Morning Reel

We all know Zack Snyder and what he's known for. He's definitelty a celebrated filmmaker. Has made numerous superhero films in the DC Comics universe and the iconic "300". But before all that, he re-made "Dawn of the Dead". Now, I didn't compare the two. You really can't, thery're their own films. It's fun to see Tom Savini be a part of the 2004 version. Now, I'm not a big fan of Snyder and "Dawn of the Dead" but it's not a bad film. It's not a great film either. I talk about the casting, how the characters develop as they interact with each other and the situations they go through to trying to escape a mall without being harmed an attracting zombie attention. I do like the moral dilemma that the film faces when it comes to death. It also makes it entertaining because at the most part, it is a action zombie flick. The zombies are pretty legit. I do hate some of the characters. I wish there was a bit more do to with the plot overall instead of the typical "how do we survive the zombie apocalypse"? Overall, two and a half out of four tokes #dawnofthedead #zacksnyder

Janeen Damian once again directs Lindsey Lohan in the film "Irish Wish", a rom com about an editor who is in love with her boss who is the author of books that get published. Guess what, a fairy godmother of sorts grants Lohan's character's wish to get married with this guy. Then, it's a journey of love dispelling the notion of true love especially when she starts hanging out with this photographer who, guess what, gets her! Who would have thought, right? This is not a good film but it tries really hard. I talk about the strengths of Lohan's acting. I also discuss the screenplay of this film in which I think needs a lot of work and would have made Lohan's character be stronger for the film's overall message. But it wouldn't have mattered because the film gives itself away. It's waay too predictable but like I said in the podcast, this is a major watch due to Lindsey Lohan herself - she looks great, can still deliver a good acting performance, and is likable overall. And of course, I do like the film because it's set in Ireland and they did a good job giving us authentic Irish vibes. Two and a half out of four tokes. #irishwish #netflix

Jonathan Glazer is a trailblazer of a filmmaker. "The Zone of Interest" is another win for him and filmmaking in general. He was able to use sound to highlight the horrors of the holocaust. He chose to not show any kind of violance whatsoever and the sound makes up for. It's a simple story of a family of Nazis who live in a beautiful home RIGHT NEXT TO the Auschwitz concentration camp ran by Rudolf Höss. It focuses mainly on Rudolf Höss and his wife Hedwig, seeing life in their evil lives, living peacfully, almost gracefully with the help of their staff which happen to be Jews. There are no happy endings, only the dissection of how cruel we can be as a people to one another and we don't have to see any deaths. It's through what some of the characters comment and how they are use to the fact that what goes on the next is completely normal to them. It's mind-boggling. It's hard pill to swallow throughout because these folks are living happily with no acknowledgement of the evil they are a part of and sadly, proud of. This film is sort of a meditation piece of cinema. We see dramatized facts unfold of evil and we also see how men can evolve by throwing the very last of human morales. I recommend everyone to see this film. Glazer did a good job getting us up and close to this film by having invasive camera work, attention to detail in almost every shot, and the cast is great. They play their roles convincing. However, the plot is is almost minimalistic. Three and a half out of four tokes. #thezoneofinterest #filmreview #morningreel

"Priscilla" shows a very mature and talented Sofia Coppola exploring the exodus of Elvis and Priscilla Presley's life as romantic partners. The caasting is pretty good. We definitely see how Priscilla grows up on screen played by the same actress. It's a dramatized version of their romance with a straightforward story and plot. It's pretty intimate, gets up close at one point where we see eyeballs, a lot of attention to detail. We get to know how in all apsects of hers and their lives as a whole. We do see relationship that is obviously built on lust in the most general sense (this was in the '50s) eventually enfolding to an adult and complicated marriage where Elvis is definitely KING and Priscilla not getting the respect she deserves as a woman especially of her age, she has no natural outlook of thr concept of love and the notion of "my one and ony" but the tabloid crushes her everything. Whatever news she gets is not being able to independently explore the outside world which is ironic beceause Elvis never toured outside the United States. Elvis wanted a certan kind of woman which eventually to Priscilla's self-respect, begins to break glass door down. It's a feisty film but it's like a slow climb where when you turn around, you see nothing but the beautiful landscape. But it's quite a climb which is hard for the viewer to want to keep up. Three and a half out of four tokes. #priscillafilm #filmreview #sofiacoppola

Kevin Smith wrote, directed, and edited "Zack Miri Make a Porno" which is an ambitious film about people who get together and make something especially when you gotta make quick money. But life is about more than money and that's where this film stands out and it especially stands out from Kevin Smith's filmography. The man proves he is more than just a "sequel" director. The characters in this film prove themselves even as simple as making an adult film. I dig the film the film for it's premise. It's plot is plain for the most part because we can already tell what's gonna happen at the end but it's fun to see HOW that works out. It's a fun watch but it does have serious moments when it comes to love & romance even between the main characters we have. This film is sweet overall because it tells us that it's never too late to change your life for the better. If you believe in yourself & your ideas and have a strong supporting cast to back you up, you can conquer. Yes, this film as raunchy as it seems, does that. Watch it. Three out of four tokes. #zackandmirimakeaporno #kevinsmith #filmreview

Jonathan Demme is a master filmmaker and he shows us his storytelling prowess with "The Silence of the Lambs". The film is not only great because of its premise and engaging plot but the power of the close up. That close up is a very powerful use of cinematography and by keeping us at that close up for the majority of the film, you cant help but continue to watch. I can understand why people would pay to see this film on the big screen. Those details are scary. Jodie Foster played a great Clarice Starling, showing a character that is compassionate about people and justice itself. The film is pretty straightforward for the most part with minor twists but all the juice is simply from how the writer was clever to put plot motives at the right places. This is a film where you don't anticipate an ending like we see and it's a great payoff. Four out of four tokes #thesilenceofthelambs #jonathandemme #filmreview

"A Ghost Story" is a film all about time as it states in its poster. And it is. It's a strong film written & directed by David Lowery who casted Casey Affleck and Rooney Mara about two people who love each other and they eventually lose each other. It's more really more about the journey than it is about the couple itself and how the film works, it's meditational piece of art. Now there are cons as I talk about them in the film just in the aspect of how the story can push forward and with a film like this I can see it's a bit tough to make an action legit. Lowery did what he could in the logic of the film to strike heavy in the second act. It's a good film to watch not just 'cause of its cinematography of seeing a human being completely draped by a cloth, but how lives are introduced and shown. The different aspects of life who don't know each other still share the same Earth, the same time that's being offered. And the major connection is how humans can bring us together but they can also separate us. Really strong approach that Lowery brought into this film. I enjoyed it a lot. I feel this film is meant to be seen in the big screen and the sound design needs its flowers. It adds to the minimalism of the film. I would see it again as it teaches you about handling humans, handling your safe space and overall how we can make a film with putting a sheet over our heads and being the best ghost we can be. For that, we are in debt to celebrate this film. Three and a half out of four tokes #aghoststory #a24 #love

XG joins me on this episode for the film "Leave the World Behind". He requested it so we did it. Funny because I was gonna review this film down the road. The film isn't bad, it's just a bit too long and there's not much of a plot to work with which is crazy because you can do so many things with this type of story. It's weird that I had a hard time connecting with these characters. Almost as if they're robots in a sense except for Ethan Hawke who played Clay. He relly shines in this film. I really thought Julia Roberts playing Amanda was great. I don't think she's a bitch to be a bitch. We can all relate when we're just not fuckin' with nobody because everybody sucks, in general. Her character's behavior and mindset really does mold and move the story throughout. XG and I talked conspiracy theories concerning the things that happened in the film such as scamming, the 5G singals that suppresses life & alike, and Obama somehow was involved in this? And if he was, what's the conspiracy, haha. It's an enjoyable film but there's so much realism in the aspect of post-apocalyptic scenarios, we can't be ignorant about it. Kevin Bacon's was GREAT in his character and really encapsulates human behavor. Not the best film in the world but ti doesn't move the pendulum. Three out of Four tokes. Thank you XG for being a part of the podcast episode. Y'all can chek him out on: http://fullytoxic.com #leavetheworldbehind #filmreviews #morningreel

Ava DuVernay directed "Selma" that deals with the marches of Selma in 1965 led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This actually happened that led to an official to pass signed by President Lyndon B Johnson. A dramatized film of course but it's straightforward, it's gets to the point and the performances from the talent really give this film the attention it deserves. We get to see a MLK Jr. very human, almost too human, seeing him deal with all kinds of aspects in life epsecially with things that have nothing to do with him. People look up to this man because he is a leader and for the greatest cause any man can put themselves in because it'll literally set course to what's to come in America. The scenes of the bridge crossings are brutal and DuVernay does not relent, she shoves it to us because that is what happened. Injustice all the way to the physical level and thankfully during that time, people all over the world were able to see it and it's messed up. I'm sure in reality, it was far more brutal, you have to give it to DuVernary for showing us just a fraction of those events played out. It's hard to watch innocent woman just get beat for walking. FOR WALKING. Then again, it was George Wallace's Alabama and he didn't give a f. Tim Roth knocked the Wallace role right out of the park as he usually does. Although I feel that the film itself was a bit too scripted, like I feel the other cast were kind of robotic in a sense. The main characters, you can tell they had a lot of range to play around with and used it to their advantage. Overall, "Selma" is solid, effective and entertaining. It does get real and it makes you mad as how politics work. You ask yourself, does the president really care? Does the government really care? Regardless, when you want something you real bad, you're gonna do what you can to achieve it. MLK Jr. is the greatest example of that and he led millions. Three and a half out of four tokes. #selma #avaduvernay #injustice

"Anatomy of a Fall" is a gripping courtroom dramam directed by Justine Triet. The film is literal in it's title. We are looking at a fall that resulted death to the husband/father of a family that secretly failing. We don't know if the fall was ruled out to be suicide or murder. The mother/wife is the only prime suspect and the family is thrown to the ringer. It's crazy how a courtroom is a place where the skeletons come out of the closet. One of my favorite characters is the dog in this film. The actor is named Messi and Messi acts his ass off and you'll know it when you see it. I talk about the film's screenplay, it's written very well because we out of those pages we see how creative the director was to give out this information for us to see. When we think we'll see full scenes of the married couple having a really aggressive argument, think again. All characters play their roles right and effectively. I talk about how flashbacks are used in this film Triet made it that work very well. We don't know much about the characters until we are witnessed through multimedia and not the characters themselves. Normally, this would be a problem in storytelling but the characters later shed their own layers to these surprises of sorts. The full fledged character is the son, as blind as he is, he wins people's hearts. Smart, understanding, and isn't afraid to show himself. The film won at the Cannes film festival and earned a Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film and it shows. We see a film where the elements of filmmaking are present but the characters drive the story. Even the dead man himself has light to shed. Leave stones unturned because eventually they will turn and it'll blow your mind. I wasn't feeling this film at first, with exception of the first act (which is a great first act), but when we the first courtroom scene, it brought me back and made me sit along with all the other people who were watching trial. Three and a half out of four tokes. #anatomyofafall #morningreel

"Juice" is a good film. It could have been greater if Tupac's character "Bishop" wasn't written to be so James Cagney and it's funny that the film ended in the fashion of "White Heat" but it's because of that film Tupac decided to go deep into the psyche of a man with practically nothing to lose at a young age growing up in early '90s New York. Harlem to be more exact. The film is about senior high schoolers trying to figure themselves out and it's root is basically the time and location they're living in. It's tough in the streets and if you want to make it, you might have to consider extreme measures. The film is not all violence, we are shown a window of Hip Hop which plays a deep role in the film. It's a character, it highlights a side of New York. You not only hear it, you see it in the fashion that is shown (great production design) & the music where society decides to vibe, and you also feel it as to how Bishop, Raheem, and Steel try to feign it as much as they can. But we all know, it shows us how music can be not only a way out, but it also has the power to fufill artistic purpose. I didn't mentioned this in the review, but Ernest Dickerson knows how to make a film and an effective one with his choice of shots that he knows it adds the right amount of tension and aloofness. Overall, what I saw is still ingredients for an iconic film such as "Juice". Three out of four tokes. #juicemovie #tupac #hiphop

This is a film Roger Ebert would have loved. He loved Martin Scorsese and this film, "Killers of the Flower Moon" is just another notch on the belt. This is a western epic that deals with history in the United States. What I loved about the film is the screenplay itself. It was written so well. You have all kinds of situations that are happening at the same time and it intensifies throughout the whole film and not only does it affect the main characters, it affects society around them which would ultimately have a dominio effect all the way to the White House. I'm not kidding. My wife Fabi joins me on this epsiode because she has always wanted to see the film ever since the trailer we saw at the "Oppenheimer" screening. She's a history buff and the trailer got her hooked. This film at three hours and 26 minutes, it keeps us very engaged with a dramatic screenplay where it's really hard to stay behind these characters especially with the motives that they have which is primarily greed and it can turn your world upside down. It shows us a world where two are pretending to be nice. There's so much hate and animosity, it's great how normal the film is portraying it. We all know it's not right and goes deep as to how messed up this film gets. The cinematography is great, Scorsese once again knows choose his shots well especially going to into western territory and Thelma Schoonmaker is an editing queen who knows how to keep a scene on its toes. We didn't really stay in one shot obviously but she cuts from one certain angle to another that really navigates the story to graciously move forward. This film is a force to be reckon with, definitely awards are awaiting for Scorsese and crew. Everyone plays their roles so good, it's like a satisfying jigsaw puzzle once it's completed. It's easy for me to say that not one role is wasted, not one actor underplayed their role. To see DeNiro and DiCaprio act alongside and against each other is honestly something of a "once in a lifetime" sight and you'll exactly what I mean when youd see it. Even when it goes over the top, it's still a sight to see. I think this is one of the few three hour plus films of recent that can really be consistently entertaining and it's just how the story is told and how the stakes and schemes get higher. It can only go so high until in comes crashing down and man, it crashes down very hard and unforgiving. Four out of four. #killersoftheflowermoon #martinscorsese #killersoftheflowermoonreview

"Jingle All the Way" is a fun and sometimes wacky film about consumerism and how to keep up with your word. My faovrite Christmas film because it shows toys, toys, and more toys. Especially the Turbo Man doll that's the "It Doll" of the year. Imagine having to buy a toy on Christmas Eve? THE toy that every kid wants. Good luck, buddy. And good luck with this film because it is cheesy for the most part especially trying to manipulate us feeling so bad that Arnold's character has to succumb to the guilt of of not being able to show up at his kid gaining a puple belt. How can we make it up? By buying the hottest toy of the season and will be forgiven. I wish there was more about not caring too much about what to receive. Then again, you're dealing with kids. Sinbad, a force to be wreckon with still to this day. I wish they did more justice to his character but he did as much as he could to dispell ffrom a typical "disgruntled employee". Arnold needed Sinbad, they need opposing forces going for the same thing, they both teach other things and did their best to teach us. Three out of four tokes. #jinglealltheway #christmas #arnoldschwarzenegger

"Black Christmas" is one the earliest slasher films of the horror game and who would have thought it would come straight from Toronto, Canada? Well it did and it is iconic in its style and the dabbling of the plot where we don't know who the killer is. Who is causing all this harm? it's crazy beacuse even law enforcement can't even figure it out, obvious plot defect but the screenwriter makes up for it in the scenes where the man from the phone company is trying to ind the tapped line to figure out the killer. And we do and it's way to give us that suspenseful revelation is great. WHAT DO WE DO NOW? Great way to begin the third act and wonder if he's gonna get caught and if Jess is going to be the last murder? or is the chief of police going to the next victim. We don't know and we have this subplot where Jess' boyfriend who is obviously beyond disgruntled about not having a child and being chosen for a higher rank in the conservatory, anything can happen. The ending is great and is worth watching the whole film to just witness that part. This film is not crappy even for its genre, there are holes but it is fun to watch and very memorable. Two and a half out of four tokes. #blackchristmas #slasherfilm

Judd Apatow's "Knocked Up" is a national treasure of a romantic comedy film that is still as relevant as ever due to the fact of Apatow's knack of wiriting witty dialogue and had a dream team of a cast that knew their roles to the tee and weren't afraid to improvise in the process. I'm grateful for E-Zone and XG who are co-hosts of the We Don't Smoke the Same Podcast, joined me to go a on a deep dive of this film, discussing relationships and how relatable it is to us and both men & women in general. As raunchy as this film is, it's sweet and has a message where being honest with yourself goes a long way especially the decisions we make. Sometimes coasting through life isn't the way to go. In this case, hooking up with a random person and deciding to not only keep the child but to raise as a couple is a win. It's very traditional and as Apatow challeneged himself with the subtext of time, he was able to write scenes that explored relationship and family dynamics and wasn't afraid to push through. The film has countless one-liners embedded in memorable scenes that fills into many pockets of the plot. Good story with a easily digestable plot. Sometimes, it's not what it's about, but HOW it's about. Although it's primarily a male point of view, it goes hand-in-hand with what women go through when it comes to pregnancies and being a woman period. Not a serious comedy film but it's sweet, almost wholesome, and it does it's best to be honest with the audience and that's something I can always get behind on. Three and a half out of four tokes. We Don't Smoke the Same Podcast Website E-Zone Website XG Website #knockedup #juddapatow

Greta Gerwig is a woman who stars and directs film where the characters are dealing with an existential crisis, or rather, dealing with their identities and questioning life and our pupose in it. "Barbie" is the film that was meant for her to direct and what a way to put that life concept on a doll that has influenced modern culture and it continues to. This is one best films of the year that can probably win multiple awards including "Best Picture". I strongly believe it will definitely win "Best Screenplay" but comparing it to "Oppenheimer", I think "Oppenheimer" has a better chance winning "Best Picture". Overall, I dig "Barbie" for many reasons such as Gerwig's stage direction, the cinematography, and the production design that automatically hooks you in and displays an obvous fake world that slowly unwinds and further warps as the characters literally touch reality. It's unavoidable, the subject of thinking about death and how we certain mediums to communicate with not only our ownselves but the physical people we're trying to reach. Its great that Gerwig was able co-write a screenplay such as this BUT i really don't like the use of the crossing over different universes where one doesn't affect the other. It's a bit hard for me to grasp how Barbie can actually become a real person because afterall how the first act plays out, we are subliminally watching a grown woman playing with Barbie but it's more visually cinematic. I dig the cast in the film especially Will Ferrell's character, the president of Barbie, and Ryan Gosling playing Ken who he has a crisis of identity that plays to the notion that EVERYONE goes through s**t and for all the people who are condemning the ffilm to be sexist towards men, y'all are f***ing trippin'. What film did you see? What makes the film is the dialogue, where the ideas and concepts are deeply shared such as our pupose in life and who were should be, and it does stay with the audience even after the film, it's very relatable but it doesn't really tame the plot. I kind of wish it could have been more about the mom and her connection to her daughter rather than catering it to primarily to Barbie even though she is the title character. Sometimes it's more powerful to have that support the reason why she even exists in the first place. Three and a half out of four tokes. #barbiereview #barbiefilm

Steven Spielberg's "A.I. Artificial Intelligence" is a modern day masterpiece that will always stand the test of time due to it's subject of humans vs A.I. and can we play God amongst them. The film couldn't paint a better picture and it's told in two hours plus. I was pleased and thankful to have Rock Samson on this episode because he shares the same love I have for this film. But whether we love it or not, it's a great film. Shot and told very well by Spielberg's team including his actors. It's a challenge to pretend to play a "mecha" petending to be human, or at least, mimicking humanity. This film was released in mid-2001 and it pretty much told us what the future will for sure be like to the point where it shifts society where A.I. and humans co-exist and it's not great. Honestly, it can't be. We are a dominant spieces and we're not gonna let OUR creations run amock and try to take over us but ironically it's us humans who are going to take each other out. Just look back on our history. Rock and I go deep in this film in it's story structure, the use cinematography and VFX, the VFX alone is really good EVEN FOR IT'S TIME (2001) that still wipes out half the over-budgeted Marvel films which we discuss; we further share thoughts of the themes and philosophical concepts that go even beyond the film and it's important for us to really absorb and hold on to. Now, as much I dig this film, I do have some things that don't ring very well such as how certain event JUST happen with little narration. Ben Kingsley goes a long way with his narration but some parts I feel shouldn't take the film where it goes. Then again, it's sci-fi, I just have to believe what I'm seeing. What we see in this film, we shouldn't take for granted and Spielberg sure didn't. This film really is a work of art and I challenge other films to take it like he did. A film about searching for our own piece piece, our heavy dose of humanity to be loved. Love can definitely put you in a certain gear to act. Four out of four tokes. Rock Samson Official Instagram Spotify

"Princess Mononoke" is Hayao Miyazaki's masterpiece. It's an adventure film that's filled with vibrant colors and deep morals and they're all tied to how we humans treat our environment and it doesn't look good. It's tough to make a feel look beautiful even in it's darkest pastures and still have an effective story about our roles in this Earth. I dig the film for it's cinematography, the use of CGI and hand-drawn animation. It's kind of hard to think that it is hand-drawn. There are some scenes that make you wonder how they did the scene period without much a fuss but I'm sure there were. The characters are great and can easily like, even the antagonist characters. You can actually get behind these character's motivations, no matter how bright or dark. There is a sense to it, either you go with the light or the dark. We can understand why we would hate our own spieces because it seems we do more destroying than giving and growing. Yes, we grow as a society, but at what cost? That's the whole thing about the film. It's fun to look at, you see more than just drama but there is slight romance that Studio Ghibli don't choose to overdue but overall we do see compassion out of this film. Miyazaki Loves humans enough to draw about and point out our crap. Genius. Four out of four tokes. #princessmononoke #hayaomiyazaki #studioghibli

What? A double featured review? Yes. I ended watching two "Orphan" films. I didn't there was a prequel in this very limited film series. I saw the first one. Then I found out about the second one. And by watching it, I might as well double them up. These two films are very similar to each other. The plots are different but they are alike. One is not better than the other although I actually enjoyed the prequel - "Orphan: First Kill" due to the cheesiness of it. "Orphan" has good cinematography, the sound design does play tricks on people as horror films like to do. Vera Farmiga is good in this film, I only wish the plot was a bit better especially how it deals with Esther's character having daddy issues. Why daddy issues? No mommy issues? I don't like how they had to sexualize her character, I feel it they could have gone to different direction about it. I'm sure they could have made her third dimensional without having to do that. I didn't like how Esther is a complete bad ass. As if nothing can touch her. I do like the payoff in the third act where she is actually untouchable. I do hate the twist, though. I won't say what it is but I did stick for the ride. "Orphan: First Kill" has no twists. Well, it kind of does and I love how they wrote Julia Stiles' character. She's merciless, smart and has a motive that matches Esther. For the first time, Esther wasn't getting her way that easy. I didn't like plot too much, I felt like it's flat. We all know about Esther, certain characters know about her, what can we do? I do like how the story plays out where the tables turn and Esther has to take some type of emotional torture in which gives her the direction to completely break the rules. These two films overall have blood, there's brutal kills and somehow there is a heart in the film. More in the first than the second, the second was more of a filler film. They tried to find a way to seek more of Esther's story. There could have been a bit more. I wish there wasn't of that "daddy issue" trope for her in the second film. I can see why they would do it. But I still question it overall. I wish both parental characters can be pushed for Esther's issues of family. Overall, both films are two and a half tokes.

"Hereditary" is a great horror film that I tried my best to stay away from but a lot of people wanted me to talk about it. I'm glad that my mind was changed about seeing this film that deals with loss and the disfunction of family. It's not your typical horror film, all these characters have motives and brains that push the story forward and there's a lot of mystery as how these characters themselves operate. Everyone in this film is dealing with a lot and it's great to see a story where all this ache plays out and it's quite a thing to witness. I love Toni Collette and she makes this film her bitch. I love how the filmmaker impliments cannabis into the psyche of Peter, the character that did the most damage in the family that pretty much sets the whole mood of the film and we don't let go of him. They're all here to stay and Charlie makes sure her presence is known. I dig the film's cinematography, it's something that M. Night Shyamalan could have made but he couldn't pull it off. There are no twists, things just happen and it all makes sense even down to the last shot of the film. The third act alone is a masterclass in filmmaking. Human sacrifices are different in this film and you can feel the evil step by step which makes us, the viewer, to be on our toes and to also never let our guard down when it comes to coven-like spirituality. Four out of four tokes.