Reviews Archives | MendoWerks

29Dec

By Matt ShiverdeckerNo Comments

Features, Film, Reviews

The 10 Best Films of 2023

It's time to take a look at the best films of 2023. I managed to view over 120 new releases this year and there was a lot to love. Despite the Writers Guild and Screen Actors Guild striking this year, there was a wide array of movies to choose from. The true impact from those strikes will not likely be felt until next year, although the box office of several releases this year were likely less than they could have been due to a lack of promotion. It wasn't all doom and gloom for the overall business - 8 feature films crossed the $200 million mark in ticket sales and 'Barbie' ended up grossing over $636 million domestically. The films below weren't necessarily the biggest hits, but they are the ones that have lingered the most in my mind. Emma Stone stars in 'Poor Things,'...

ICYMI: ‘Rye Lane’ is a Refreshingly Creative Meet-Cute (Review)

22Dec

By Matt ShiverdeckerNo Comments

Features, Film, Reviews

ICYMI: ‘Rye Lane’ is a Refreshingly Creative Meet-Cute (Review)

'Rye Lane' is the debut feature from director Raine Allen-Miller. Earlier this fall, the it led the pack with a whopping 16 nominations at the British Independent Film Awards (BIFA). While attending a friend's art exhibition, Dom (David Jonsson) breaks down in a gender-neutral bathroom. His long-term girlfriend Gia has cheated on him with his best friend and Dom just can't take it anymore. He feels safe to have an isolated cry in the bathroom, but Yas (Vivian Oparah) overhears him in the stall next door. The two cross paths later while checking out their mutual friend's artwork on display and Yas clocks Dom by noticing it was his shoes under the bathroom stall. But Yas has recently gotten out of a relationship too and, although she plays it cool, it was also a difficult experience...

Timely Sci-Fi Thriller ‘The Creator’ is a Visual Marvel (Review)

8Dec

By Matt ShiverdeckerNo Comments

Features, Film, Reviews

Timely Sci-Fi Thriller ‘The Creator’ is a Visual Marvel (Review)

'The Creator' is set in the not-so-distant future. In 2070, humans are at war with artificial intelligence. Director Gareth Edwards has a knack for crafting inventive sci-fi thrillers that look far more expensive than their actual budgets. In 2010, he made a film called 'Monsters' that was made for under $500,000 using consumer-grade software and edited on a laptop. It didn't make a lot of money at the box office, but managed to get the attention of Hollywood. It led to him rebooting the Godzilla franchise in 2014 and helming 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story' in 2016. Gareth Edwards' 'The Creator' (Courtesy of 20th Century Studios) With this latest film, he took $80 million and, yet again, made it look like a film with a much higher budget. There may not be any shots in the fi...

What to Watch: December 2023 Streaming Preview

1Dec

By Matt ShiverdeckerNo Comments

Features, Film, Reviews

What to Watch: December 2023 Streaming Preview

If you’re looking for something new on streaming in December we’ve got you covered. Check out some of our picks for what you should add to your December streaming watchlist! What are you most excited to see? Newly Available on VOD this December The Holdovers (PVOD, available now) Killers Of The Flower Moon (PVOD, December 5) The Persian Version (December 5) Werner Herzog: Radical Dreamer (December 5) Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour (PVOD, December 13) The Delinquents (December 13) Immediate Family (December 15) Priscilla (PVOD, December 15) Trolls: Band Together (PVOD, December 19) Anatomy of a Fall (December 22) Not yet scheduled, but likely: Silent Night https://youtu.be/AhKLpJmHhIg?si=Jj-hksVnF2xQmk6T *PVOD titles are fresh from thea...

Visually Stunning ‘Suzume’ is Streaming Now on Crunchyroll (Review)

17Nov

By Matt ShiverdeckerNo Comments

Features, Film, Reviews

Visually Stunning ‘Suzume’ is Streaming Now on Crunchyroll (Review)

'Suzume' is the latest feature film from acclaimed writer-director Makoto Shinkai. Upon its release in Japan last fall, it became a massive hit. It's currently the fourth highest-grossing Japanese film of all time. In America, it grossed nearly $11 million, which is no small feat for an international animated movie. I am hardly an expert on anime, but I thoroughly enjoyed Shinkai's previous films, 'Your Name' (streaming on Crunchyroll ) and 'Weathering With You' (streaming on Max). Those had me very interested in what he would do next, so I was excited to watch this. The storyline pays tribute to those impacted by the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan, often referred to as 3.11. This tragedy caused the meltdown of the reactors at a nuclear plant in Fukushima. While '...

Album Review: Green Lung – ‘This Heathen Land’

10Nov

By Martin CroftNo Comments

Features, Music, Reviews

Album Review: Green Lung – ‘This Heathen Land’

Since their inception in 2017, London-based heavy metal quintet Green Lung have grown from a tiny underground band to a cult favorite and recent signee with one of the genre's most beloved labels, Nuclear Blast Records. Through their journey, they have gained some serious love from the heavy metal community, and that trend looks to continue with their third full-length release, This Heathen Land. Green Lung is likely to land on a lot of black t-shirt wearers' "Best of 2023" lists with their winning formula of tight, massive composition, excellent production, and their unique take on heavy metal's lyrical conventions. Occult Following A metal band using pagan religious imagery in their lyrics is not new, but it's the specific themes Green Lung draws inspiration from that make their w...

Sofia Coppola Explores Love and Loss with ‘Priscilla’ (Review)

10Nov

By Matt ShiverdeckerNo Comments

Features, Film, Reviews

Sofia Coppola Explores Love and Loss with ‘Priscilla’ (Review)

Priscilla Presley was little more than a footnote in Baz Luhrmann's 'Elvis' last year, despite being his only wife. For her eighth feature film, Sofia Coppola turns the tables and puts the focus on Priscilla's formative years. Based on the 1985 memoir Elvis and Me: The True Story of the Love Between Priscilla Presley and the King of Rock N' Roll, we are introduced to Priscilla when she is just 14. An American teenager living in Germany while her Air Force officer father was stationed there, she is lonely and homesick. Then, she meets Elvis. Already a worldwide star, Elvis was drafted into the Army and served from 1958 to 1960. He took a shine to Priscilla, but because of her age, he was cautious about going too far in their relationship. Or so we're led to believe. As they fel...

New Milli Vanilli Documentary Takes You Beyond The Scandal (Review)

27Oct

By Matt ShiverdeckerNo Comments

Features, Film, Reviews

New Milli Vanilli Documentary Takes You Beyond The Scandal (Review)

For a brief moment in time in the 90s, it seemed like Milli Vanilli were the future of pop music. Their songs were inescapable. Their debut album produced hit after hit on the charts. Until, at least, it all fell apart. Fabrice Morvan and Rob Pilatus were on top of the world until they were proven to be frauds. Or that's the story that everybody remembers. In a new documentary from director Luke Korem, we're offered a lot more information about what really went down. The two young men were living in Munich and both wanted to be famous. They were dancers on a popular German music television show and eventually formed a band. Discovered by producer Frank Farian, he signed them to a contract and agreed to record their music. The only problem? He loved their look, but didn...

‘The Exorcist: Believer’ May Make You a Skeptic (Review)

13Oct

By Matt ShiverdeckerNo Comments

Features, Film, Reviews

‘The Exorcist: Believer’ May Make You a Skeptic (Review)

With 'The Exorcist: Believer,' director David Gordon Green has taken another legacy horror series and updated it for modern times. Whether or not he has succeeded in that is debatable. I was a fan of his 2018 reboot of the 'Halloween' series, but stretching that into a new trilogy felt unnecessary. Now, the plan is for another new trilogy using the backbone of 'The Exorcist.' I gotta say, it feels like Green should stop while he's ahead. This is not to say that 'The Exorcist: Believer' is unwatchable. Far from it. The first half of the film is rather compelling. Unfortunately, things change once efforts are made to tie the new storyline into the original tale of possession from the 1973 classic. Leslie Odam Jr. is Victor, an overprotective single father raising his teenage dau...

All is ‘Fair Play’ in Love and Climbing the Corporate Ladder (Review)

6Oct

By Matt ShiverdeckerNo Comments

Features, Film, Reviews

All is ‘Fair Play’ in Love and Climbing the Corporate Ladder (Review)

At Sundance 2023, 'Fair Play' set off the kind of bidding wars that we don't often see anymore for indie dramas. Most of the mini-majors like Searchlight and Neon were battling it out against streaming services to release the feature debut from Chloe Domont, who cut her teeth directing television series like 'Ballers' and 'Suits.' In the end, Netflix emerged victorious and took global rights on the film which had everybody talking in Park City. Alden Ehrenreich as Luke and Phoebe Dynevor as Emily in 'Fair Play.' Cr. Sergej Radovic / Courtesy of Netflix Emily (Phoebe Dynevor, 'Bridgerton') and Luke (Alden Ehrenreich, 'Solo: A Star Wars Story') are two young professionals working in the cutthroat world of hedge fund management. Their scorching hot relationship is against company p...