Joy Ride is a 2023 American comedy film directed by Adele Lim, in her feature directorial debut. The movie follows four Asian American friends as they bond and discover the truth of what it means to know and love who you are, while they travel through China in search of one of their birth mothers.
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Cobweb is a 2023 American horror thriller film directed by Samuel Bodin in his directorial debut. Its screenplay was written by Chris Thomas Devlin. The film stars Lizzy Caplan, Woody Norman, Cleopatra Coleman, and Antony Starr. (Wikipedia)
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Past Lives is a 2023 American romantic drama film written and directed by Celine Song in her feature directorial debut. Starring Greta Lee, Teo Yoo, and John Magaro, the film follows the relationship between two childhood friends over the course of 24 years, as they contemplate their relationship when they grow apart to have different lives. The plot is semi-autobiographical inspired by real events from Song’s life.
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Shortcomings is a 2023 American comedy-drama film directed and produced by Randall Park (in his feature directorial debut), from a screenplay by Adrian Tomine, based upon Tomine’s comic book story that was first published in 2004 in the pages of Optic Nerve #9 – #11.
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Talk to Me is a 2022 Australian supernatural horror film directed by Danny and Michael Philippou and written by Danny Philippou and Bill Hinzman, based on a concept by Daley Pearson. It stars Sophie Wilde, Alexandra Jensen, Joe Bird, Otis Dhanji, Miranda Otto, Zoe Terakes, Chris Alosio, Marcus Johnson, and Alexandria Steffensen. The film follows a group of teenagers who discover they are able to contact spirits using a mysterious embalmed hand, only for things to go too far. (Wikipedia)
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Barbie is a 2023 American fantasy comedy film directed by Greta Gerwig, from a screenplay she wrote with Noah Baumbach. Based on the Barbie fashion dolls by Mattel, it is the first live-action Barbie film after numerous computer-animated films and specials. The film stars Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken, and follows the pair on a journey of self-discovery following an existential crisis. It features a supporting cast that includes America Ferrera, Kate McKinnon, Issa Rae, Rhea Perlman, and Will Ferrell. (Wikipedia)
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61st Street Season 2 is the second season of an American legal drama TV series that delves into the corrupt Chicago criminal justice system. The first season introduced us to Moses Johnson, a promising high school athlete caught in a wrong-place-wrong-time situation. He gets entangled in a police raid and inadvertently causes the death of an officer, leading to a massive manhunt for him. Franklin Roberts, a frustrated criminal lawyer, becomes Moses’ defence attorney and takes up the challenge to prove his innocence. You can read our review of Season 1 here.
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No Hard Feelings is an American sex comedy film directed by Gene Stupnitsky from a screenplay he co-wrote with John Phillips. It stars Jennifer Lawrence (who also produces) as a 32-year-old Uber driver who answers an ad to date a shy 19-year-old (played by Andrew Barth Feldman) in order to boost his confidence prior to college. Laura Benanti, Natalie Morales, and Matthew Broderick co-star. (Wikipedia)
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Hijack is a seven-part thriller miniseries created by George Kay and Jim Field Smith, starring Idris Elba. The premise revolves around Sam Nelson, a talented business negotiator, who must use his skills to broker a peaceful end to a hijacking of a seven-hour flight from Dubai to London.
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Paradise is a German dystopian science fiction movie, now streaming on Netflix. Directed by Boris Kunz, the premise of the movie revolves around the discovery that years of life can be transferred from one person to another. This process is monetised by the AEON corporation. A terrorist organisation – Adam – led by Lilith seeks to kill all who benefit from the AEON de-aging.
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Oppenheimer is a 2023 biographical thriller film written and directed by Christopher Nolan. Based on the 2005 biography American Prometheus by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin, the film chronicles the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer, an American theoretical physicist who was pivotal in developing the first nuclear weapons as part of the Manhattan Project, and thereby ushering in the Atomic Age. The film stars Cillian Murphy in the lead role.
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Secret Invasion Ep 6 is the sixth and final chapter of an American television miniseries created by Kyle Bradstreet for the streaming service Disney+, based on the Marvel Comics storyline of the same name. It is the ninth television series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) produced by Marvel Studios, sharing continuity with the films of the franchise. It follows Nick Fury and his allies, who attempt to thwart a Skrull invasion of Earth. (Wikipedia)
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The Sixth Commandment is a four-part BBC One British true-life crime drama, written by Sarah Phelps and directed by Saul Dibb. Based on the murders of Peter Farquhar and Ann Moore-Martin, it stars Timothy Spall, Anne Reid, Sheila Hancock, Éanna Hardwicke, Annabel Scholey and Ben Bailey Smith. (Wikipedia)
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Secret Invasion Ep 5 is the fifth chapter in an American television miniseries created by Kyle Bradstreet for the streaming service Disney+, based on the Marvel Comics storyline of the same name. It is the ninth television series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) produced by Marvel Studios, sharing continuity with the films of the franchise. It follows Nick Fury and his allies, who attempt to thwart a Skrull invasion of Earth. (Wikipedia)
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Secret Invasion Ep 4 is the fourth chapter in an American television miniseries created by Kyle Bradstreet for the streaming service Disney+, based on the Marvel Comics storyline of the same name. It is the ninth television series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) produced by Marvel Studios, sharing continuity with the films of the franchise. It follows Nick Fury and his allies, who attempt to thwart a Skrull invasion of Earth. (Wikipedia)
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Secret Invasion Ep 3 is the third chapter in an American television miniseries created by Kyle Bradstreet for the streaming service Disney+, based on the Marvel Comics storyline of the same name. It is the ninth television series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) produced by Marvel Studios, sharing continuity with the films of the franchise. It follows Nick Fury and his allies, who attempt to thwart a Skrull invasion of Earth. (Wikipedia)
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Secret Invasion Ep 2 is the second chapter in an American television miniseries created by Kyle Bradstreet for the streaming service Disney+, based on the Marvel Comics storyline of the same name. It is the ninth television series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) produced by Marvel Studios, sharing continuity with the films of the franchise. It follows Nick Fury and his allies, who attempt to thwart a Skrull invasion of Earth. (Wikipedia)
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Secret Invasion Ep 1 is the first chapter in an American superhero television miniseries created by Kyle Bradstreet for the streaming service Disney+, based on the Marvel Comics storyline of the same name. It is the ninth television series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) produced by Marvel Studios, sharing continuity with the films of the franchise. It follows Nick Fury and his allies, who attempt to thwart a Skrull invasion of Earth. (Wikipedia)
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Beau is Afraid is a surrealistic, absurdist, tragicomedy horror film written and directed by Ari Aster. Joaquin Phoenix plays the role of Beau, the lead character. The movie’s plot follows the mild-mannered but paranoia-ridden Beau as he embarks on a surreal odyssey to get home to attend his mother’s funeral, confronting his greatest fears along the way.
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Plot logic and suspension of disbelief are related concepts but they are not the same thing. What’s the difference?
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Suspension of disbelief is a concept used to describe a willingness or ability to temporarily set aside one’s skepticism or critical judgment in order to fully engage with a work of fiction. In other words, it is the act of allowing oneself to be absorbed by the story or the world created by the author, even if it contains elements that are not realistic or plausible in the real world.
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Bad Sisters Ep 5 is the fifth instalment of an Irish family crime drama cum black comedy streaming TV miniseries created by Sharon Horgen for AppleTV+. Set in Dublin, the miniseries is based on the Flemish series Clan, which was created by Malin-Sarah Gozin.
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The Rings of Power Season 1 Ep 3 is the third instalment of the first season of a fantasy TV series streaming on Amazon Prime Video. Loosely based on the appendices author JRR Tolkien included in his Lord of the Rings trilogy, canonically, this series is set in the Second Age of Middle Earth, whereas the Lord of the Rings was set in the Third Age. Much has been made about this series being unfaithful to Tolkien’s works and thus, we have decided to analyse the story of The Rings of Power on its own merits, while ignoring the accusations of virtue signalling race and gender swapping.
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She-Hulk Episode 4 is the fourth instalment of a Disney+ superhero streaming TV comedy drama miniseries based on the Marvel Comics character, and set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The miniseries will have nine parts and focus on what happens when Jennifer Walters, Bruce Banner’s cousin, becomes a Hulk as well.
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Nope is an American scifi horror film drama, written and directed by Jordan Peele. The film stars Daniel Kaluuya, Keke Palmer, Steven Yeun, Michael Wincott, and Brandon Perea. The film has been generally well-received and has grossed over $148 million worldwide with a production cost of about $68 million.
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