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Review: The Substance (2024)

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Demi Moore earned her first Oscar nom for The Substance , and she deserves it. After all, she's a survivor of the Hollywood machine who delivers a brave and memorable performance. The film also serves as a showcase for Margaret Qualley, who blazes into courageous territory herself.  But at some point, this potent cautionary tale from French filmmaker Coralie Fargeat turns into a bizarre splatter fest (not unlike Peter Jackson's Braindead , aka Dead Alive ) that diminishes its message and dilutes its themes in a tidal wave of gore and blood that is so relentless that it becomes desensitizing and, dare I say, uninteresting. A film that started as a scalpel ends as a sledgehammer, bashing us over the head so aggressively that I went numb to it a good thirty minutes before it finally ended. If the goal was to create an endurance test, mission accomplished. There's value in that, at least in the short term. I appreciate and support the important things this movie has to say abou...
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Review: The Great Escape (1963)

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You couldn't ask for a movie with a higher pedigree of talent in front of the camera and behind the scenes. 1963's The Great Escape  is populated wall-to-wall with actors that I enjoy: Steve McQueen ( Bullit ), James Garner ( Support Your Local Sheriff ), Charles Bronson ( Mr. Majestyk ), Donald Pleasance ( Halloween ), James Coburn ( In Like Flint ) and Richard Attenborough ( Jurassic Park ) lead an all-star cast of current A-listers (and some that would be). Handling directing duties is John Sturges, a director who helmed more than his fair share of classics, including  Last Train from Gun Hill  (1959), The Magnificent Seven (1960), and The Eagle Has Landed (1976) .  So it's with something close to guilt that I admit in this review that I don't love The Great Escape.   I know I should. All the elements for success are there, from real-life heroism, underdogs that the audience can (and should) root for, even triumphs and tragedies as played out agains...
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