Popcorn Zombies

By Michael Momper Before reading further, I urge you to see the movie if you are a Toy Story fan and then adjudicate yourself as to what you like or don't like from it... I'm curious to hear your thoughts! There are spoilers below. I am about as big a Toy Story fan as you can find. A seminal piece of my childhood, this franchise thrice delivered heartwarming, emotional, hilarious and innocent entertainment. It is one of the highest rated trilogies of all time, and a lot of that is due to the fact that it tackles big questions, deftly maneuvers through multiple plot lines and wonderfully balances the character arcs of a large ensemble ranging from the goofy side characters to the more important friendships that stand at the franchise's core. Make no mistake about it, Woody and Buzz are the cornerstone of this franchise, in terms of merchandise sales, placement on posters, screen time as a whole, and even video game stardom. I will mince no words with the latest s...

Graham Craycraft Bob Dylan is perhaps the most influential American musician in history. Putting out critically acclaimed music in his early twenties and continues to record and tour even now at seventy eight years old. Pairing Dylan with legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese yields something close to a 100% success rate. That’s exactly what happened in June 2019. Scorsese released a documentary film on Netflix that covers Dylan’s tour with group Rolling Thunder Revue which consisted of around 15 members with names like Joan Baez, Scarlet Rivera, Ramblin’ Jack Elliot and more. The group toured from 1975-76 around the US and famously wore white makeup and dressed in slightly more outrageous costumes. On this tour Dylan unveiled songs such as “Isis” (the song of man who would do anything for love), Hurricane (the song about the boxer nicknamed “Hurricane” wrongly imprisoned on murder charges) and “One More Cup of Coffee” (an eerie call to the other side before the narrator hims...

By Michael Momper The newest installment of the John Wick franchise is finally here, and I waited for it in eager anticipation, not at all dissimilar to the excitement I had for the latest Mission:Impossible chapter. I have mentioned the strengths of both of these franchises before, but perhaps a few of them are worth repeating as the high quality of these franchises has become predictable in the most excellent way. These franchises perfectly exemplify the glowing results of putting a movie in the hands of a capable, motivated director who has a crystal-clear and tasteful vision for his art. Both franchises now have three blockbuster smash-hits in a row, and the quality is very evident. The latest John Wick film plays to all of the strengths I have mentioned previously: wonderfully choreographed action, whimsical exotic locations, and most importantly, knife-like precision behind the camera with practical effects and a complete ditching of the shaky-cam action formula...

Graham Craycraft The new Netflix original Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile is the story of one part of notorious serial killer Ted Bundy’s life. Ted is known as one of the worst serial killers of all time and is thought to have killed over 30 young women often raping them first. This movie, starring Zac Efron as Bundy, is not a documentary but rather a true account told like a work of fiction. Efron, also an executive producer on the film, was joined by other well known actors such as John Malkovich, Lily Collins, Jeffrey Donovans, and others. The film portrayed Bundy as the outside world saw him. Charming, well spoken, and intelligent. The story begins with Bundy meeting his steady girlfriend Liz Kendall and how she falls, like many others, into the deceptive wonder of Bundy. Instead of jumping to the rapes and murders the audience follows his softer side that he kept up at home with Liz and her daughter. He cares for them and maintains his studies at law school, bu...

By Michael Momper It is so good to be back reviewing a movie! The beginning of 2019 has been largely devoid of exciting blockbusters and even largely lacking in widely-released critical successes. However, much of the movie-loving community was buzzing with excitement prior to the release of Jordan Peele's sophomore directorial effort, Us. He is fresh off the enormously successful and critically acclaimed debut film, Get Out, which was released in 2017. With this release and word of his forthcoming reboot of The Twilight Zone , he has established a very solid reputation for thought-provoking and thrilling horror. With Us, we see his affinity for the classic slasher films of the 1980s, but also are treated to some excellent performances and remarkably captivating atmosphere. The movie follows a family that is on vacation in Santa Cruz, California, a place where the mother/main protagonist experienced a harrowing and terrifying sight when she was a young girl. Sh...

Graham Craycraft You can’t have music without having the artists to create it. My favorite genre of music is singer-songwriter which covers a wide range of genres. These artists put their lives, or lives of characters, into their songs. Often times you can find more about the artist in these songs than in any interview or article. It is one of the most pure expressions of tribulation, joy, and often suffering. For years artists have used this platform to explore their own lives, but also the world around them. People may love an artist and their music until they learn about their political, social, or religious views. A perfect example of this is when my buddy Michael (the other guy who writes here) told me that he just couldn’t listen to Steve Earle anymore after seeing him in show on the LSD tour. Earle is a known socialist and sports the Hammer and Sickle on his drummer’s kit as well as t-shirts. When Michael saw this something changed. Even though previously enjoying Earle’...

                                        By Michael Momper Ryan Bingham is a raspy-voiced New Mexico native who has consistently been one of my favorite staples of the alt-country or Texas Red Dirt country music scenes for many years now. His songs are honest reflections of the outlaw and rambler lifestyle, and with his raw guitar playing and soulful vocals his songs seem to perfectly encapsulate the dusty West and the plains of this great nation. 2015's Fear and Saturday Night was an excellent addition to his catalog, as it brought us some Dylan-esque harmonica/acoustic ballads, fuzzy rockers like "Top Shelf Drug", and foot-stomping sing-alongs like "Island in the Sky". His newest album is American Love Song, and it is most likely my most-anticipated album of the year. Coming in at over an hour of music, this latest addition to the Bingham canon is a long journey, full of a...