I enjoy analyzing and reviewing movies. I write reviews for The University of Central Missouri’s newspaper, The Muleskinner.
"Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse"
Typically, superhero movies are not subjected to critical analysis. This is because they are not made for it, they are made simply to entertain as many people as possible. Superhero movies are just vessels for people to live vicariously through and don’t often have a deeper implicit meaning. Of course that doesn’t mean that no superhero movie ever has a deeper meaning because then I wouldn’t be here talking about “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” (2023).
Oscar Snubs and Dubs
The 2023 Oscar season is officially over until next year, which means that film buffs will be arguing relentlessly for the next three weeks over the winners and losers.
I’ve never paid too much attention to the Academy Awards, but I was really interested this year because I watched several of the movies that were nominated. I was also invested because I’ve actually started watching movies as they come out and not two years later, so I was up to date this time around.
Barbenheimer
The summer of 2023 was huge for moviegoers. Some big hits were “The Little Mermaid” (2023) and “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” (2023). And of course, if you were anywhere on the internet this summer, you probably heard of “Barbie” (2023) and “Oppenheimer” (2023). “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” took the media by storm very quickly, all on the basis that they were being released on the same day, July 21.
"The Menu"
The end of 2022 was truly filled with critically acclaimed films. In the last few months of the year movies like Avatar: Way of Water (2022), Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022), and Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022) received major success. One of these movies was The Menu. I was excited to watch this thriller/comedy and it did not disappoint. As a forewarning, this review will contain spoilers, so I recommend watching The Menu before reading this article.
"Elvis"
Recently in Hollywood, there has been an obsession with movies about famous musicians and their lives. It started in 2018 with “Bohemian Rhapsody,” and then it continued in 2019 with “Rocketman” and now we have “Elvis” (2022). I’m not a huge Elvis fan nor even a huge fan of biopics, but I went into the movie optimistic. While I will be discussing this movie, this is a spoiler-free review; however, the man’s been dead for 45 years so there are not too many new, shocking things I can pull back the curtain on.
"Everything Everywhere All At Once"
The theory of the existence of multiple universes has been widely explored in movies throughout recent years. From Spider-man: Into the Spiderverse (2018) to the most recent Marvel movies and TV shows. But I have never seen the concept of the multiverse done as well as in Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022). This movie has quickly become one of my favorites.This is such a heartbreaking yet hilarious story and I will be discussing my ideas and thoughts about this movie and what I think it means. So of course this review and analysis will contain spoilers, so you have been warned.