Category: Movie Review

Movie ReviewLeave a comment

Mayday

John Stark

I really didn’t know what to expect from Apple’s new film Mayday, which skipped a theatrical release despite the star presence of Ryan Reynolds and was slotted into early September. The late August and early September period around Labor Day used to be considered the doldrums of theatrical releases. Every once in a while, a film would challenge that idea, obviously, but this isn’t necessarily when people release their best films. So, with Apple dropping Mayday here, I was definitely a little worried. However, I was encouraged by the directorial team of John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein, who previously … Continue reading Mayday

Movie ReviewLeave a comment

The Runner (2026)

John Stark

I got to The Runner slightly later than a handful of other critics, so I had already watched its Rotten Tomatoes score rapidly plummet and seen most of the ire targeted specifically at Gal Gadot. She seems to be a fairly easy target nowadays. Her choice of films, her limitations as an actress, her thoughts on various topics—pick one. I’m sure there’s a reason why you or someone you know doesn’t like her. However, she is not the reason this movie fails. She is merely one piece in a catastrophic puzzle that Amazon has decided to thrust upon the world … Continue reading The Runner (2026)

Movie ReviewLeave a comment

The Whisper Man

John Stark

Do you know the Whisper Man? He’s nothing like the Muffin Man, so if you do know the Whisper Man, you might want to stay away. Maybe not from this film, though. The Whisper Man has sort of its own identity in that it’s not as terrible as a slew of other Netflix original titles, but it’s also not going to launch into the upper echelon of the few, the proud, the Netflix originals that make the subscription worthwhile. It’s basically a one-time-watch type of film, especially given how much it hinges upon a twist ending. Directed by James Ashcroft, … Continue reading The Whisper Man

Movie ReviewLeave a comment

Buddy (2026)

John Stark

In every generation, there is a kids TV show that absolutely confounds parents, annoys the heck out of them, but also makes them incredibly glad their children have found something that will keep them quiet long enough that they can use the bathroom in peace. Let’s be honest, screen time can be useful. I have no idea what the little kids of today are watching. Probably Gabby’s Dollhouse. Paw Patrol seems like a strong possibility. Buddy, however, feels very much targeted at the Barney generation, even including a song with different lyrics that sounds suspiciously close to something Barney would … Continue reading Buddy (2026)

Movie ReviewLeave a comment

Going In Blind: The Sun Never Sets

John Stark

I definitely have not fully participated in the entirety of Joe Swanberg’s filmography, but the indie darling who helped push forward the mumblecore movement is back with a feature-length film that feels like one of his more accessible works. Perhaps this is a new form he has taken following opportunities like the Netflix series Easy, which ran for three seasons. Maybe dabbling in higher-profile projects with larger budgets got Swanberg moderately interested in tackling something starring Dakota Fanning, Jake Johnson, and Cory Michael Smith. Although, much like other mumblecore movies, The Sun Never Sets is a very down-to-earth slice of … Continue reading Going In Blind: The Sun Never Sets

Movie ReviewLeave a comment

Freefall: A Reckoning For Boeing

John Stark

This just surprised me in my Netflix feed, and I decided to watch it. I will say that while the lack of having a publication to back me as a film critic certainly limits my exposure, one of the things it does for me is allow me to choose what I want to review and when I want to review it because I’m not working on assignment. I’m working on a wing and a prayer. So, much like pilots when they’re flying a Boeing airplane, they’re doing so on a wing and a prayer. It also tends to mean that … Continue reading Freefall: A Reckoning For Boeing

Movie ReviewLeave a comment

Wishing You Were Somehow Human Again: Nothing To Lose (2026)

John Stark

Netflix does this thing where they randomly select international titles on their streaming service and tap them for audio description. I’m not really sure what the wheel of algorithms that drives them to do this tells them in terms of supportive data. Pick this film because the English-speaking blind audience will like this one more. Don’t pick that one because the English-speaking blind audience won’t like it. It’s such a tremendous fallacy given the fact that a film like Nothing to Lose just kind of randomly and quietly dropped on Netflix with little fanfare, yet Netflix has had films in … Continue reading Wishing You Were Somehow Human Again: Nothing To Lose (2026)

Movie ReviewLeave a comment

Going In Blind: Teenage Sex And Death At Camp Miasma

John Stark

There are several directors who have started coming up through the ranks recently, mostly out of the horror genre, who have clearly unique voices within the field, and I think Jane Schoenbrun is definitely one of those burgeoning auteurs. They last directed I Saw the TV Glow for A24, which, while not necessarily my favorite film of that year, was definitely a stunner and my first interaction with Schoenbrun as a director, as Let’s All Go to the World’s Fair doesn’t have audio description and has kept me at arm’s length from being able to appreciate it. So their third … Continue reading Going In Blind: Teenage Sex And Death At Camp Miasma

Movie ReviewLeave a comment

Going In Blind: The Magic Far Away Tree

John Stark

When I was growing up in a different time and a different generation, back in the days when churning butter was a thing, before electricity, when dinosaurs were roaming the Earth, I loved to read books. I had plenty of children’s books, and because I read so voraciously, I moved fairly quickly up the age bracket, routinely reading material above my grade level, except for Goosebumps, which was just for fun. I definitely grew up in the Goosebumps generation. We were always presented with the summer reading list, and the goal was to check off as many books as possible, … Continue reading Going In Blind: The Magic Far Away Tree

Movie ReviewLeave a comment

Is God Is

John Stark

Somehow Is God Is slipped completely by me. I remember seeing it listed when it was opening in theaters, and it was a film starring Sterling K. Brown and Vivica A. Fox, and I immediately thought, why is this being released theatrically? I also thought it was probably a Christian movie, and it is anything but. It’s amazing what happens when you actually know what something is about, but I skip nearly every trailer for a film, so I work largely off of what studios send me and what other critics are talking about. It wasn’t until after Is God … Continue reading Is God Is

Editorial, Movie ReviewLeave a comment

Going In Blind: The Snare

John Stark

I was not part of the After School Special generation. I did not come home after school to watch a weepy teen drama about life lessons, but if that were still a thing, I imagine The Snare could have found a place among the pantheon of what I’m sure are legendary classics. It’s very much a cautionary tale, both for teenagers in terms of being a coming-of-age story and for parents who apparently need to get all up in their kids’ business 24/7, because the world from The Snare’s perspective is very much waiting to find your children and eat … Continue reading Going In Blind: The Snare

Movie ReviewLeave a comment

Monstrous Me

John Stark

Obviously, if you’re here, you know I’m a blind film critic. Or maybe you don’t. Maybe you found this review, clicked on it thinking it was just another review of Monstrous Me, and just learned that a blind film critic exists. I’m also an advocate for audio description. So pretty much whenever somebody comes to me and says, “Hey, will you review my movie? It has audio description,” I go, “Sure.” I want to support films that bothered to snag an audio description track for people like me, since major studios are still releasing titles without them. It’s funny that … Continue reading Monstrous Me

Movie ReviewLeave a comment

Don’t Say Good Luck

John Stark

I’m sure many critics don’t really know what to do right now. We’re in a little bit of a daze. It’s certainly an unfamiliar place. Had I known that this would be what it was, I would have tried to get an advanced screener so I could get my thoughts out on this film earlier. But instead, I watched it with the normies on Netflix. And color me surprised that Happy Madison produced a coming-of-age drama starring Sunny Sandler, which is both extremely on brand for them, given the actress, and extremely off brand for them, given the fact that … Continue reading Don’t Say Good Luck

Movie ReviewLeave a comment

Going In Blind: Night Nurse

John Stark

When I was a kid, my parents did not pay for the premium cable channel packages: HBO, Cinemax, Showtime and The Movie Channel. I’m old enough that I predate Starz, so in case you’re wondering why I didn’t mention Starz, well, I’m older than you are. Those were the four movie channels you could pay extra for to get your big movies without commercials and without the profanity edited out of them. I used to get really excited whenever they had their free preview weekends or weeks. Sometimes, you might even get lucky and just barely be able to see … Continue reading Going In Blind: Night Nurse

Movie ReviewLeave a comment

Going In Blind: Nimrods

John Stark

In every generation, there is a film about kids wanting to go to a concert. It doesn’t matter which generation. There are always going to be kids wanting to see their favorite musical artist perform, regardless of who that artist is, whether they’re real, fictional, or otherwise. While the concept certainly isn’t new, there’s something to be said for being able to correctly follow a formula. I know some critics don’t believe in formulaic filmmaking, but flip that into cooking. If somebody is following a recipe to perfection, then all of your meals are delicious because that’s what the cookbook … Continue reading Going In Blind: Nimrods