ccpopculture
ccpopculture: movie reviews and other pop culture analysis, 200 words at a time.
Extended Cut
Ad Astra Offers an Aching Examination of Masculinity's Failures
Ad Astra is an astonishing achievement.
September 21, 2019 in Extended Cut, Film.
Kin (2018)
There's no reason Kin couldn't have used its sci-fi hook to examine the degradation of the American working class.
September 2, 2018 in 200 words, Film.
Upgrade Deconstructs the Revenge Film
Upgrade is a clever genre mash-up. The film merges the tropes of the traditional revenge flick with speculative sci-fi,
at once indulging in genre thrills and commenting upon them.
August 3, 2018 in Extended Cut, Film.
Images on a Wall: Blade Runner 2049
At its best, Blade Runner 2049 is a film about negotiating the notion of identity in the dense lattice of a technological society. Villeneuve amplifies the first film's themes of complicity in an oppressive society.
October 8, 2017 in Extended Cut, Film.
The Perverse Pessimism of Alien Covenant: The Best Alien Movie Since Aliens
Ridley Scott uses all the black goop and snarling xenomorphs to stage an earnest, ambitious attempt to grapple with big ideas.
May 11, 2017 in Extended Cut, Film.
A film that asks "what if Alien but also Gravity?" and that's about it.
March 28, 2017 in 200 words, Film.
Arrival's Ambition is Undone by its Simplistic Screenplay
Denis Villeneuve's optimistic sci-fi ambitions are undermined by a trite, often clichéd screenplay.
November 17, 2016 in Extended Cut, Film.