Movies

It’s no surprise to me that the season’s strongest episodes—this one and the first—focused on sewing, letting the queens simply be drag queens without unnecessary interference. However, this isn’t a great episode because of the challenge itself; it’s overly complicated, unpleasant, and feels like the producers were trying to make up for denying Vita a win in the first episode. What makes this episode good is the fantastic cast and how much fun they have interacting with each other. The song performances were bad, the scripted scenes were awkward, and the challenge is just strange. Ultimately, the success of this season depends on the queens, not gimmicks, and if the producers can avoid messing things up, the rest of the season should be really enjoyable.

I’m so excited to be here this week, soaking up all the energy of the festival! It’s incredible to see all the amazing movies, parties, and stars gather in this ski town for the last time after 45 years. I’ll be watching as incredible people stop by our studio on Main Street for portraits with Sinna Nasseri, and I can’t wait to hear the insightful conversations with Vulture writers Fran Hoepfner, Jason P. Frank, and Angelica Jade Bastién. And of course, I’m looking forward to a Ketel One espresso martini (or maybe a few!) from the fantastic bartenders. I’ll be sharing all my favorite moments and the latest news right here and on social media, so be sure to follow along!

I’m so excited about this new Kingsman movie! It’s a prequel, taking us all the way back to World War I with Ralph Fiennes leading the charge. It’s definitely a spy thriller, but it doesn’t shy away from showing the realities of the war. And honestly, there’s one scene in particular that I think is genuinely one of the greatest ever filmed – it’s just that good!

The film’s title, One in a Million, hints at both incredible luck and the overwhelming scale of displacement. While Israa and her family survived a dangerous journey – a fate many others didn’t share – it also acknowledges that they are just one family among millions uprooted by war. Directors Azzam and MacInnes, who lived in Damascus when the conflict began in 2011 and later fled to London, tell Israa’s story. Upon arriving in Cologne, the family finds a modest but welcoming home, and Israa starts school where she’s met with kindness and curiosity. But as time passes, things become more difficult. Israa feels increasingly scrutinized and begins to push back against her family, especially her father, Tarek. They were once very close, but now he seems stuck in the past and unable to adapt to their new life. The typical challenges of adolescence are amplified for Israa by the cultural differences she experiences both at home and with her peers.

Rafael Manuel’s Filipiñana feels like a unique and captivating newcomer at the Park City festival. It stands out with its precise, stylized approach, offering a refreshing contrast to more conventional, heartfelt films. It’s a movie that demands your full attention and willingness to observe—not because it’s slow or confusing, but because it’s constructed entirely from carefully considered details. (Influential director Jia Zhangke produced the film and mentored Manuel, who also worked on Jia’s recent acclaimed film, Caught by the Tides.) In Filipiñana, even small things—like the way a golf club is held, a piece of fruit lying on the ground, or a simple look—can be surprisingly suspenseful, moving, or breathtaking.

On a recent episode of his podcast, Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers, Yang shared a story about having to go back to 30 Rock to retrieve some belongings. Unfortunately, he chose a terrible time to visit – right when everyone was returning to work after a break. He ended up having to sneak around, probably to avoid causing a scene, and I’d love to see the security camera footage of the whole thing!

Crawford later clarified that her character’s storyline might have hinted at a romantic connection from the beginning. She explained that the audition scene felt like it established a chemistry similar to scenes later in the show. Crawford also suggested that the future of the characters Dunk and Tanselle remains open-ended. While a romance is possible, it isn’t certain. She wanted their relationship to feel authentic, like getting to know someone naturally, rather than being immediately obvious.

As a huge sci-fi fan, I remember being so excited when Stargate SG-1 premiered on July 27, 1997! It was a direct continuation of the awesome 1994 movie Stargate, picking up the story a year later. The show follows SG-1, a team of soldiers sent through the Stargate to basically explore the universe, find potential allies, and, crucially, locate anything that could help protect Earth from alien enemies. I originally watched it on Showtime back in the late ’90s, but it eventually moved over to the Sci-Fi Channel, where it ran until its fantastic finale in 2007. It really was an iconic series!

Ryan Gosling’s 2012 crime thriller, The Place Beyond the Pines, will be available to stream on Peacock starting February 1st. The film, set in rural New York, tells a complex story in three parts. It begins with a stunt rider who turns to robbing banks to provide for his family, then shifts to the police officer trying to catch him, and finally follows the officer’s son years later. Here’s what the movie is about:

The shooting at PittFest was a shocking event, but it also served as a powerful conclusion to the first season of The Pitt. It brought intense drama, sadness, and challenging medical cases to the show. Now, after episode 3 of season 2, it seems like this season is developing a similar turning point. If that’s the case, the ‘code black’ situation at the end of the episode could create the same level of suspense and upheaval.