Despite an ensemble cast and the potential of an annual niche, ‘Office Christmas Party’ still struggles with the weight of its own unruly promise.
‘Office Christmas Party,’ in its best effort, replaces quick wit with grimy lumps of coal. It’s beginning to look like something we’ve seen before. Office Christmas Party, the newest efforts of tag-team directors Josh Gordon and Will Speck (Blades of Glory, The Switch), aims tall and ends up falling short. The holiday film holds the […]
Damien Chazelle lights up the big screen with ‘La La Land,’ a colorful feat in-line with Hollywood’s oldest tricks in the music book.
‘La La Land’ tiptoes around a familiar song and dance, but does so through visuals as enduring as its love arc. Here’s to the fools who dream. La La Land, the newest feature from director Damien Chazelle (Whiplash), is a shining emblem of old and new. The musical romance walks the perfect line of symmetry, […]
Kenneth Lonergan’s ‘Manchester by the Sea’ exploited the human condition for all of its flaws, resulting in one of the most compassionate films of the year.
Manchester by the Sea’ is equally sincere as it is conscious of its surroundings, making for great drama. With every death comes a chance of new life. And nothing feels more like a fresh slice of life than director Kenneth Lonergan’s newest film, Manchester by the Sea. Lee Chandler (Casey Affleck) isn’t your typical janitor […]
MSU honors NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt with Allen B. Dumont Award, for his boundless integrity in the face of media journalism.
Renowned journalist Lester Holt ‘filters out the noise’ for inspired students of MSU’s School of Communication and Media. Oh, what a noisy world we live in. At least that’s the sentiment of one news reporter, in particular. Critically-acclaimed journalist Lester Holt is a man with a colorful abundance of hats. From his earliest days as […]
Disney’s ‘Moana’ is as much of a visual spectacle as it is emotional, using old Disney rhetoric to create a fresh perspective on the hero’s journey.
‘Moana’ stands triumphantly like a breath of fresh air in a time where we need her most. Sometimes, making waves holds more depth than riding them. Just ask Moana. This powerful contender in the Disney catalog is visually and spiritually stunning, with its footing in a universe too prodigious for even two measly dimensions. Nonetheless, […]
Fantastic Beasts initially struggles to understand itself, yet gradually finds its own among the wizarding world. What do you get when you take a world-renowned franchise, revamp it with the style of the early 20th century, and enlist a whole new troupe of wizards in the process? With the magic touch of acclaimed creator J.K. […]
Even though Dreamwork’s ‘Trolls’ might riff off an all-too-familiar tune, it’s cloaked with a liveliness as animated as the film itself.
‘Trolls’ layers the same old song and dance with a beat that’s worth your time. What does it take to be genuinely happy? Well, for starters, allow yourself to be tickled pink. And Dreamwork’s newest animated feat, Trolls, does exactly that. Trolls shoots the infamous toy brand into film stardom, having them embrace their new […]
Marvel’s newest feat, ‘Doctor Strange,’ branches off a beaten path into introspective territory, playing with our minds and our eyes.
‘Doctor Strange’ is creatively multi-dimensional, provoking the audience to survey their own relevance. Time is of the essence. And no one stands the test of time more than Stephen Strange. Over the past decade or so, Marvel has cemented a level of unpredictability in its own cinematic universe. Between unforeseen casting choices and even more […]
Director Ron Howard brings us the much-anticipated ‘Inferno,’ a formulaic three-quel that, despite all creative odds, plays too much by its own rules.
‘Inferno’ is a stale attempt for the ‘DaVinci Code’ franchise, feeling all too familiar to enjoy. Inferno is the third chapter into the realm of the DaVinci Code, the mystery-novel-gone-film-franchise that just can’t seem to escape the public eye. However, being such a strong creative force in an assembly-line industry like Hollywood, what makes this […]
The Girl on the Train’ is a thriller that plays more like a soap-opera, leaving you so far on the edge of your seat that you might just fall with the plot.
Director Tate Taylor brings us The Girl on the Train, a psychological mystery that leaves its audience in a blur of emotions. What does it take to own up to our own reputations? Better yet, how can we break our own prestigious molds? The Girl on the Train breaks down these innate queries in the […]
