores the Exodan Fleet. They were the last people…
Forever and a Day (2018) – Anthony Horowitz
Anthony Horowitz delivers another fast-paced 007 spy thriller with some material written by the series creator Ian Fleming. Set just before the events of the novel, Casino Royale, the story follows James Bond as he gets his two assigned kills to get his Double-O number, and throws him into a case that helps shape the…
Lake Michigan Monster (2018) – Ryland Brickson Cole Tews
I loved Hundreds of Beavers so I was eager to check out an earlier film from the creative duo behind it, Lake Michigan Monster. Sharing some of the film’s creative styles, it’s shot in black and white, made to look like a throwback to yesteryear, and has a goofy sense of humor that slides from…
Little Eve (2018) – Catriona Ward
I loved Ward’s The Last House on Needless Street so when a friend asked me to dive into Little Eve, I was more than willing to. Gothic in the truest sense of the word, Little Eve is filled with gloom, mystery and hints of horror. Set on a tiny Scottish island, the story moves between…
Robin Hood (2018) – Otto Bathurst
Every decade or so filmmakers try to deliver a new version of the legendary outlaw, Robin Hood. There’s something about the character that keeps drawing us back. Everyone seems to know the basics, and each iteration seems to want to play with the characters, and story and try and do something new. Sometimes it works,…
The Equalizer 2 (2018) – Antoine Fuqua
Sure the first installment of the Antoine Fuqua/Denzel Washington actioner came out in 2014, and I watched it for the first time nine years ago, and hadn’t watched any of the films since. And yes, I’m a fan of the original series with Edward Woodward. but I rather enjoy Washington’s interpretation of the character. The…
The Mind Reels 