Yes No Maybe So: "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings"

by Nathaniel R

The Marvel Cinematic Universe stands alone among franchises in that it may well reap great benefits from the pandemic. Avengers Endgame had brought the franchise to a world-saturating record-breaking close in the spring of 2019 followed by the digestif of the much smaller scale Spider-Man Far From Home in July 2019 (though smaller scale with these gargantuan budgeted action movies is relative). And then just as a new wave of heroes was set to emerge, an unexpected intermission;  Kevin Feige couldn't have timed the pandemic better. Not that we're starting any daft conspiracy theories!

With Black Widow's release pushed to July 2021, moviegoers have essentially had a full two year break from the MCU (apart from recent Disney+ tv shows). We think this will actually benefit the MCU (which was at an oversaturation point culturally and bound to begin to falter) as demand is now theoretically pent-up to Endgame heights again without the studio having to do any of the narrative work to get there...

Click to read more ...

Yes No Maybe So: Mortal Kombat (2021)

by Ben Miller

Since 1993, production studios have tried again and again to adapt a video game for movie audiences and again and again they have failed.  Some of these films have been dumb fun (Angelina Jolie’s Tomb Raider), some have been seriously-minded disasters (Assassin’s Creed), while others have been financially viable misfires (Warcraft) or just outright catastrophes (Super Mario Bros.).

Paul W.S. Anderson tried his hand at it with 1995’s Mortal Kombat to the tune of $122 million worldwide.  Warner Bros, producer James Wan and director Simon McQuoid will try again with the aptly titled Mortal Kombat (2021 version).  The new red-band trailer just dropped, so let’s do a round of Yes, No, Maybe So...

Click to read more ...

Yes No Maybe So: "Godzilla v Kong"

Tony here. I’m a forever defendor of Gareth Edwards’ 2014 Godzilla picture. It’s an atmospheric, artful take on a big, blustery blockbuster featuring giant monsters. The acting is better than it has any right to be and there are images and wholesale sequences which evoke the best of Spielberg; Edwards sought to restore mystery and majesty to the genre. After Edwards’ film ONLY made $530 million worldwide, Warner Bros would return to the brainless goofiness of old (think the 1997 Godzilla) with Kong: Skull Island and Godzilla: King of the Monsters, seeking out higher dollars by doubling down on dumbing it down.

Despite interesting directors at the helm, they’re both mildly entertaining if overwrought examples of studio factory filmmaking, and Godzilla v Kong looks to continue this trend based on its trailer, a piece of unintentional hilarity...

Click to read more ...

When People Stop Being Polite...

by Jason Adams

Euphoria writer-director Sam Levinson is about to maybe have a movie in the Oscar discussion this year with the news that his pandemic-shot relationship drama Malcolm & Marie, starring Zendaya and John David Washington, will be hitting Netflix on February 5th. M&M has Washington playing a film director while Zendaya's his girlfriend; the two have just gotten home from his latest film's premiere and as they wait to hear how the reviews are they decide to sort out their myriad relationship shit...

Click to read more ...

Yes No Maybe So: "The Prom"

Where's the zazz baby?

The zazz is right there in The Prom trailer, Nicole. Why do you ask?

Click to read more ...