Review: "Beautiful Boy" Opens a Conversation About Drug Addiction in Powerfully Real Ways

Scene from Beautiful Boy

The subject of addiction is something that has greatly impacted America over the years, which makes it strange how little cinema has decided to address it. For those who know someone, or are themselves, there is a certain pain the experience of watching something pure become diluted, floating away from the innocence that you once assumed them to have. At its core, director Felix van Groeningen's Beautiful Boy not only captures a story that has a horrifying reality to a teenager stumbling in and out of sobriety, but it also has the impact he leaves on his family, especially a father who cares too much. There's a desperation to both performances that ratchets up the emotion in a way that creates one of the most eye-opening, emotional dramas of 2018 and allows for an entry point for people not only to understand addiction, but to even empathize with their struggles. 

"Beautiful Boy" Opens With Amazon Studios' Best Per-Screen Average to Date

Scene from Beautiful Boy

What has been exciting about the month of October so far has been the fact of how well it has ushered in Oscar season more directly. There was of course the phenomenon that greeted A Star is Born. Even First Man was met with a lot of favorable reviews, asking audiences to please see it in IMAX. However, the indie releases are starting to shape up with some promising numbers. After all, this is where most of the contenders come from, such as 2016's Best Picture winner Moonlight. It's in the limited release numbers that films tend to prove their merit, and director Felix Van Groeningen's Beautiful Boy has more than done a decent job of proving that it was more than a film festival hit. With this past weekend's opening in four theaters, it has officially become Amazon Studios' highest grossing per-screen average to date. Are Oscars not too far behind?

Theory Thursday: "Goosebumps" (2015) is Underrated

Scene from Goosebumps (2015)

Welcome to a weekly column called Theory Thursdays, which will be released every Thursday and discuss my "controversial opinion" related to something relative to the week of release. Sometimes it will be birthdays while others is current events or a new film release. Whatever the case may be, this is a personal defense for why I disagree with the general opinion and hope to convince you of the same. While I don't expect you to be on my side, I do hope for a rational argument. After all, film is a subjective medium and this is merely just a theory that can be proven either way. 

Review: "Bridge of Spies" is Spielberg's Global Love Letter to Humanity in the Time of War

Tom Hanks

Over the course of 40 years, director Steven Spielberg has made a career out of chronicling the American way. From the government offices of Lincoln to the beaches of Jaws, he has found new ways to explore patriotism within the country's rich history - often in relation to big, awe-inspiring set pieces. In his latest film Bridge of Spies, he turns in a film that combines his sense for adventure with his maturing sense for drama in what can be described as Mr. Smith Goes to Berlin; a Cold War film in which James Donovan (Tom Hanks) fights for what's right, even as his patriotism turns him into a notorious figure among his fellow citizens. The film is a tale of humanity for the 21st century, turning Communism not into an evil; but a complicated web in which harmless individuals get stuck. Is it bad? Maybe a little. However, this film chooses to ask us why we shouldn't give them the justice they deserve.

The First "Louder Than Bombs" Footage Promises Intense Drama

Scene from Louder than Bombs

A little while ago, I mentioned quite a few films that premiered at Cannes that I was going to keep an eye out for. While we have seen a few already garner some buzz, there have been few to have trailers and much public attention. Today marks quite a special day for those, like myself, who have been looking forward to the latest from director Joachim Trier called Louder Than Bombs, which stars Jesse Eisenberg in the director's English debut. Today marks the release of a trailer and a few clips, which would suggest that we are still in great hands.