Don’t Watch This is a new movie from Netflix that collects five short horror films into one ghoulishly fun film. The film is a collaboration between Netflix, Crypt TV, the producers of Haunted, and the exec producers of Queer Eye that curtailed the usual Friday release. The anthology released on Monday, October 29, 2018, just in time for Halloween!
About Don’t Watch This
Official Description: There is none. It’s an anthology series, and reportedly Netflix “challenged talent and partners to bring us the most unbearable, unwatchable, can’t-possibly-finish short films you’ve ever seen on Netflix.”
Since it’s an anthology, here are descriptions for each of the five films in the series:
Friendship Bracelet
When two popular girls show up to her birthday party, outcast Julie goes to chilling extremes to make them her best friends.
Keep Out
Teaming up for one last spooky viral video, friends Noah and Alex break into a long-abandoned house, only to discover they’re not alone.
Incommodum
Ominous symbols, bodily horrors, and other frights converge in a surreal nightmare that’s not for the squeamish.
CTRL+ALT+DEL
A spiteful hacker lured into a virtual reality game on the dark web races to solve three challenges—with harrowing results.
Antoni Psycho
As Queer Eye food and wine expert, Antoni Porowski shares the secrets of his healthy morning rituals, hints of a darker side emerge.
Full disclosure, I’m always onboard for an anthology series. That concept coupled with the awesome, b-movie inspired trailer is already enough to get me interested in watching Don’t Watch This. I’m also a big fan of the Netflix content machine. Not necessarily because they make great stuff but because they don’t seem afraid to go a little off the deep end here and there. Experimentation like this breeds classics and the more the merrier. Don’t Watch This looks like a deep dive into the depths of horror fun and just in time for the best day of the year — Halloween. #ChangeMyMind
Did this trailer get you excited for Don’t Watch This? Leave your comments below!
ARROW continues down its Arrow-less path, but with a little more success. “Crossing Lines” works to explore what the new season’s tone is. Each of the protagonists get time in the spotlight. The core characters – Oliver, Felicity, and John – all get something of substance to do. “Crossing Lines” is the strongest episode of the season so far, because it really packs a punch.
The standout of “Crossing Lines” is definitely Emily Bett Rickards as Felicity. Felicity becoming more of an action-ready vigilante is interesting. While her moral dilemma is something we’ve seen with Oliver many times, but Felicity makes it new. Her storyline helps wrap the other Team Arrow friends into an unknown world. She even gives Agent Watson some interesting screen time (at long last). Felicity anchors an episode of ARROW that really elevates the season.
Photo from The CW
The Oliver prison plot still isn’t very strong. “Crossing Lines” definitely brings some exciting action back to ARROW. However, many of the characters in prison with Oliver weigh the episode down. The Bronze Tiger sympathy angle only works because it’s Michael Jai White saying it. Oliver’s small prison friend adds nothing to the story. Especially since we know Level 2 is the really dark area, it’s hard to know why we spent so much time with the Level 1 losers. That said, Oliver getting his hands dirtier with every day is an interesting enough arc.
The story line with the least impact was John and Lyla’s mission. It’s nice to see them back, but it’s a familiar story. Their relationship, and the secrets they keep, has been explored many times. The reason why it’s forgivable is because it’s nice that John and Lyla are present again. John Diggle hasn’t gotten his due in season seven yet, but “Crossing Lines” sets up an arc for him. Where he and Lyla will go from here makes their smaller problems okay.
“Crossing Lines” represents ARROW’s turn into real action. All three leads, as well as Diaz, are finally making big moves. After a slow introduction to season seven, ARROW has finally kicked things into gear. With any luck, the series will continue riding this momentum into a more dynamic season.
Maggie’s (Lauren Cohan) had enough, and she’s on her way to pay Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) a visit. We’re teased this last week as we watched her and Daryl (Norman Reedus) walk down the road. We now know that she went back to Hilltop to gather some items, specifically a crowbar, before making her way to Alexandria. Still, we never get to see this confrontation. And, with next week’s episode being the last of Rick Grimes, are we ever going to see Maggie’s encounter with the man who bashed her husband’s head in?
Daryl offers a ride to Rick in an attempt to tip off Alexandria of Maggie’s arrival, and after a scuffle, the two end up trapped in a man-made hole in the ground. They have a heart to heart that is making Rick rethink how things are being handled these days. There’s more than one way to handle justice in this world, and perhaps Rick’s law-man days should end. Rick didn’t ask for followers. It just happened. But now, it seems that the communities want a different form of leadership and definitely a different set of rules.
Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes, Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon – The Walking Dead – Season 9, Episode 4 – Photo Credit: Gene Page/AMC
Negan’s refusal to eat spurs a visit from Michonne (Danai Gurira). We get another heart to heart, much to Michonne’s disgust. She has better things to do, like study government textbooks like she’s studying for final exams. Negan tugs at Michonne’s heartstrings, and he plays off that he’s a softy for children because he and his wife were never able to have a family of their own before cancer took her from him. Really, though, he just wants his beloved bat back, but Lucille’s out in the world somewhere, unaccounted for. Did that really need to culminate with Negan bashing his own head against a concrete wall?
Anne (Jadis?) (Pollyanna McIntosh) has officially lost it. She wanted to change, she even tried to, but she clearly hasn’t become a better person. The blame of Justin’s (Zach McGowan) death, which she is certainly innocent of, must have gotten to her, and she has chosen a new path. Sounds like she’s ready to pay the sacrificial fee to join the helicopter people. She leaves Gabriel (Seth Gilliam) unharmed, oddly, with an unsettling farewell note pinned to his pocket.
Pollyanna McIntosh as Jadis/Anne – The Walking Dead – Season 9, Episode 4 – Photo Credit: Gene Page/AMC
And as for Rick, we’re left with a cliffhanger. Being bucked from a horse, leaving him impaled, it looks like it’s the end of our fearless leader. Or is it? Does anyone else find it oddly ironic that his puncture wound is in the same place of his gunshot wound from the pilot episode? It may be a way for things to come full circle for him.
This episode feels like a “part 1” of a bigger picture that perhaps will come to fruition next week. We have a lot of unanswered questions, things in limbo, and unfinished missions. Times are a-changin’, and I have a feeling that there could be complete turmoil next week.
Jim Zub takes over writing duties for Marvel’s Champions with volume 4, “Northern Lights”, out November 7th.
The trade collects the three issue “Northern Lights” story, as well as the two issue Infinity Countdown: Champions. In “Northern Lights”, the team heads to Canada and comes face-to-face with both Master of the World and Alpha Flight. Then, tying into Infinity Countdown, Sam Alexander gets a distress signal from the Nova Corps and heads into space to battle Warbringer. Ms Marvel, Viv Vision, Ironheart, Wasp, and Snowguard tag along, and the crew finds not only Warbringer, but Thanos as well.
Sean Izaakse draws “Northern Lights” with Marcio Menyz on colors, and Emilio Laiso draws the Infinity Countdown tie-in with Andy Troy on colors. Zub writes both stories, and Clayton Cowles letters them.
Champions was started to show the power of youth, and to empower younger readers. Its purpose is to show how idealism and innocence can be a tool and a strength instead of a weakness. Zub captures this spirit in his debut on the title.
Admittedly, both of these stories are somewhat cut-and-dry in their plots. The team answers a distress call and there’s a big fight. It’s superhero comics 101. However, the themes and morals of these stories make them worth reading.
Both stories involve the Champions bucking authority to be heroes and do the right thing. Sometimes the “right” thing isn’t the logical thing, but these teens are showing the importance of trusting your heart and putting good out into the world. There’s even a moral conundrum in “Northern Lights” that adds a layer of complexity and gives readers young and old something to think about.
Both art teams on this book capture the essence of traditional superhero comics. The work is bright and vibrant; the action is big and explosive. Izaakse, Menyz, Laiso, and Troy all fit the tone of their respective stories perfectly.
“Northern Lights” is the start of a new era for this series. Not only is it Zub’s first arc, but it’s the first story where Ironheart and Wasp are official team members. Point being, this is a fair jumping-on point if you’re new to Champions. However, as this is a team book and there are only three volumes preceding this one, you’ll probably enjoy it more and have more of a connection to the characters if you catch up on Mark Waid’s run first.
Champions is an inspirational, fun comic, and Jim Zub is a natural fit for the series. All high schoolers should be reading it. Heck, all adults should be reading it to remember what it’s like to be young and hopeful. It’s important to hold on to that hope, and comics like this remind us of that.
Based on their memoirs, Beautiful Boy is the story of David Sheff and his son Nic, as their relationship is strained when Nic becomes addicted to drugs. The film debuted at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival.
Although the film’s story is undeniably compelling, it wasn’t always the most effective at capturing the audience’s attention. It is obvious that Nic is someone who made a misstep in his life that caused his world to fall apart. As such, it is hard to not feel sympathy for him. However, because the film constantly pummels the audience with sad (and sometimes excessively tear-jerking) moments, it instead becomes derivative and tiresome.
Oakley Bull as Daisy Sheff, Maura Tierney as Karen Babour, Timothe Chalamet as Nic Sheff, Christian Convery as Jasper Sheff, and Steve Carell as David Scheff star in BEAUTIFUL BOY.
Additionally, the film’s pacing is inconsistent. Although it is based on a true story, the film still feels repetitive. The process of struggle, recovery, and relapse is repeated one too many times. The film feels slow and about thirty minutes longer than it really needed to be. More distracting is the fact that the film leaves the arc incomplete. The film ends at a time in the story that is entirely unsatisfying, especially given the real-life end of the story.
Furthermore, the film didn’t always feel completely realistic. Some scenes felt gritty and real, but other scenes had dialogue that seemed artificial. The emotion behind the scenes was always genuine, but the actions were not. The characters also had too many drastic shifts within scenes. This is justifiable for Nic, who experiences mood swings as a result of withdrawals, but more inexplicable for David.
Steve Carell, Maura Tierney, Timothe Chalamet, Oakley Bull, and Christian Convery star in BEAUTIFUL BOY.
That being said, the film does accomplish its goal of showing the horrors of drug addiction. It has been since perhaps Trainspotting that a film has given such a harrowing portrayal of drugs. This is not meant to be an uplifting film — it is meant to be dark and depressing, and you will definitely be feeling down when the movie is over.
The actors are all very good too. Timothée Chalamet is as great as always in his role, fully committing to the transformation, although he isn’t given as much to do as he should have been. Instead, the focus is clearly on Steve Carell, who is wonderful. Carell is arguably a better dramatic actor than a comedic one, and this is one of his strongest turns yet. He absolutely nails the emotion and nuance associated with the character.
Overall, Beautiful Boy isn’t a bad film, but it isn’t as good as it should have been. It is well-acted and harrowing, but a tad slow and overlong.
Beautiful Boy is now playing in select theaters and expands November 2.
Unlovable is a new comedy co-written and starring Charlene deGuzman. It debuted at the 2018 South by Southwest Film Festival, where it received Special Jury Recognition.
In the film, deGuzman stars as a sex-and-love addict that has hit rock bottom and is struggling to take control of her life. She begins to learn real intimacy when she forms a band with the reclusive man in whose guest house she is staying.
The first scene of the movie is somewhat annoying and over-the-top. It feels too bright and ditsy for a film with such serious subject matter. Luckily, this is only a facade, as the story soon turns darker, even though it (rightfully) maintains its optimistic attitude. It is this blend of realism and optimism that makes the movie so enjoyable.
Additionally, despite the film’s subject matter, it is surprisingly tasteful. Yes, there are scenes of sexuality, but these are not graphic or overly raunchy. The movie manages to capture the crippling effects of addiction without being exploitative or gratuitous. To do this, the film establishes its characters to be complex and rounded, making their emotional arcs the center of the story.
The protagonist is highly likable. The film uses pity as a tool to make the audience like her even more. When used improperly, pity can make a character feel distant or diminish the impact of his or her story. However, the movie counterbalances the pity that the audience should feel for the protagonist with a well-written redemption arc. This makes the character even more intensely sympathetic.
The supporting characters in the film are likable as well. Jim has a very strong arc of his own, changing from an outsider to one of the most interesting parts of the story. The friendship that is developed between him and the protagonist is both enjoyable and believable. Maddie is a likable mentor character, although her part in the movie is small.
The execution of the film was also quite good. The cinematography and editing are interesting, with some gritty and real shots that were emotionally impactful and some fantastically surreal shots that transport the audience into the mind of the character. The soundtrack is great too. The original songs were catchy and cute.
Furthermore, the actors also do a nice job of bringing their characters to life. In the lead role, deGuzman is both funny and endearing. Given that she co-wrote the movie, there is likely some part of the character that is true-to-life (or at least something she has seen in real life), and that shows. John Hawkes gives a strong turn in his supporting role. He is talented at being the off-putting, but unexpectedly charming character.
Overall, Unlovable is an impressive film. Although it gets off to a bumpy start, it quickly smooths out, turning into an enjoyable, brisk comedy.
Unlovable opens in theaters November 1 and is available on VOD beginning November 2.
The Romanoffs is an anthology television series that airs on Amazon Video about the possible, but most likely not, descendants of a royal Russian family. The show premiered in early October and some call it “… handsomely made …” and “… ambitious and sprawling.” (Rotten Tomatoes). Composers Giona Ostinelli & Sonya Belousova create the sometimes vibrant, sometimes moody music for several episodes of the show.
Monkeys Fighting Robots sent some questions to Giona and Sonya about their career and work on things like The Mist and The Romanoffs. Below are their amazing answers. Read on, readers!
In the Beginning …
Where did the road to making music start for the each of you? Was becoming a composer the goal from the start or did it come about a different way?
Sonya (S): Growing up in Russia, I have been exposed to the strong classical music education Russia is well regarded for.
Giona (G): And there she goes. I’ll have time to finish the cue!
S: I started playing piano at the age of 5, made my debut at the St. Petersburg Philharmonia at the age of 8, and started taking formal composition lessons at the age of 10. I won my first international composition competition and became the recipient of the Russian Ministry of Culture award at the age of 13. I was admitted to college at the age of 15 and received a stellar education in some of the best music conservatories both Russia and the USA have to offer.
G: And now back to us, mere mortals. I started discovering music when I was 5 by playing drums. As you can imagine, my neighbors were extremely happy about it… To make my neighbors even happier, I started playing piano at the age of 9, and they were extremely pleased to learn I wasn’t interested in pursuing opera singing. Around the same time, I became curious about film. I used to have a small 8mm camera, I remember playing around with it trying to recreate scenes from ‘Indiana Jones’ or ‘Star Wars.’ I also tried reenacting them with LEGO but it never really worked out. That’s when I figured directing wasn’t my cup of tea. I was always a fan of the iconic scores for films such as ‘The Goonies,’ ‘The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly,’ ‘Romancing The Stone,’ ‘Indiana Jones,’ ‘Jurassic Park,’ ‘Air Force One,’ ‘Robin Hood,’ and ‘The Three Musketeers,’ so at some point I knew for sure writing music for films was exactly what I wanted to do.
S: For me, it was always about both composing and performing in this order. Same as Giona, I was in love with films for as long as I can remember. As much as I enjoyed writing concert music, I was always passionate about storytelling and expressing the story through music.
Keeping Up With The Romanoffs
The Romanoffs is an anthology about different people who claim to be descendants of the famous royal family. You are from the city where the family lived. Are you descendants and would you tell me if you really REALLY were?
S: Well, if I were to reply with either a yes or no, there would be no intrigue in that. The facts are: I am Russian, was born in St. Petersburg, and just scored a series about my ancest…
G: *Cough* *cough*
S: Sorry, I meant the Romanoffs!
What do you do to get into the mindset of something like The Mist versus The Romanoffs? What’s the first step of the process like for each of you with a new project?
S: Great question! Indeed, we love being involved in the projects spanning across genres. That’s the fun and most fulfilling for us creatively! ‘The Romanoffs’ is a great example. The range of the music style for the series varies immensely from classical to highly experimental. We got to write sophisticated orchestral pieces including a piano concerto and a domra concerto and play around with vintage synths.
G: At the same time, scoring ‘Sacred Lies’ was basically like producing a record. We wrote and produced both the score and songs for this unique Blumhouse series, including the lyrics. Sonya recorded the vocals for all the original songs.
S: With ‘The Mist,’ The Paramount show we did several years back, we spent a couple of weeks in the studio just recording pianos creating the weirdest otherworldly sonorities a piano could possibly produce, and then built the foundation of the score out of this unique material.
G: Or with ‘M.F.A.,’ we got a chance to create an incredibly intricate and effective score by sampling Francesca Eastwood’s phrases from her production dialogue.
S: The point is, every new project is a new process, it’s never the same. But again, that’s the fun! Whenever possible, we love writing from the script as it gives us an opportunity to explore. Before the editing starts, we like spending time creating the language and writing music ideas, which could include some of the thematic material, motifs, or textures. We start building the sound palette and sonorities we would like to explore and develop further. Once we start scoring to picture, since music and image co-exist and complement each other, there will be other elements like cinematography, colors, lighting, the pace of editing, which will influence the score and its sound palette. However, in this way, the music bible and the language of this new universe have already been created.
G: ‘The One That Holds Everything,’ the season finale of ‘The Romanoffs,’ is a very thematic score. In fact, the whole score develops out of a single theme that gets introduced in its full version in the middle of the episode. After Matthew (Weiner) showed us the episode, we went back to the studio and spent a couple of days writing the theme and perfecting it. Once we developed it, we were able to approach the rest of the scenes planting hints of it in every cue.
S: Episode 3 ‘House of Special Purpose’ was different since our schedule was incredibly tight. It was more a situation of “Ok, we have a week and a half to write, record, mix and deliver the score for an episode the length of a feature film, we have no time to waste here!” So after we spotted the episode with Matthew, we immediately went back to the studio and started writing.
What can you tell us about the episodes you each scored? What’s the gist of the story and how did you use your sonic superpowers to draw that out?
G: ‘The Romanoffs’ is an anthology series that consists of 8 episodes. Each episode is a feature film length and tells a different story in a different genre. Every episode is shot in different locations across several continents and stars different cast. We scored episode 3 ‘House of Special Purpose’ and the season finale ‘The One That Holds Everything.’
S: Both episodes are very music oriented. For example, in ‘House of Special Purpose’ there was a scene, which required a very specific distinctly Russian music approach, and so we wrote a piano concerto for the scene. Imagine, for me as a concert pianist, this was literally like a dream come true to compose and record a piano concerto for the series. For another scene, we wrote a domra concerto. Domra is a Russian folk instrument of the lute family used widely in the Russian folk orchestras. Matthew has a lot of appreciation for the Russian classical music. Therefore, we definitely wanted to include some of the Russian flavors in the score, however, wanted to keep a broader perspective at the same time. So the range of the music style for the series varies immensely. We have an orchestra, virtuoso soloists, fragile and intimate chamber strings, Russian traditional folk instruments, hints of the Hollywood’s Golden Age sound, electronic textures, and elaborate synths.
G: In stark contrast to that, ‘The Once That Holds Everything’ is incredibly thematic with the whole score literally builds up note by note to the moment where the theme finally reveals itself. Matthew is incredibly specific in his music choices, which inspires us to create a particular and unique sound, there’s definitely nothing else on television right now with such a sophisticated music palette.
About Making Music
What’s your experience been with “temp tracks” or “reference tracks?”
S: Temp track can be useful when the director/showrunner knows how to use it. A properly used temp gives us a certain framework to work with and helps us understand the emotion the director/showrunner is looking for. However, within this framework, it is up to us to be as creative as we want. The great thing about working with Matthew is that he encourages us to be creative and gives us room to experiment.
G: On the other hand, with both ‘Sacred Lies’ and ‘The Mist’, the showrunners Raelle Tucker (‘Sacred Lies’) and Christian Torpe (‘The Mist’) didn’t want to use any temp music, and so we started writing to picture from the very first editor’s cut. It’s incredibly beneficial working this way because you can establish the music foundation and its tone from the very early stages. This way you can direct the journey rather than follow it.
How often do you use real instruments vs. digital? What instruments does each of you play best?
G: We feel that writing music for films and television is becoming more and more like producing a record. We have lots of different instruments in our studio, so we record many of them ourselves while we’re writing. With ‘The Romanoffs’ we had to go out to record a string orchestra and soloists but all the other instruments, we recorded in our studio while we were writing. We did the same process with ‘Sacred Lies’ and ‘The Mist.’ The majority of the ‘Sacred Lies’ soundtrack was recorded in our studio, including Sonya’s vocals. That was a terrific experience because it’s so beautiful when you can transform a music theme into a song and therefore blur the lines between how score and songs interact with each other.
S: Prior to scoring ‘The Mist,’ we spent some time in the studio recording the weirdest sounds a piano could possibly produce. We wanted to use a piano more like a tension-building rhythmical element and explore how to create suspenseful textures without actually hitting the black and white keys. To achieve that, we plucked the strings, bowed them, used various mallets, threw lithium batteries on the strings or screamed into them to record the resonance, you name it. These unique elements became the foundation of the complex soundscape used for the mist character.
G: Digital instruments are becoming better and better. However, the downside is that these are sounds available for anyone to purchase, anyone, can have them. So we’re more interested in building our own sounds and sound palette that we always create at the beginning of each project. If using synths, we never use pre-built and pre-generated sounds but rather build them ourselves so we can be specific about them.
S: We love transforming acoustic instruments into something completely unique and different. Right now, we’re working on a project, for which we get to play with erhu, a Chinese two-stringed violin. We ran it through a guitar amp, and it ended up sounding like an electric guitar with an ethnic flavor to it. Pretty cool, no?
What’s the difference for you between scoring for film versus TV and which do you prefer if any?
G: It’s not that different anymore. Creatively, the process of scoring films vs. TV is very similar nowadays. More and more shows function as extended films and therefore the music approach needs to be cinematic.
S: ‘The Romanoffs’ is a great example of that. With each episode running over 80 minutes long, it is basically 8 self-contained films.
G: The difference is the amount of music you will write. In TV you get an opportunity to explore and develop the thematic material more extensively. As the overall runtime is longer, the characters and the storylines will develop more, and so will the score.
Do you ever suffer from “writer’s block” and what do you do to deal with it?
G: Chocolate is the best solution for everything!
S: The beautiful thing about scoring films and television is that you have strict deadlines, and therefore you simply don’t have time for writer’s block. Writing music for film is basically a synonym of spending long hours in the studio. You have a lot of music to write and very little time to do it. That’s why we love working together. For example, Giona would come up with an idea, which I would then extend or complement with something completely different from what he originally imagined, and vice versa. This leads to new discoveries and approaches we wouldn’t think of otherwise.
G: Exactly! You spend hours working on a cue, and when it’s time to move on to the next cue, sometimes you might not get an idea right away. Then one of us comes up with something creative, which inspires the other one, and it just keeps going. If it doesn’t happen, well, chocolate truffles are an excellent solution as well. Unless the box is somehow empty, then yes, we do have a situation…
S: Jokes aside, we basically feed off each other’s enthusiasm and ideas. We inspire each other. You never know where the inspiration will come from. Maybe Giona starts messing around with different instruments in the studio, which then gives me an idea on how to structure the next cue. Or I start a motif on the piano, which we then develop, add other instruments and elements. When working long hours in the studio, it’s refreshing and creatively more beneficial being a team. It keeps the ideas flowing and brings in new and unexpected ideas to the table.
Wrapping Up
Who is another composer (or team) working today that you admire?
G: There is this team of composers who just scored ‘The Romanoffs,’ they’re really cool!
S: I would most definitely recommend anyone to check them out! They’re also just about to release the soundtrack for ‘Sacred Lies,’ for which they wrote both score and original songs. This soundtrack is just out of this world. It’s coming out October 26 via Lakeshore Records!
What is coming next?
G: Something really cool!
S: But we can’t talk about it just yet.
Thanks to Giona & Sonya and Impact24 PR for making this interview possible.
The ride for Star Wars Resistance hasn’t been a smooth one, at least from a storytelling point. However, the animation continues to exceed expectations and the dialog (even Kaz’s) is consistently entertaining. Episode 4 of Star Wars Resistance, “The High Tower,” finally begins to move the story forward while also providing action, humor, and a stunning introduction of Hype Fazon. With a proper story arc falling into place, things are heating up on the Colossus.
The powers down on the Colossus due to fuel issues, thanks to the pirates attacking the platform in “The Triple Dark.” Kaz, Tam, and Neeku head to the cantina while they wait for power to return and that’s when Aunt Z spills the beans about Captain Doza possibly working with the First Order.
In fact, it seems everyone on the Colossus knows the First Order’s been visiting often. Which, ironically, contradicts Yeager’s statement about nobody knowing who the Resistance or First Order is.
Image via Disney Studios and Lucasfilm
Complicating things further, Hype Fazon suddenly shows up in the lower area of the Colossus for no apparent reason. When Kaz askes him about what’s going on, Fazon goes out of his way to state he’ll have nothing to do with the First Order visiting the Colossus.
Major Vonreg (with the First Order) arrives next in a cargo ship full of fuel. Kaz is itching to find a way up to the tower when Fazon suddenly reappears and invites Tam and Kaz to the Aces lounge in the tower. Kaz breaks away while Fazon and Tam take shots at one another and uses a commlink Neeku built to hear the conversation between Major Vonreg and Captain Doza.
Who’s The Mole?
Image via Disney Studios and Lucasfilm
Many were predicting the mole would turn out to be Hype Fazon, but after “The High Tower,” it honestly could be anyone. Doza seems to suspect the pirate raids and Major Vonreg’s assistance are connected, so it seems unlikely he’s a mole. Fazon leading Kaz to the tower means he likely suspects Doza is doing something wrong. And Tora Dozza — well — she’s simply way too adorable.
Highlights of “The High Tower”
Image via Disney Studios and Lucasfilm
The animation continues to delight the senses with each new episode. Likewise, with the dialog (especially between Neeku and Kaz). Tam Ryvora (Suzie McGrath) is finally getting some decent screen time and was the overall highlight of this week’s Star Wars Resistance episode.
Thanks to her interactions with Fazon, we learned she’s more than just a mechanic and used to fly with Hype before he became one of the Aces. And yet, there’s still so much we don’t know about her character. Could Tam’s jealousy towards Fazon lead her to betray Yeager and the Colossus?
Image via Disney Studios and Lucasfilm
Donald Faison, meanwhile, is a perfect fit to the Star Wars Resistance story. His swagger and ego come off genuine, rather than forced — which isn’t easy to accomplish. Speaking of swagger, there’s an interesting camera shot when Hype and Kaz are sitting at a booth in the Cantina.
Reminiscent of Han and Greedo’s conversation in A New Hope, Fazon comes off like a confident Greedo about to collect on his bounty. Kaz, unfortunately, doesn’t resemble the calm and collected Han. But we have to wonder, is there a hidden meaning behind this shot?
Continuing Problems In Star Wars Resistance
Image via Disney Studios and Lucasfilm
Not everything is sunshine and rainbows, yet. “The High Tower” is clearly a step in the right direction, but there are still problems within the series. Most notably, is a lack of connection between characters and the audience. With the storyline moving forward, we must wonder if there’ll be proper development for Tam, Yeager, Neeku, Tora, Hype, and all the other Aces pilots in future episodes? And if so, at what cost to the pacing of the story?
Veering onto a more minor detail, what’s up with Disney giving female droids — shapely body parts? L3-37 had it in Solo: A Star Wars Story and the “maid” droids on the Colossus are also fitted with a rather busting bosom (see image above). Seriously, Disney, female droids don’t need exaggerated parts. Your audience isn’t stupid.
Image via Disney Studios and Lucasfilm
Next week’s episode of Star Wars Resistance is “The Children from Tehar.”
Did you enjoy this week’s episode of Star Wars Resistance? Let us know in the comments below. “May the Force be with you, always.”
Haunting on Fraternity Row is an upcoming horror film that looks poised to blow the roof off when it comes to stuffing tropes into one movie. The preternatural monster-on-the-loose film comes out soon.
About Haunting on Fraternity Row
Official Description: A fraternity house throws their big “Winter Luau” party, but when fraternity brothers and coeds begin dying horrible deaths they discover an evil entity has taken over the house.
Director Brant Sersen is no stranger to horror films having previously helmed Sanatorium in 2013. The trailer for Haunting on Sorority Row features a wild college party where a bunch of college friends stumble onto a secret room in their house. Unfortunately, the secret room houses a demon spirit thing that begins to have a party of its own. But as we know, demons only get high off of murder and mayhem.
Jacob Artist as Jason
Jayson Blair as Tanner
Molly Tarlov as Maggie
Shanley Caswell as Claire
Claudia Lee as Liza
Ashton Moio as Dougie
Cameron Moulène as Grant
Chester Rushing as Drew
Breon Pugh as Wiggles
Ashton Leigh as Sadie
Haunting on Fraternity Row is littered with tropes in the trailer. This can be an indication of a horror film that’s also part comedy and having fun with the kind of movie this is, OR it’s a sign of a film that thinks it’s clever when it does the “drag someone away by their from the camera” shot. We’ll have to wait and see what the Haunting on Fraternity Row has in store. At least the trailer doesn’t hide the monster, and it’s a pretty cool looking smoke demon-face thing. Not a bad place to start for fans of the horror genre.
Did this trailer get you excited for Haunting on Fraternity Row? Leave your comments below!
Ingmar Bergman is considered by many to be one of the best filmmakers of all time, having created seminal masterworks such as The Seventh Seal, Fanny and Alexander, and Persona.
The new documentary Searching for Ingmar Bergman explores the eponymous auteur’s life, career, and impact on the film industry. It is co-directed by and features the renowned director Margarethe von Trotta, who had personal experiences with Bergman.
One does not need to have familiarity with the work of Bergman to appreciate this documentary, but it certainly helps. Even if you haven’t seen any of his films in their entirety, understanding why people consider his movies to be great is important, as most of the film assumes that the audience already knows that he is great.
There are clips of Bergman’s films spread throughout, but there is little commentary on the clips themselves. Rather, the movie focuses on him filmmaking process and personal life that led him to create his masterpieces.
As a result, the film is more insightful than educational, aimed at an audience that already has a comfortable understanding of what goes into making a movie. If you are not a hardcore cinephile, then this film probably isn’t for you. The story likely won’t keep the interest of anyone who isn’t passionate about the documentary’s subject.
That being said, the film does provide some very interesting details about the ways in which Bergman worked. A recurring theme that the documentary explores is the way that Bergman treated the actors with whom he worked. It is weird to look at how differently actors were treated in the past compared to how they are treated now.
The segments featuring von Trotta speaking of her admiration of Bergman are fine, but the other interviews are far more in-depth and enjoyable. The interviews with Bergman’s son are perhaps the best, shining the most light on the filmmaker’s personal life. However, since the personal and work lives of the artist were so intertwined, his son is also able to provide insight into his career. Additionally, interviews with modern filmmakers such as Olivier Assayas do add some level of analysis as to the reasons why Bergman is considered to be a master.
The documentary is very ably-assembled, but that would be expected given that von Trotta herself is a distinguished filmmaker. The editing is great, with archive footage, clips, and interviews being used effectively to create variety within the film. However, von Trotta’s presence as the narrator of the movie can be somewhat distracting at times, as she tries to compare her own success to that of Bergman.
Overall, Searching for Ingmar Bergman is a fascinating documentary about one of the greatest filmmakers of all time. It isn’t for cinema “novices”, but for the film-minded crowd, this is sure to be a worthwhile watch.
Searching for Ingmar Bergman opens in select theaters beginning November 2.
