Demolition Girl [JKエレジー] - 2019 Slamdance Movie Review

The Movie: Demolition Girl [JKエレジー] 

The Director: Genta Matsugami

The Cast: Aya Kitai, Hiroki Ino, Haruka Imo, Yura Komuro, Yota Kawase, Ko Maehara, Ryohei Abe, Nobu Morimoto

The Story: A high-school girl who lives in a rural town in Japan struggles to define her own way in life. To help her impoverished family she works as a video fetish performer which leads to problems for her and her family with a criminal underworld.

Ski Bum: The Warren Miller Story - 2019 Slamdance Documentary Review

The Documentary: Ski Bum: The Warren Miller Story

The Director: Patrick Creadon

The Story: The life and times of the legendary filmmaker who, through his annual ski films and national tours which began in the early 1950’s, was a driving force in the development and promotion of the ski industry in America and throughout the world.

Replicas - Movie Review

The Movie: Replicas

The Director: Jeffrey Nachmanoff

The Cast: Keanu Reeves, Alice Eve, Emily Alyn Lind, Thomas Middleditch, John Ortiz, Emjay Anthony, Amber Townsend, Aria Lyric Leabu

The Story: A scientist becomes obsessed with bringing back his family members who died in a traffic accident.

Lost Holiday - 2019 Slamdance Move Review

The Movie: Lost Holiday

The Directors: Michael Kerry Matthews & Thomas Matthews

The Cast: Kate Lyn Sheil, Thomas Matthews, Keith Poulson, William Jackson Harper, Ismenia Mendes, Tone Tank, Joshua Leonard, Isiah Whitlock Jr.

The Story: A New York social worker finds herself embroiled in the kidnapping of a Washington DC socialite.

Desolation Center - Slamdance 2019 Documentary Review

The Documentary: Desolation Center

The Director: Stuart Swezey

The Story: Desolation Center is the untold story of Reagan-era guerrilla punk rock desert happenings that are now recognized as inspirations for Burning Man, Lollapalooza and Coachella.

TwoOhSix Picks - Slamdance 2019

2019 marks the 25th Anniversary of Slamdance as well as my second year of covering the festival. Slamdance always features a fresh and original slate of programming making it the perfect way to kick off the new year. After digging into the roster of available films, I was very excited to once again see a true independent spirit embedded throughout making it no easy task to compile my list of the 10 films (narrative, documentary, and short) that stood out from the pack as this year's "TwoOhSix Picks.".

Escape Room (2019) - Movie Review

The Movie: Escape Room

The Director: Adam Robitel

The Cast: Taylor Russell, Logan Miller, Jay Ellis, Tyler Labine, Deborah Ann Woll, Nick Dodani

The Story: Six strangers find themselves in circumstances beyond their control, and must use their wits to survive.

MAL-MO-E: The Secret Mission / 말모이 - Movie Review

The Movie: MAL-MO-E: The Secret Mission / 말모이

The Director: Eom Yoo-na

The Cast: Yoo Hae-jin, Yoon Kye-sang, Kim Hong-pa, Woo Hyun, Kim Tae-hoon, Kim Sun-young-III, Min Jin-woong, Lee Sung-wook-I, Cho Hyun-chul, Jo Hyun-do, Park Ye-na

The Story: During the Japanese occupation, two men travel across the country compiling the first Korean language dictionary.

Glass - Movie Review

The Movie: Glass

The Director: M. Night Shyamalan

The Cast: Bruce Willis, James McAvoy, Samuel L. Jackson, Anya Taylor-Joy, Sarah Paulson, Spencer Treat-Clark, Charlayne Woodard, Luke Kirby, Adam David Thompson

The Story: Security guard David Dunn uses his supernatural abilities to track Kevin Wendell Crumb, a disturbed man who has twenty-four personalities.

2018 Recap - Asian Cinema

While I don't necessarily consider Asian Cinema to be a genre, it is quite often the source for some of my favorite movies each year and 2018 was definitely no exception. Out of the twenty three movies watched and I have chosen six of them as my nominees for the 2018 TwoOhSix.com Favorite Asian Film Award.

Project Gutenberg (無雙) - Movie Review

The Movie: Project Gutenberg (無雙)

The Director: Felix Chong

The Cast: Chow Yun-Fat, Aaron Kwok, Jingchu Zhang, Catherine Chau, David Yao-Qing Wang, Kai Chi Liu

The Story: Cops chase counterfeiters while counterfeiters make fake stuff in big action spectacle.

2018 Recap - The Documentaries

Normally, documentaries aren't in my wheelhouse when it comes to movie watching, but whenever I have a chance to check one out, I am usually glad I did and quite often very impressed. In 2018 most of my documentary viewing (14 total) came from film festivals and there were a couple gems that really stuck with me. Out of the 14, I have picked six to be this year's nominees for TwoOhSix 2018 Favorite Documentary.

2018 Recap - The Horror Movies

2018 was a great year for horror and featured a ton of variety, from the revival of the classic Halloween franchise to the emergence of the Christmas Zombie Musical, there was so much to like. Film festivals filled their slates with some truly innovative gems while mainstream Hollywood got into the act with several bonafide hits. After much struggle, contemplation, and deliberation, I have narrowed down the 42 horror movies I have had the privilege of watching over the course of the year to the ten finalists you will see below.

Halloween (2018) - Movie Reiew

The Movie: Halloween

The Director: David Gordon Green

The Cast: Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer, Andi Matichak, James Jude Courtney, Nick Castle, Haluk Bilginer, Will Patton, Rhian Rees, Jefferson Hall, Toby Huss, Virginia Gardner, Dylan Arnold

The Story: Laurie Strode confronts her long-time foe Michael Myers, the masked figure who has haunted her since she narrowly escaped his killing spree on Halloween night four decades ago.

2018 Recap - The Film Festivals

2018 was my busiest year yet covering film festivals with an assortment of events that literally spanned the entire country from New York to Hawaii. Of course, the Seattle International Film Festival is my proverbial home base when it comes to festivals but I love being able to cover events from all over the place so I can better find those hidden gems and indie film makers from around the world. Some of my favorite movies each year come from film festivals and this year was no different.

Shoplifters (万引き家族) - Movie Review

The Movie: Shoplifters (万引き家族)

The Director: Kore-eda Hirokazu

The Cast: Lily Franky, Sakura Andô, Mayu Matsuoka, Kairi Jō, Miyu Sasaki, Kirin Kiki

The Story: A family of small-time crooks take in a child they find outside in the cold.

Roma (2018) - Movie Review

The Movie: Roma

The Director: Alfonso Cuarón

The Cast: Yalitza Aparicio, Marina de Tavira, Diego Cortina Autrey, Nancy García García, Verónica García, Fernando Grediaga, Jorge Antonio Guerrero

The Story: A story that chronicles a year in the life of a middle-class family's maid in Mexico City in the early 1970s.