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The Cannes Film Festival : Hayao Miyazaki and the Heron / Video Review by Serena Davanzo

Serena Davanzo, a Pennsylvania native, graduated from The Pennsylvania State University with a BA in Journalism and a BA in Theatre in December 2022. She currently works full time as a weekend anchor/producer and MMJ’s weekdays. She aspires to be an entertainment based journalist and actor! She’s loved performing arts and film her whole life…

‘MoviePass, MovieCrash,’ A Film That Sets The Record Straight

The HBO Original documentary MoviePass, MovieCrash — directed by award-winning filmmaker Muta’Ali — reveals how the prodigious subscription service for cinemagoers soared and suddenly faced bankruptcy. But the film brings to light way more than a failing business, it exposes how xenophobia is still engrained in the social fabric of the multicultural United States. How…

Sight / Dr. Ming Wang’s Commitment to Public Service Are Quite Laudable

©Courtesy of Angel Studio China’s Cultural Revolution is having a pop-culture moment. In Netflix’s Three-Body Problem adaptation, the cruelty of the extreme Marxist movement causes a central character to literally turn against the human species. Dr. Ming Wang also witnessed the student revolutionaries’ brutality as a child during the 1970s, but in this film, he responds…

I Saw the TV Glow: Spectacular Reflection on Teenage Identity

©Courtesy of A24 Youthful self-discovery is a gripping, emotional and often times painful journey that can lead to a multitude of results. For those teens who feel alienated from their families and peers, they often use media as a coping mechanism to help them find their place in the world. That’s certainly the case for…

“If” / Krasinski Broke the Mold to Tell the Story for Young Generation

©Courtesy of Paramount Pictures When I was growing up in Japan, I was a precocious kid who saw things in a a skeptical attitude. What kind of movie would a child especially one like myself want to see if it were made from an adult’s viewpoint? Parents are usually cautious about what films are age-appropriate…

‘Taking Venice,’ A Look Inside The Art World’s Politics

Amei Wallach is an award-winning art critic who, as a filmmaker, has often brought to the silver screen art history with acclaimed movies such as Louise Bourgeois: The Spider, The Mistress and The Tangerine and Ilya and Emilia Kabakov: Enter Here. Her latest cinematic oeuvre focuses on a peculiar story revolving around the oldest, largest…

Back to Black: Marisa Abela Embodies Amy Winehouse in Biopic

Photo by Courtesy of Dean Rogers/Focus Fe/Courtesy of Dean Rogers/Focus F – © 2024 Focus Features, LLC.   The explosive lives of famously troubled but equally gifted artists are often embraced by their industries for one thing: their ability to sell their work for their representatives’ financial gain. Amy Winehouse was one such talented musician whose…

‘Ashley Madison: Sex, Lies & Scandal,’ A Perspicacious Miniseries

Move over Tinder, Bumble, Hinge, eHarmony, Meetic, OkCupid, Happn, Match and Raya! The position of the most controversial Dating App of our time is conquered by Ashley Madison: a membership website service based in Canada, currently present in 53 countries. This platform addresses married couples who want to have an affair. What’s in a name?…

Unfrosted: Jerry Seinfeld Shines in Another Absurd Surrealist Comedy

©Photo by John P. Johnson / Netflix – © 2024 Netflix, Inc. Jerry Seinfeld has repeatedly proved to be one thing over the course of his decades-long career in Hollywood: a comedic innovator who pays manic tribute to his generation’s pop culture. Starting with his hit eponymous, semi-autobiographical 1990s sitcom, the Emmy-winning actor has soared in…

Daniel Yoon’s Ultra-Independent East Bay

©Photo by Daniel Yoon, Level 33 Entertainment  A mid-life crisis is hard enough without losing your sanity. Jack Lee worries about his state of mind, but from time to time he also suspects the ringing in his head might signify something beyond the boundaries of our assumed world. Regardless, his depressing life is an absolute…

‘Let It Be,’ The Beatles Film Is Restored But Unengaging

If you recall Peter Jackson’s multiple Emmy Award-winning docuseries, The Beatles: Get Back, be prepared for what inspired it! Michael Lindsay-Hogg, over fifty years ago, made the original 1970 film about The Beatles, called Let It Be, which is now available on Disney+ in its restored version. The film opens with a conversation between Jackson…