Challengers

The trailer made this look so bad, and a movie about tennis and a love triangle probably is bad 99 out of 100 times but this was not one of those times. Zendaya's ability to pick winning projects is infallible I guess, and the electric performances from herself, Mike Faist & Josh O'Connor, along with their infectious chemistry just completely sucks you in. Jord, who is somehow anemic to banger music, was rattled by Trent Reznor's techno score that was persistently in your face, and amplified every soapy moment to such an over the top level, but in a good way. Rarely do you get a soap opera that has A+ writing, Twin Peaks being one of the few pieces of media that has ever pulled it off, and this was one of those rare treats. Guadagnino's directing had just a few missteps, perhaps an overindulgent ending (but also perfect), and between this and Call Me by Your Name, the man has produced some of the hottest melodrama this century. Must watch.

-Z

Z 9.0
E 9.0
J 8.0

~ZEJ 8.67

Sasquatch Sunset

I've seen some truly bizarre movies, but this one may take the cake. Fun fact, this is the second movie with zero dialogue we've watched in the last two months, that is also not a silent movie, which makes two movies I've ever seen that fall into that category. The sasquatch costumes are insane, could win an Oscar, and there is some gorgeous cinematography. If you believed sasquatches are real, then this is like the most sincere nature documentary for the species that you could watch, but unlike a good nature doc, the lack of narration from David Attenborough made this mostly just really boring, and surprisingly humorless.

-Z

Z 7.0
E 6.0
J 7.25

ZEJ 6.75

Civil War

This did an action movie better than most action movies, while not being at all the point of the movie. Really fascinating world the movie hints at, but never delves into enough, with fascinating characters that never get a chance to develop whatsover. Had high potential, but disappointing ultimately.

-Z

Z 7.75
E 7.75
J 8.0

ZEJ 7.83

The Long Game

"Sometimes you land in the fairway, sometimes the bunker. But you always play it as it lies.”

It's a pretty crazy story. But the movie is so corny lol... exactly like every sports movie it seems

-J

Z N/A
E N/A
J 7.0

~ZEJ 7.0

Late Night with the Devil

Saw this at 4 PM on Tuesday at Varsity Theater, which was a choice, as we were the only ones in the theater, and though this wasn't the scariest movie I've ever seen, it was so unnerving that the emptiness of the theater definitely compounded the dread. Absolutely loved this movie. Ellen thinks its a top 5 horror movie for her all-time, and I think I'm probably there too. I was absolutely dialed in for the entire film, transfixed by David Dastmalchian, Ingrid Torelli, and Ian Bliss. All the style choices were perfect, with the found footage and limited but pitch perfect narration. Absolutely loved it.

-Z

Great movie. Easily one of the most original concepts for a movie I’ve seen in a long time. It towed the line perfectly between a modern day and classic horror movie, with some of the effects feeling right out of an 80s slasher film. David Dastmalchian absolutely shined as the leading man. For playing a creep in basically everything, he played the relatable talk show host perfectly. And I won’t even go into the thinly veiled commentary on the state of talkshows nowadays. Overall a great film that didn’t overstay its welcome, that had me laughing while also white knuckling my chair and taking deep breaths.

9.0 / 10

-Tony (Guest Rater & Official Tiebreaker)

Z 9.25
E 9.0
J 8.5

ZEJ 8.92

Monkey Man

The trailer made this look amazing, and it kind of was, until the third act, in which it just totally fell apart. Dev Patel was already a must watch actor, and for his directorial debut, this was an entertaining first attempt, with story elements that were very intriguing but just couldn't quite tie all together in a way that made sense. Look forward to what Dev does next.

-Z

Z 7.25
E 7.0
J 7.5

ZEJ 7.25

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

A fun throwback to the mid-2000s, when homophobia was still considered funny. The poor agedness of that aside, it's an enjoyable noir whodunnit, and attempts to be Tarantino-esque in terms of plot points and dialogue, featuring a brilliant performance from Robert Downey Jr. in the very first role out of his rehab stint, ushering in his comeback to becoming Iron Man. Definitely worth a watch if you're looking for something comedic and nostalgic.

-Z

Z 7.5
E 7.25
J N/A

~ZEJ 7.38

Green Room

Really cleverly written movie with almost no exposition, which was refreshing, and all of the characters felt real and humanized, despite more than half of them being Nazis. As much as I love Patrick Stewart, I didn't feel like he was right for this role. Felt out of place. There was some action sequences that didn't exactly make sense, especially whenever the dogs were involved. But overall really fun movie with full adrenaline for the final four-fifths, which is always fun.

-Z

Greenroom (2015) gets a 9.0 from me. Cool story, great visuals, and believable characters. Austin was right. Patrick Stewart does play a great villain. His calmness and professionalism was pretty effin unsettling. I struggled with this one, as i don't do super well with suspensful thrillers like this, but i felt all the suspense was important in the story and not just there to make me feel nervous. All in all, highly enjoyed the film, and ill probably never watch it again.

-Tony, Guest Rater & Official Tiebreaker

Z 8.5
E 8.5
J N/A

~ZEJ 8.5

Love Lies Bleeding

What an absolute ride. It has everything. Humor, guns, steroids, Ed Harris in an absolutely ridiculous wig that somehow makes sense, Dave Franco with the most unbelievable rat tail that somehow makes sense, an incredibly tight script and pacing with no wasted moments or filler, and pitch perfect performances by every actor involved. Totally unique. Loved every second of it.

-Z

Z 9.0
E 9.0
J 9.0

ZEJ 9.0

Origin

One of the most polarizing movies of 2023 for Ellen and I. It's underlying premise is really powerful, i.e. based on the nonfiction book Caste about how racism in America is actually an aspect of a caste system which is a global phenomenon and connects the black experience in America to persecution of the Jews and the untouchables in India. I struggled with it as a movie; however, as I found it slow and dramatic most of the time. Ellen was largely dialed in for the duration. It was considered a snub by some critics for the Oscars as it had no nominations but I can't say I disagree with the academy on this one.

-Z

Z 7.25
E 8.25
J N/A

~ZEJ 7.75

The Boy and the Heron

Visually beautiful per usual with Miyazaki but the story was not very unique per his prior work and didn't grab me very much. Pattinson's dub work was top notch. 8.25. Worth a watch but not Oscar worthy IMO.

-Z

Z 8.25
E 8.0
J 8.0

~ZEJ 8.08