A Law Unto Themselves

If there ever was an Academy Award Best Picture nominee that throws everything at you but the kitchen sink, 2022's Everything Everywhere All at Once, written and directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, would be it. A philosophical thinking piece woven within an Asian infused Marvel-style multiverse of madness – which incorporates kung-fu action, quirky comedy, marital stress and romance, familial drama, and plenty of adventure, the narrative follows the Wang family: mother Evelyn (Michelle Yeoh), father Waymond (Ke Huy Quan), daughter Joy (Stephanie Hsu), and visiting grandfather Gong Gong (James Hong).

Coming off like a fatalistic fairytale, Martin McDonagh’s fourth feature film, The Banshees of Inisherin (2022), has been deemed a pitch black tragicomedy, whereas his other films (In Bruges, Seven Psychopaths, and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) would more simply be described as dark comedies, or dramedies. Subtly drawing symbolic ties to the Irish Civil War of 1922-23 (it is set in 1923), as well as the long lasting strife known as The Troubles (which took place between the 1960s to 90s), this divide is shown by way of muses Pádraic (Colin Farrell) and Colm (Brendan Gleeson).

As a special treat for Halloween, I’ve got two interviews for you. At this year’s CAPE (Cornwall & Area Pop Event), which was held on the weekend of April 23-24, 2022, I was fortunate enough to spend quite some time with William Ragsdale and Amanda Bearse, the two leading teens of the iconic 1985 horror cult classic Fright Night, written and directed by Tom Holland (no, not of Spider-Man fame – he wasn’t born yet). I hope you enjoy these inside looks into this quirky horror movie this Halloween, and keep an eye out for upcoming Star Pick interviews with both, which will reveal their favourite movies.

Transporting the viewer down the proverbial rabbit hole, 2016's A Cure for Wellness, co-written and directed by Gore Verbinski, is a fantastical fairy tale, but maybe not in the way you might be thinking. Rooted in the original Grimm versions of the stories that might come to mind, this narrative is horror tinged, to be sure. Full of juxtaposition and symmetry, we follow a newly promoted cutthroat executive, boy-faced Lockhart (Dane DeHaan), who is being tasked with retrieving their CEO emeritus of sorts, Pembroke (Harry Groener) – a beast of a businessman, who, after taking two weeks off in the Swiss Alps, has decided to call it quits and focus more on his health and wellness (a complete role reversal by the businessman).

A supernatural tinged horror thriller, 2021's The Black Telephone (based upon Joe Hill’s short story of the same name), co-written and directed by Scott Derrickson, might never have you seeing those long corded, wall mounted phones in the same way ever again. Set in 1978, we follow Finney (Mason Thames), and, to a lesser extent, his younger sister Gwen (Madeline McGraw), in what should seemingly be an idyllic childhood in Denver. But, just below the surface, all is not right.

Adding horror to sex and drugs and rock `n roll, 1985's Hard Rock Zombies, co-written and directed by Krishna Shah, was never supposed to happen – as it was only meant to be a twenty minute faux feature that would play in the background at the titular American Drive-In (a comedy released the same year)... instead, the film maker scraped together a bit more money, and a true (and truly bad) cult classic was born. A throw everything at it but the kitchen sink style production, the narrative is a bit of a mess, but in the best possible way. Following the burgeoning rock band Holy Moses (E.J. Curse – member of Silent Rage, Geno Andrews, Sam Mann, Mick McMains)