Tony Sokol
‘The Rivals of Amziah King’: Matthew McConaughey Releases the Bees in Honeyed Heist Movie
Angelina LookingGlass • Published on August 2026
Revenge is bittersweet in director Andrew Patterson’s “The Rivals of Amziah King.” Matthew McConaughey plays Amziah King, a bluegrass-playing beekeeper with a very open…
‘The Vampire Lestat’: Sam Reid Gloriously Drops the Mic on AMC’s ‘Interview With the Vampire’
AMC • Published on June 2026
AMC’s “The Vampire Lestat” burns the title page of “Interview With the Vampire” in season three for the adaptation of Anne Rice’s 1985 sequel…
Nicolas Cage Spins a Detective Story Into Superhero Origins in Stylish ‘Spider-Noir’
Features • Published on May 2026
Prime Video’s “Spider-Noir” spins a tangled web. The eight-part series reimagines the urban superhero story through the lens of a 1940s private detective film with a mix of cynical whimsy and…
Dan Levy’s ‘Big Mistakes’ Is a Deadeye Screwball Comedy With Collateral Damage
Big Mistakes • Published on April 2026
Uncomfortable comedy exists to find laughter in the least likely places. This is not true for “Big Mistakes.” It becomes apparent in the opening shot when the camera first intrudes on…
Hulu’s ‘The Testaments’ Spins Margaret Atwood’s ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ Into a YA Series
Chase Infiniti • Published on April 2026
Hulu’s “The Testaments” begins four years after the finale of “The Handmaid’s Tale.” In spite of June Osborne’s (Elisabeth Moss) ambiguous spark of the Mayday resistance, not much has changed in…
‘Something Very Bad Is Going To Happen’: The Duffer Brothers Give Weddings a Nosebleed in Horror Miniseries
Features • Published on March 2026
Wedding day jitters are absolutely warranted in “Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen.” The Duffer Brothers first Netflix project since “Stranger Things” is a deep dive into the third ring…
Billy Bob Thornton and Demi Moore Strike First as ‘Landman’ Season 2 Thrives on Everything but Clean Energy
Andy Garcia • Published on November 2025
Everything is bigger in Texas, and “Landman” is expanding its territory in season two. The wildcat oil-drilling drama Taylor Sheridan spudded for Paramount+ is reaching peak production, and on the hunt…
‘Pluribus’: Rhea Seehorn Seethes With Loneliness in Vince Gilligan’s Brilliantly Enigmatic Sci-Fi Series
Apple TV Plus • Published on November 2025
It’s lonely, being right. In “Pluribus,” Rhea Seehorn’s Carol Sturka is a speculative history romance writer who hates her own books, and feels the same about the people who read them,…
‘Down Cemetery Road’: Emma Thompson and Ruth Wilson Excel as Reluctant Spies in Apple TV+’s Mick Herron Adaptation
Apple TV Plus • Published on October 2025
Allegedly, military Intelligence is not as bright as it would like the public to believe. In Apple TV+’s new British thriller series, human error and rushed judgement expose a horrific secret being…
Radu Jude’s Chaotic, Satiric ‘Dracula’ Anthology Is Both the Most Brilliant and Stupidest Comedy of the Year
Dracula • Published on October 2025
The legend of Romania’s most renowned ruler, Vlad “The Impaler” Tepes, has been told many times. Perhaps too many. The myth, which grew from it, even more. Radu Jude, the Romanian screenwriter…
‘Hedda’: Tessa Thompson Shines Darkly in Nia DaCosta’s Stylized Reinvention of Henrik Ibsen Classic
Features • Published on October 2025
Social events celebrate barely covert warfare in “Hedda,” writer-director Nia DaCosta’s compelling adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s classic 1891 play, “Hedda Gabler.” Tessa Thompson brings confident stagecraft to the screen to almost…
‘Talamasca: The Secret Order’ Sets a New Stage for the Anne Rice Immortal Universe
AMC • Published on October 2025
AMC is inducting an overseer to the Anne Rice Immortal Universe. “Talamasca: The Secret Order” bridges “Interview with the Vampire” and “The Mayfair Witches” through characters who can pass in both…
Kathryn Bigelow’s ‘A House of Dynamite’ Is a Waking Nuclear Nightmare With No End
A House of Dynamite • Published on October 2025
Doomsday will have to wait. Director Kathryn Bigelow sets up a nuclear scenario in “A House of Dynamite,” and forces fears to play out offscreen. Onscreen is a tense race to…
HBO’s ‘The Chair Company’ Finds Tim Robinson at His Deranged Best
Features • Published on October 2025
Any workplace comedy is one of manners, usually dictated by Human Resources, but in Tim Robinson’s hands, “The Chair Company” sits on social awkwardness. The HBO series begins with his character,…
‘The Lost Bus’: Matthew McConaughey Navigates a Group of Children Through a Raging Inferno in Real-Life Wildfire Drama
America Ferrera • Published on October 2025
In 2018, the Camp Fire decimated the town of Paradise, CA. It was the deadliest wildfire in California history, killing 85 people, razing more than 150,000 acres, and displacing countless families. The…
‘Wayward’: Troubled Teens Attempt to Leap Over the Cuckoo’s Nest in Mae Martin’s Eerie Psychological Thriller
Features • Published on September 2025
There is no end to the torments inflicted on teenagers for dark entertainment. Detention in Netflix’s “Wayward” offers to take away the pain, along with any memory, personality quirk, or smirky…
Steven Knight’s ‘House of Guinness’ Taps the Sweet Spot Between ‘Succession’ and ‘Peaky Blinders’
Features • Published on September 2025
Netflix’s “House of Guinness” is a stout dynastic drama poured with precision, and just the right amount of fizz. From “Peaky Blinders” creator Steven Knight, this story of the Guinness brewing…
‘The Girlfriend’: Robin Wright and Olivia Cooke Turn ‘Psycho’ Dynamic Around, but Keep It in the Family
Features • Published on September 2025
Like mother, like potential daughter-in-law, “The Girlfriend” is a tale of two psychos. Based on Michelle Frances’ 2017 novel, this eight-episode Prime Video limited series is a blistering and paranoid take…
‘Everything’s Going to Be Great’: Bryan Cranston and Allison Janney Chase Theater Dreams To Realistic Closure
Allison Janney • Published on June 2025
Young theater people are among the most enthusiastic artists, especially as they get older. Director Jon S. Baird gracefully curbs this optimism in “Everything’s Going to Be Great,” by imposing reality on seemingly impossible…
‘The Waterfront’ Could Be a Gripping Crime Story If It Dumped the Soapy Family Drama
Features • Published on June 2025
There is something fishy going on in Havenport, NC. Sheriff Clyde Porter (Michael Gaston) isn’t paying much attention, and an abandoned beached vessel is not declared by the owner of the largest…