Favorite films

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Recent reviews

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  Not Okay 2022

  ★★ Watched by InSession Film - JD Duran 31 Jul 2022

  Not Okay, and others of its ilk in recent years that are aiming to be these snarky and biting satires, only prove further to me the greatness of Michael Bay's Pain & Gain. A truly absurd satire that's wholly committed to its insane tone and style. What hurts Not Okay is that it's only half committed to its over-the-top parody before it blossoming into a full on poignant drama in its back half. The tones to this film are wildly uneven.…

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  Castle in the Sky 1986

  ★★★★ Watched by InSession Film - JD Duran 31 Jul 2022

  Castle in the Sky is simply one of the most endearing movies in Ghibli's canon. I could have just watched Pazu and Sheeta frolicking in the castle garden for two hours and been completely enamored with it. Miyazaki's ideas on nature and technology here have been examined to death already, but I'll just reiterate that I love what he's doing here. This film mostly functions as a light-hearted and playful adventure epic, but its not without its complexities. And that's what makes him one of the very best to ever do it.

  We have a full review of this on Episode 493, for those interested.

Popular reviews

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  Dark Phoenix 2019

  ★★★ Watched by InSession Film - JD Duran 03 Jun 2019 9

  I'm in a vast minority, so take this FWIW I guess, but DARK PHOENIX for me is a massive step up from APOCALYPSE. It's the anti-Godzilla KOTM. It’s thin in story, exposition and action, and is almost exclusively devoted to exploring moral debate. Is Xavier right for what he did? Is Jean dangerous or just a byproduct? Should mutants undermine themselves to fit in with society? That's all the film is about. Every scene, every action, everything points back to…

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  Nightcrawler 2014

  ★★★★½ Watched by InSession Film - JD Duran 03 Nov 2014 8

  This is the Jake Gyllenhaal show. Or you could argue that it's the Louis Bloom show because Gyllenhaal just disappears. His performance is absolutely unreal and is arguably the best of his career. Louis is creepy, disturbing but also incredibly compelling from beginning to end.

  Dan Gilroy's direction is immaculate. Incredible pacing, fantastic sound design and the cinematography is maybe the best I've seen all year. Robert Elswit is great utilizing LA's night light's, neon blares and illumination that almost…