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Review: Her Smell (2018)

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Reviewed by: Justin Rumenapp @The_Ill_Phantom Commitment. If there was one word to describe Her Smell , it would be commitment. From the actors to the filmmakers, everyone commits to the concept and execution of this 90s alt rock drama. The film consists of five segments, each of which take place behind the scenes, before a performance. Between each segment is an era appropriate VHS flashback, setting the segment's thematic arc. The center of each segment is Becky Something, lead singer of Something She and unabashed train wreck. Addicted to drugs, alcohol and fame, Becky is the amalgamation of countless  Behind the Music  washouts. Her bandmates are exasperated as she fails to show up to the studio sober; her manager is driven to the brink of bankruptcy by breaches of contract; and family members have to cut ties after years of abuse. Spending most of the film's runtime as a danger to herself and others, Becky is more of a destructive force than a creative one. This
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Review: The Predator (2018)

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Reviewed by: Justin Rumenapp @The_Ill_Phantom The Predator takes place on Halloween. This tells you everything you need to know about the picture's intentions. It's goofy, campy and hyper-violent. Generic gmen and nameless scientists scurry about to find out what threat the Predators pose after they land in Suburbia, USA. The film is an extended, irreverent riff on 1950s creature features, with the benefit of a major budget and studio backing. Because of this tongue-in-cheek tone, any plot point or joke that falls flat can be dismissed as parody. It's a clever trick by clever screenwriters, Shane Black and Fred Dekker. Black also directs the film, and starred in the 1987 original. Throughout the film a regular size predator is hunted down by one of the ultra-size predators from 2010's Predators . It seems the predator war from that entry is still ongoing. Carnage ensues. Caught in the middle are a group of soldiers who would seem more at home in a mental asyl
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Review: Logan (2017)

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LOGAN VERSION: Theatrical, "Premium" Format DIRECTED BY: James Mangold WRITTEN BY: Scott Frank, James Mangold, Michael Green STORY BY: James Mangold STARRING: Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart Reviewed by: Justin Rumenapp @The_Ill_Phantom Having been the subject of two solo films and a featured character in a handful ensemble X-Men movies, James Howlett aka Wolverine aka Logan is one tired-out hombre. Portrayed by Hugh Jackman, he's fought mecha-samurai, altered timelines, and tangled with his own mutant brother. Like many fictional characters who are "cursed" with extraordinarily long lives, Wolverine has witnessed the loss of countless loved ones over the years. When the audience meets him chauffeuring wealthy party-animals in the year 2029, his exhaustion almost leaves him unable to defeat a handful of car thieves. The world of 2029 feels vaguely pre-apocalyptic. While there may be parties in the back of Logan's limo, the outside world teems w
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