Author: Tae In Park

The French Dispatch Director: Wes Anderson Starring: Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton, Léa Seydoux, Benicio Del Toro, Adrien Brody, Timothée Chalamet, Frances McDormand, Owen Wilson, Jeffrey Wright, Lyna Khoudri, Saoirse Ronan, Elisabeth Moss, Steve Park, Jason Schwartzman, Willem Dafoe Rating: R Runtime: 107 minutes Symmetrical aesthetics, quirky characters, fast-paced dialogues, and vintage set designs. As one of today’s modern auteurs in cinema, Wes Anderson’s memorable visual trademark and techniques have allowed him to be one of Hollywood’s most beloved directors. Films such as The Grand Budapest Hotel, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Moonrise Kingdom, and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou all exude Wes Anderson vibes.…

Tick, Tick… Boom! Director: Lin-Manuel Miranda Starring: Andrew Garfield, Alexandra Shipp, Vanessa Hudgens, Robin de Jesús, Bradley Whitford, Joshua Henry, Judith Light, Mj Rodriguez, Rating: PG-13 Runtime: 115 minutes While everyone is talking about Andrew Garfield’s possible appearance on Spider-Man: No Way Home, we need to talk about his lead performance in his new movie Tick, Tick…Boom! Based on the true story of composer and playwright Jonathan Larson, Lin Manuel-Miranda’s directorial debut brings to life with energetic, heartwarming direction. Even though viewers have not watched or heard the songs before, Lin Manuel-Miranda harnesses them on the screen and brings them to life…

The Green Knight Director: David Lowery Starring: Dev Patel, Alicia Vikander, Joel Edgerton, Sarita Choudhury, Sean Harris, Erin Kellyman, Ralph Ineson, Barry Keoghan Rating: R Runtime: 140 minutes Adapting a novel into a film requires a lot of thought processes and effort, but adapting a poem with an unknown author involves another level of precision, determination, and creativity. Thankfully, David Lowery has managed to craft a masterpiece from its source Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, a late 14th century Middle English chivalric romance poem, into a modern 21st-century reinterpretation of The Green Knight with his style. Lowery achieves to create a unique and…

I’m Thinking of Ending Things Director: Charlie Kaufman Starring: Jessie Buckley, Jesse Plemons, David Thewlis, Toni Collette, Guy Boyd Rating: R Runtime: 134 minutes Close your eyes and picture this scene: an ominous score filled with high violin strings and a close-up shot of a character slowly walking inside an abandoned building and being followed by an unknown presence —these are just some of the many horror tropes that appear in movies that have been worn out in the cinema. As a fan of horror films, I have begun to tire of these stereotypes and yearn for something new.…

The Platform (El Hoyo) Director: Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia Starring: Iván Massagué, Zorion Eguileor, Antonia San Juan, Emilio Buale, Alexandra Masangkay Rating: R Runtime: 94 minutes El Hoyo, more commonly known as The Platform to international audiences, is a Spanish horror, social science, thriller film that tackles issues related to social hierarchy and class welfare. Known as the “vertical” Snowpiercer, director Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia manages to simultaneously create philosophical themes combined with grim, violent cannibalism—a very absurd yet intriguing social commentary that successfully delivers its message and what it says about our worlds and how our choices affect others.  The film takes…

Persepolis Director: Marjane Satrapi, Winshluss Starring: Chiara Mastroianni, Catherine Deneuve, Danielle Darrieux, Simon Abkarian, François Jerosme, Sean Penn Rating: PG-13 Runtime: 96 minutes Based on Marjane Satrapi’s graphic novel Persepolis, the film version is a 2007 animated auto-biographical coming-of-age French film based on Marjane Satrapi’s life. Both written and directed by Satrapi herself, the film’s black-and-white animation is stark and deceptively simple. Yet, it conveys so many emotions at once, making it a high-class film about the Iranian Revolution and her story. This Oscar-nominated film story takes place in 1979 during the Iranian Revolution when Iran was undergoing conflicts within different…

Enola Holmes Director: Harry Bradbeer Starring: Millie Bobby Brown, Henry Cavill, Sam Claflin, Helena Bonham Carter, Louis Partridge, Fiona Shaw Rating: PG-13 Runtime: 123 minutes “My name is Enola, which, backwards, spells alone. But now I see that being alone doesn’t mean I have to be lonely”, says Enola Holmes (Millie Bobby Brown), the little sister of the one and only world-famous consulting detective in London, Sherlock Holmes. Clever, bright, and overall just fun to watch, Enola Holmes delivers a positive message about individuality and equality as Millie Bobby Brown showcases her charismatic force onto the screen by continually…

Tenet Director: Christopher Nolan Starring: John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Kenneth Branagh, Dimple Kapadia, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Clémence Poésy, Himesh Patel Rating: PG-13 Runtime: 150 minutes “Don’t try to understand it, just feel it,” says Clémence Poésy, who plays a cool-headed scientist in Christopher Nolan’s newest film Tenet. While this may have just been one of the lines from the film, it seems that Nolan is giving that advice to the audience members as well. The movie tries to tell us to enjoy the journey through a “twilight world of international espionage on a mission that will unfold in…

The Old Guard Director: Gina Prince-Bythewood Starring: Charlize Theron, KiKi Layne, Harry Melling, Matthias Schoenaerts, Luca Marinelli, Marwan Kenzari, Chiwetel Ejiofor Rating: R Runtime: 125 minutes Adapted from Greg Rucka and Leandro Fernandez’s graphic novel, The Old Guard is a gripping film that puts human elements into a superhero story. Combined with an exceptional leading cast, action-packed fight scenes, and strong motivations from the characters, Gina Prince-Bythewood adds some new features to this superhero film despite the same old conventions that naturally come in this restricted genre.  Led by an ancient warrior called Andy (Charlize Theron), a covert group…

Peninsula Director: Yeon Sang-ho Starring: Dong-Won Gang, Jung-hyun Lee, Re Lee, Do-yoon Kim, Koo Kyo-hwan, Hae-Hyo Kwon, Min-jae Kim, Lee-Yewoen Rating: PG-13 Runtime: 116 minutes Most of the time, sequels tend to produce disappointing results when compared to its predecessors. Of course, there are always a few exceptions such as Shrek 2, Godfather Part II, Aliens, The Dark Knight, and a few more. But when Hollywood producers and creators create sequels, they tend to get lazy. Before releasing a sequel, creating an original film with exciting characters require a lot of research and effort. The story has to be…