Movies

We’re still at Taylor and Liann’s place in Provo, and things are still awkward with the mysterious woman. She kept tripping over her words, then suddenly had to leave for an appointment. Taylor is upset that Dakota is making her feel responsible for everything, and her dad actually had the nerve to say that’s typical narcissistic behavior! It’s ironic coming from him, since he was quick to blame Taylor last season. Someone get rid of him!

Fantastic Four: First Steps takes place on Earth-828, a version of our world imagined as a retro-futuristic 1960s. The movie presents a new origin story for the Fantastic Four, who have already been working as superheroes for four years when the story begins.

The Western series Deadwood is a raw, intense, and surprisingly funny look at the rough-and-tumble town of Deadwood, South Dakota, in the 1870s. The show follows the camp’s growth from a small settlement to a legitimate town, populated by a diverse group of characters – both historical figures like Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane, and A.W. Merrick, and those created by the show’s writer. However, the most iconic character is Al Swearengen, the tough and cunning owner of the Gem Saloon, played by Ian McShane. The role revitalized McShane’s career, and he fully embraced the character’s colorful, often profane, speeches. He quickly became the show’s most popular figure, earning McShane a Golden Globe award. Later, the show’s creator surprised viewers by reducing Swearengen’s screen time for several episodes in the second season.

Magic: The Gathering has recently become well-known for partnering with popular franchises like The Lord of the Rings, Sonic the Hedgehog, and Final Fantasy. These collaborations have ranged from full sets of cards to just a few highly sought-after cards that resellers quickly bought up.

What makes A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms so good is its ability to expand the world of Westeros without dramatically altering its established history. The show offers viewers engaging, smaller stories and a fresh perspective on everyday life in the kingdom. A key conflict centers around the fate of the main character, and it’s interesting because this new series is handling these kinds of challenges in a different way than Game of Thrones usually did – it’s essentially changing the established formula.

Gene Hackman, the celebrated actor, ventured into the world of private investigators with the 1975 film Night Moves. This came four years after his Academy Award-winning performance as the rebellious detective ‘Popeye Doyle’ in The French Connection. By then, Hackman had already achieved success in films like The Poseidon Adventure and The Conversation. When he reunited with Bonnie & Clyde director Arthur Penn for Night Moves – a story about a former football player turned detective searching for a missing teenage girl – many expected another blockbuster. However, the film’s quality wasn’t widely appreciated initially, though it later gained a dedicated following and became a cult classic.

The Godfather is famous for its shadowy visuals, and especially for how it uses oranges. These oranges often appear right before a character experiences a misfortune or dies. While initially linked to the powerful Don Vito Corleone, this orange imagery continues throughout the film, even after his character is gone. In some versions of the ending, this symbolic ‘curse’ extends to Vito’s favorite son.

The podcast Red Scare has featured controversial guests before, including Tucker Carlson and Alex Jones. However, the recent episode with Nick Fuentes reportedly contained numerous offensive remarks and stereotypes about different ethnic and religious groups – typical for Red Scare. Fuentes even admitted that trying to be provocative is “cringe,” which is ironic considering the episode lasted two and a half hours. Despite contributing to the episode’s inflammatory content, Anna Nekrasova has been steadily working as an actress, appearing in shows like Succession and the recent film Materialists. It’s surprising this particular episode caused enough backlash in Hollywood to potentially harm her career, as she’s previously managed to keep her work separate from her podcast appearances. It’s unlikely this will keep her off screens for long, and she might be able to get support from figures like Mel Gibson or other Hollywood supporters of Donald Trump, who could help navigate this HR issue.

This year’s Oscars have a surprising potential frontrunner: the film Sinners. Released back in April, before the major film festivals, it’s been a topic of discussion among awards experts for months. Sinners has received excellent reviews and has also been a hit with audiences, increasing the chances that Academy voters have seen it. However, its genre and subject matter are different from typical Oscar winners, leading some to question how far it can go. Despite this, the Academy has recently shown more openness to science fiction and horror films, which could benefit Sinners.

Yes, there are definite parallels between Last Samurai Standing and Squid Game: people fighting to the death for money. However, Last Samurai Standing has its own unique background. It began as a 2012 novel called Ikusagami by Shogo Imamura, which was then adapted into a manga series in 2022. Being Japanese, rather than South Korean, the story is rooted in the Meiji period of the late 19th and early 20th centuries—a time when Japan was transitioning from a feudal society to an industrialized one. Unlike Squid Game’s brutal violence, Last Samurai Standing features beautifully choreographed martial arts and sword fights, with graceful movements and artistic displays of combat. There are many reasons to enjoy Last Samurai Standing for what it is, and here are five of them.