american

16 Sep

American Horror Story Double Feature Delves Into New Motherhood Nightmares In ‘Gaslight’

New DVD releaseamerican, delves, double, feature, horror, motherhood, story

This American Horror Story: Double Feature review contains spoilers. American Horror Story Season 10 Episode 5 As the story picks up steam, American Horror Story taps into some pretty classic horror tropes yet again to enrich its story. One of the things that initially caught my eye about the series when it first hit the airwaves ten years ago was the way in which the show was clearly written by horror fans and went out of its way to reward horror fans with little Easter eggs. Maybe it’s a shot from a classic movie. Maybe it’s a snippet of a…

Read More

09 Sep

American Horror Story: Double Feature Season 10’s Muse Pill Confronts a Stark Truth About Creative Ambition

New DVD releaseamerican, confronts, double, feature, horror, season, story

This American Horror Story: Double Feature review contains spoilers. American Horror Story Season 10 Episode 4 The Red Tide portion of American Horror Story: Double Feature asks a few simple questions. What would you do if you could suddenly tap into the limitless potential of your talent? What would you trade to be able to live out your dream, be it singing, dancing, writing, or art? For some people, the answer to that would be just about anything, including taking a pill and occasionally turning another human into one of the show’s titular blood buffets. They’re willing to risk any…

Read More

02 Sep

American Horror Story: Double Feature Tackles Pill-Popping, Blood-Sucking Addiction

New DVD releaseamerican, double, feature, horror, popping, story, tackles

This American Horror Story: Double Feature review contains spoilers. American Horror Story Season 10 Episode 3 One of my favorite things about American Horror Story has been the fact that if something isn’t particularly working for me, be it a character or a setting, I know that in a few episodes, it’ll be gone. Such is the nature of the seasonal anthology; if something isn’t working for you, check out for ten episodes and when you come back next season, it’ll be something completely different in tone, setting, and content, even if there’ll be members of the cast crossing over…

Read More

28 May

American Traitor: The Trial of Axis Sally

Max SchindlerMovie reviewsamerican, sally, traitor, trial

Based on the true story, American Traitor: The Trial of Axis Sally follows the life of American Mildred Gillars (Meadow Williams) and her lawyer (Al Pacino), who struggles to redeem her reputation. Dubbed “Axis Sally” for broadcasting Nazi propaganda to American troops during World War II, Mildred’s story exposes the dark underbelly of the Third Reich's hate-filled propaganda machine, her eventual capture in Berlin, and subsequent trial for treason against the United States after the war.Rated: Not RatedRelease Date: May 28, 2021

Read More

30 Apr

The Mitchells vs. the Machines Is Next Step in American Animated Movies

Netflix, New DVD releaseamerican, animated, machines, mitchells, movies

While watching The Mitchells vs. the Machines, I was reminded of a recent trend in animated movies, which is the growing need to make environments look realistic. Technology has increased to the point that animation can almost appear photorealistic. Even if an animated film has characters with exaggerated features, the “realness” of the rest of the film’s production design is often touted as a selling point. Both Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Raya and the Last Dragon and Pixar’s Toy Story 4 leaned into a grounded aesthetic, and many others wear “realism” as a badge of pride in their animation. It…

Read More

26 Apr

Oscars 2021: Chloé Zhao Becomes First Asian-American Woman to Win Best Director

New DVD releaseamerican, asian, becomes, chloe, first, oscars, woman

Chloé Zhao made history tonight by becoming the first woman of color to win a Best Director Oscar, as well as only the second female filmmaker to take that prize. Recognized for her work writing and directing Nomadland, a meditative drama about an older woman named Fern (Frances McDormand) who travels the American West in a van she also lives in, Zhao made history when she took the stage. And, fittingly, Zhao used her acceptance speech to talk about a shared goodness she’s seen from people in all walks of life and in all corners of the earth. “Even though…

Read More

09 Mar

All American Season 3 Episode 8 Review: Canceled

New DVD releaseamerican, canceled, episode, review, season

This All American review contains spoilers. All American Season 3, Episode 8 All American just doesn’t quit when it comes to prioritizing mental health, and we love to see it. We’re reeling from the aftermath of what happened in Vegas, and what this means for Spencer (Daniel Ezra) and Olivia (Samantha Logan) and even Layla (Greta Onieogou). But first, we take a mental health day. I really loved how Laura decided to give the twins a “mental health day” to regroup. They take the day off from school to focus on themselves and their relationship. These types of moments are…

Read More

02 Mar

All American Season 3 Episode 7 Review: Roll the Dice

New DVD releaseamerican, episode, review, season

This All American review contains spoilers. All American Season 3, Episode 7 “Roll the Dice” gives us a break from current events and decides to show us all that went down in the summer before school started. Secrets, revelations, and confessions. How about that for a Vegas trip? Let’s discuss… What happens in Vegas… doesn’t stay in Vegas? Can we all agree that Jordan (Michael Evans Behling) has been very impulsive and immature in the way he makes decisions this season? Like, to the point where you want to go up to his face and yell “What are you doing?”…

Read More

23 Feb

All American Season 3 Episode 6 Review: Teenage Love

New DVD releaseamerican, episode, review, season, teenage

This All American review contains spoilers. All American Season 3, Episode 6 The cabin. Oh, that cabin. I didn’t think I’d have to go through the same level of emotional gutting as “Coming Home”, when Corey (Chad L. Coleman) died, but that cold open really gave the Season 2 installment a run for its money. The cinematography and the music choice of the first couple of minutes of “Teenage Love” got to me. What a moving way to open the episode. Overall, “Teenage Love,” gave us time to see teens being teens, with all their drama and secrets—if there weren’t…

Read More

16 Feb

All American Season 3 Episode 5 Review: How Come

New DVD releaseamerican, episode, review, season

This All American review contains spoilers. In most TV shows centered around athletes and sports, the stories told are rooted in inspiration, discovering your strengths, and most of all the power of teamwork. But, often, what’s forgotten in these portrayals is how sports culture can negatively impact the mental health of the teenagers who take part in them. We don’t see this potential toxicity covered as much on TV or film, which is why All American’s choice to make space for that type of conversation is so important.  In “How Come,” Jordan (Michael Evan Behling) is putting a lot of…

Read More

09 Feb

All American American Season 3 Episode 4 Review: My Mind’s Playing Tricks on Me

New DVD releaseamerican, episode, playing, review, season, tricks

This All American review contains spoilers for Season 3, Episode 4. All American Season 3, Episode 4 I don’t know how many times I’ve said this, but All American is one of the best teen drama shows out there right now, and it only keeps getting better. I had a favorite episode last season, and it was Season 2 Episode 7, “Coming Home,” where I bawled my eyes out. And now, in its third season, All American continues to deliver an outstanding episode of TV that I can’t stop raving about. Let’s discuss… Spencer (Daniel Ezra) Goes to Therapy  My…

Read More

02 Feb

All American Season 3 Episode 3 Review: My Mind’s Playing Tricks On Me

New DVD releaseamerican, episode, playing, review, season, tricks

This All American review contains spoilers for Season 3, Episode 3. What All American does really well is bridge real moments and real feelings together with their characters. In my last review, I mentioned how we don’t often see male TV characters exploring their mental health on screen. In this week’s episode, “My Mind’s Playing Tricks On Me,” Layla (Greta Onieogou) and Spencer (Daniel Ezra) discuss the option of Spencer trying out therapy, in particular a therapist who specializes in people in sports. It’s a powerful moment, and I love how Spencer is open to the idea of trying out…

Read More

01 Feb

American Gods Season 3: Who Are The Orisha?

New DVD releaseamerican, orisha, season

This article contains spoilers for American Gods season 3 episode 4. American Gods star Yetide Badaki, known to fans of the show as love goddess Bilquis, has an upbringing as unique as any fictional character from Neil Gaiman’s fantasy novel.  She lived in England for three years, has lived in American since age 12, and went to college in Canada, but Badaki’s roots are planted in the soil of the country of her birth, Nigeria. Nigeria, Africa’s largest country, serves as the centerpiece of the larger tribal community known as Yorubaland along with Benin, Ghana, and Togo. Yorubaland is home…

Read More

01 Feb

American Gods: Inside Shadow and Technical Boy’s Excellent Adventure

New DVD releaseadventure, american, excellent, inside, shadow, technical

This article contains spoilers for American Gods season 3. It seems that throughout the history of technology, there has been no greater driver of technological change than the most simple of human desires: sex.  From nickelodeon reels of women dancing in skimpy costumes to the home video format war of the ‘80s to the modern dating apps of today, sex sells, and sex has always been at the forefront of human invention. Someone makes a product, and someone else figures out how to use it to gratify humanity’s baser urges. To that end, it makes sense that the ancient Queen…

Read More

26 Jan

All American Season 3 Episode 2 Review: How to Survive in South Central

New DVD releaseamerican, central, episode, review, season, south, survive

This All American review contains spoilers. All American Season 3, Episode 2 We’re back with a new episode and, as the premiere teased us, there is something that went down th summer before senior year with some of these characters. In “How to Survive in South Central,” All American does a good job of unraveling more of the melodrama mystery. But, I guess the slowburn of a certain secret is what makes it even juicier? Conflict, conflict, conflict. What else do you expect when a team gets a new coach they don’t feel like belongs on their turf, even when…

Read More

19 Jan

All American Season 3 Episode 1 Review: Seasons Pass

New DVD releaseamerican, episode, review, season, seasons

This All American review contains spoilers. All American Season 3, Episode 1 It’s senior year for our Beverly Hills and Crenshaw friends and that means the summer before senior year, something always has to happen to spice up the new school year. Right? After that All American Season 2 cliffhanger, my mind is going to the most obvious guess of what could have happened over the summer between Spencer (Daniel Ezra) and Olivia (Samantha Logan). But, we’ll get back to that in a bit… When we pick back up with him in Season 3, Spencer is no longer a student…

Read More

15 Jan

American Skin

Max SchindlerMovie reviewsamerican

A Marine veteran working as a school janitor tries to mend his relationship with his son after a divorce. When his son is killed by a police officer found innocent without standing trial, he takes matters into his own hands.Release Date: Jan 15, 2021

Read More

09 Jan

American Gods Season 3: What Awaits Shadow in Lakeside

New DVD releaseamerican, awaits, lakeside, season, shadow

When asked about the evolution of American Gods from Shadow and Wednesday on the road to the more hidebound setting of Lakeside, Ricky Whittle makes no secret of his feelings about American Gods season 3’s bold change in scenery. “This is my favorite part of the book. I’ve always been looking forward to doing this,” Whittle tells Den of Geek. In a sense, if you are hiding from the world, there is no better place to do it than Lakeside, which is as far out in the middle of nowhere as can be managed by someone in the modern world.…

Read More

07 Jan

How American Gods Finds Stability (And More Neil Gaiman) in Season 3

New DVD releaseamerican, finds, gaiman, season, stability

To call the production of American Gods’ first two seasons problem-plagued is to put it mildly; Old Testament Egypt had fewer problems with plagues.  After a successful first season, showrunners Bryan Fuller and Michael Green departed, followed by actors Kristin Chenoweth and Gillian Anderson. In February 2018, Jesse Alexander and original series author Neil Gaiman were announced as co-showrunners for the second season, but Alexander was removed in September 2018 and the lion’s share of the second season was guided by directing producer Chris Byrne and line producer Lisa Kussner. Season 3 now brings new showrunner Charles “Chic” Eglee (Dexter,…

Read More

24 Nov

Uncle Frank: Paul Bettany Movie Speaks to Every American Family

New DVD releaseamerican, bettany, every, frank, movie, speaks, uncle

Many of us have or had an Uncle Frank in our lives. Mine was my cousin Bobby, who lived with his mother (my great-aunt) in the downstairs apartment of our brownstone in Brooklyn. I lived there too for a while, on the top floor with my mom and grandparents. Bobby was a school teacher, well educated, and one of the voices of calm and reason in our otherwise highly emotional, often high-strung family. Bobby taught me about opera and certain types of pop music whenever I used to stop by and see him as a kid, and he also introduced…

Read More