'Moonlight': A Retrospective on Barry Jenkins' Masterpiece
Barry Jenkins' masterpiece holds up as the story of a lifetime centered on the intersection of Blackness and gay identity.

Fictionalised account of the story of the he Chōshū Five (長州五傑 Chōshū Goketsu) who travelled to and studied in Britain in 1863 while Japan was still under sakoku (鎖国 "locked country").
Barry Jenkins' masterpiece holds up as the story of a lifetime centered on the intersection of Blackness and gay identity.
Overall, Sand Castle was another lack luster war drama that will eventually fade into the many similar war dramas I have seen throughout my life.
Him is visually stunning—all concrete cathedrals and bone-rattling impact shots that look like a nightmare highlight reel. Marlon Wayans is magnetic as this legendary quarterback who's basically selling salvation with a smile that never quite reaches his eyes. But the story keeps running in circles: more tests, more cryptic pep talks, more ritualistic drills. The sports-as-religion metaphor beats you over the head when subtlety would've been more effective. The middle drags, and that finale chooses spectacle over substance. It's undeniably stylish, but left me cold. Also worth noting: despite the Monkeypaw connection, this isn't actually a Jordan Peele film—he didn't write or direct.
Ultra-violent storytelling has never been my thing, but the issues with Scarface go beyond that. The film perpetuates harmful stereotypes about Latinx immigrants and uses gore and misogyny for shock value that never serves any purpose. The whole venture is frustratingly empty, and left me desiring something more.
It took writers D.B Weiss and David Benioff two years to give us a promising final season. Two. Years. It was just going to be six episodes, which was short considering that all the other seasons — except season 7 — were 10 episodes. 10. 6 wasn’t enough, and even HBO wanted to give the writers more episodes. More seasons, even. However, the writers wanted to get out of the show as quickly as possible to work on other projects. This abruptness is clearly shown in this season.
Though 'Bound' technically falls under the genres of crime and thriller, the film's heart is a romance between two women.