Rowan Wood
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“Wake Up Dead Man” Keeps the Knives Sharp (Review)
I would be perfectly excited if Rian Johnson made a new “Knives Out” movie every few years for as long as he wants to. Continue reading
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Welcome to the Apocryphal Tale of “The Carpenter’s Son” (Review)
I’m a simple man. I enjoy the art of cinema. I hear “Nicolas Cage in a faith-based horror movie,” and I’m intrigued. Continue reading
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“Frankenstein” is the Fiery Culmination of Guillermo del Toro’s Career (Review)
If there’s anyone who can frame a tale about the true nature of monsters and the utter agony of being alive, it’s him. Continue reading
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“Black Phone 2” Rings Twice as Loud (Review)
“Black Phone 2” swaps out dank basement grime for a snow-laden landscape, providing an all-too-clean canvas that begs to be decorated with stark red blood. Continue reading
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Luca Guadagnino’s “After the Hunt” Flips the Script (Review)
He’s a filmmaker of many flavors, who obsesses over a number of central concepts in nearly every one of his works – chiefly, desire and passion, including their effects and consequences. “After the Hunt” is no different. Continue reading
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Chris Stuckmann’s “Shelby Oaks” is a Warm, Haunting Hug (Review)
There’s no bigger success story than Chris Stuckmann, who began reviewing movies on YouTube in 2009. Now, he has successfully led the biggest horror movie crowd-funding endeavor in history. The difference 15 years can make! Continue reading
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“Primate” Goes Apeshit in True Slasher Fashion
With a shocking amount of gore and violence, you can tell just how happy this movie is to exist. Continue reading
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“The Long Walk” Confronts the Unvarnished Truth of Life and Death (Review)
We come to understand that, by premise alone, death for all but one of these boys is inevitable. The question becomes…how will we get there? Continue reading
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Lessons from the Wasteland: Live Action Fantasy
Welcome to class! Each film on this curated watchlist will highlight either a filmmaker, sub-genre, filmmaking technique, or significant topic in order to broaden your cinematic horizons. Continue reading
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“Eddington” is Something Different for Ari Aster (Review)
Alienation is inevitable in the works of Mr. Aster, whose polarizing subjects are, this time, holding an uncomfortable mirror up to an audience that is undoubtedly unsure of what to expect from his latest venture. Continue reading
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The 10 Best Films of 2025, So Far: A Midyear Report
Today marks the midway point of both an unusually painful year and the most tumultuous decade in recent memory. Today, we will be examining ten films released this year that our contributors connected with, and have so far taken their… Continue reading
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Every Mike Flanagan Film Ranked (including “The Life of Chuck”)
Flanagan doesn’t rely on jump scares, but he utilizes them well, and has been able to craft a perfectly eerie and unsettling atmosphere in his seven horror features, as well as a captivating, inspirational ambience in his latest release. Continue reading
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“The Life of Chuck” is an Inspiration for All Time (Review)
Like most of Flanagan’s work, it’s highly evocative, but this time of memory rather than fright. Continue reading
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“Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning” is the Sum of Our Choices (Review)
“Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning” is both an exercise in patience and an extraordinarily cathartic release. Continue reading
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“Fear Street: Prom Queen” Revives Shadyside For Another Nostalgic Spree (Review)
Come to “Prom Queen” for a much-needed return to Fear Street, stay for the gory delights of the modern horror genre – reverent, but assertive, forging its own path while generously indebted to its predecessors. Continue reading
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“Final Destination Bloodlines” is the Perfect Shot in the Arm
The biggest strength of this brutal return to form is a gleeful willingness to explore new avenues of the central premise, and to deliberately subvert expectations based on the franchise’s established rules. Continue reading
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Every Best Picture Winner Ranked (Part One)
The Academy Award for Best Picture has been awarded for almost a century to the film deemed to represent not necessarily the most popular, but the most culturally relevant in that year’s cinematic lineup. Continue reading
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“The Monkey” is a Terrifically Fatalistic Ode to Death Everlasting (Review)
Perkins’ wry personality shines through in this delightfully demented ode to the inescapable fate awaiting us all…after all, as long as we know it’s coming, there’s more than enough time to laugh about it. Continue reading
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Captain America (and the United States) Enters a “Brave New World” (Review)
“Brave New World” is the 35th film in the MCU, a milestone that explains a lot about its own reception. Continue reading
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“The Gorge” is an Affectionate Genre Machine (Review)
“The Gorge” isn’t just a romance; it’s also a high-concept sci-fi action movie, with some horror (director Scott Derrickson’s specialty) thrown in there for good measure. Continue reading
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“Love Hurts,” But It Doesn’t Sting (Review)
“Love Hurts” has a unique earnestness to it, and a confidence that can be off-putting to those not expecting an unapologetically silly movie. Continue reading
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Remembering David Lynch
David Lynch, one of the most iconic and stylistically recognizable filmmakers of all time, passed away recently at the age of 78. Continue reading
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Our Most Anticipated Movies of 2025
There are plenty of films, whether they be original, adaptations, or sequels, that we’re looking forward to this year. Continue reading
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“Companion” is a Darkly Thrilling Genre-Bender (Review)
“Companion” is at its most entertaining when you surrender yourself to the wonderful chaos. Continue reading
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The 10 Best Films of 2024
Though it may not have reached the heights of years previous, 2024 has proven to be a fascinating year for cinema. Continue reading
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“Wolf Man” Gets Hairy, But Stays Harmless (Review)
If you’re looking for a decent horror flick from one of our more interesting genre filmmakers, you can do far worse than spend an evening in an abandoned farmhouse with the “Wolf Man.” Continue reading
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The Underseen Gems of 2024
Knock on Wood presents: our favorite under-appreciated masterpieces from 2024. Continue reading
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“A Complete Unknown” Embraces the Enigma (Review)
Mangold’s film, inscrutable as it is, makes the right choices to cement its legacy. Continue reading
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“Nosferatu” is the Visceral Nightmare We Deserve (Review)
As far as I’m concerned, no director has better control over their vision than Robert Eggers. Continue reading
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Gia Coppola’s Tender Tribute to “The Last Showgirl” (Review)
Give me an intimate portrait of the indomitable human spirit, and I’m all in. Continue reading
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“The War of the Rohirrim” Bottles the Best of Middle-Earth (Review)
“The War of the Rohirrim” perfectly recreates Tolkien’s fully-realized world in a way we haven’t quite seen before. Continue reading
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Too Many Movies, Too Little Time: A Summary of the 2024 Fall Movie Season (Part Two)
To commemorate the conclusion of the season, we have reviewed every new release (that I have seen) that has not been previously covered on our site. Continue reading
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“Werewolves” is All Bark and No Bite (Review)
“Werewolves” is not a good movie, but it is a successful one. Continue reading
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Awards Season Ramps Up: A Summary of the 2024 Fall Movie Season (Part One)
To commemorate the conclusion of the season, we have reviewed every new release (that I have seen) that has not been previously covered on our site. Continue reading
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Wallace & Gromit Return with a “Vengeance Most Fowl” (Review)
This new film is the confluence of the best ideas and imagery this series has offered in its 35 years of history, and to bring back one of their most iconic baddies is just icing on the cake. Continue reading
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The Movies That Made Us – A One-Year Anniversary Celebration
Even if they weren’t the exact movie that made you a cinephile, every film fan has one (or many) that you can cite as one of the central inspirations for that passion. Continue reading
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“Moana 2” Struggles with Structure (Review)
One song every quarter of an hour cements what I already knew (and this is the kicker) – I think this would have made a very good series. Continue reading
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The Monumental Journey of “The Brutalist” (Review)
“The Brutalist” speaks beautifully and honestly to America’s betrayal of immigrants and the broken promise of the infamous (some might say mythical) American Dream. Continue reading
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“Wicked” Destroys All Doubt (Review)
“Wicked” is a coin with many faces, and its many morals are what makes it unique; it’s vivacious proof that a musical does not have to acknowledge its lessons directly in the lyrics of its songs. Continue reading
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Godzilla vs. Gatsby: A Battle for the Ages? (Review)
And Count Dracula, and Sherlock Holmes, and Jules Verne, and the Time Traveller… Continue reading
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“The Seed of the Sacred Fig” is a Titanic Achievement (Review)
“The Seed of the Sacred Fig” doesn’t exist because the director willed it into being, it exists because it demands to. There is no world in which it doesn’t. Continue reading
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“Look Back” on the Beauty of Art and the Everyday (Review)
“Look Back” is a compelling argument for the power of art to transcend space and time and connect with the deepest parts of ourselves. Continue reading
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Clint Eastwood’s “Juror #2” is Failed by the System it Celebrates (Review)
There’s a certain quality to “Juror #2” that I will forever find endearing, and that is its willingness to embrace the inherent excitement of its premise. Continue reading
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“Better Man” Rises Above the Biopic Formula (Review)
It’s abundantly clear that this was a deeply personal film for Robbie Williams. Continue reading
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Steven Soderbergh’s Experimental Horror “Presence” is a Haunting Delight
“Presence” is not a scary movie. It’s actually very sweet, charming, and strangely funny, and horror-averse moviegoers will be relieved at the lack of deliberately jarring jump scares. Continue reading
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Family History is “A Real Pain” (Review)
This should be the poster child for how to approach historical trauma with sensitivity and tact while maintaining a levity that is necessary to escape the ever-present pull of misery. Continue reading
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Live from 1975, it’s “Saturday Night!” (Review)
Complex and controversial history aside, it’s undeniable that SNL changed the landscape of television and entertainment as a whole. This is the perfect time for a movie like this. Continue reading
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Coppola’s “Megalopolis” is a Plea for the Future from the Past (Review)
Coppola is the singular creative visionary – a position that comes with an infinity of expectations and pressure, but if anyone can handle them, it’s the five-time Oscar winner who has delivered four of the greatest films ever made. Continue reading
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“Salem’s Lot” Captures the Crowd with a Thrilling Absurdity (Review)
I’m afraid my experience at this premiere makes this movie impossible to rate objectively – it was one of the most energetic and reactive crowds I have ever been a part of at the cinema, and everyone there seemed perfectly… Continue reading
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Pharrell Williams Takes Us Through his LEGO Life “Piece by Piece” (Review)
The story itself doesn’t matter. It all comes down to how it’s told. Continue reading
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