Banana Split - SIFF 2019 Movie Review

The Movie: Banana Split

The Director: Benjamin Kasulke

The Cast: Hannah Marks, Dylan Sprouse, Liana Liberato, Luke Spencer Roberts, Haley Ramm

The Story: Over the course of a summer, two teenage girls develop the perfect kindred spirit friendship, with one big problem: one of them is dating the other's ex.

Sons of Denmark - SIFF 2019 Movie Review

The Movie: Sons of Denmark

The Director: Ulaa Salim

The Cast: Zaki Youssef, Mohammed Ismail Mohammed, Rasmus Bjerg

The Story: One year after a major bomb attack in Copenhagen radicalization around the country has intensified and ethnic tensions are running high.

Pachamama - SIFF 2019 Capsule Review

The Movie: Pachamama

The Director: Juan Antin

The Cast: Andrea Santamaria, India Coenen, Saïd Amadis, Marie-Christine Darah, Vincent Ropion, Jean-Marc Pannetier, Alex Harrouch, Colin Bates

The Story: A young boy living in a remote village in the Andes Mountains dreams of becoming shaman.

The Review:
Pachamama is a beautiful film with a story that all ages will enjoy. Set in the Andes and filled with folk lore and a classic coming of age tale that is as timeless as it is relatable, this is the perfect movie to gather the family to watch an hour or so of animated magic unfold on screen. I believe this will be available on Netflix soon and would highly recommend that you check it out.


Pachamama is an official selection of the 2019 Seattle International Film Festival.


To see more reviews, interviews and festival coverage please go to:

TwoOhSix at SIFF 2019

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El Ángel - SIFF 2019 Capsule Review

The Movie: El Ángel

The Director: Luis Ortega

The Cast: Lorenzo Ferro, Chino Darin, Mercedes Moran, Daniel Fanego, Luis Gnecco

The Story: The angelic face of Carlos, a 17-year-old teenager, hides a dark facet of robberies, lies and murders.

The Review:
I wish Hollywood had the balls to make this type of movie. Director and co-writer Luis Ortega's latest creation is a daringly slick look into the mind of a teenager who just doesn't give a shit about rules and steps right over the laws and proprieties of 1970's Argentina. First time actor Lorenzo Ferro is absolutely brilliant playing Carlos aka El Ángel, the lead character who is as sexy and full of swagger as he is deadly and irreverent.


El Ángel is an official selection of the 2019 Seattle International Film Festival.


To see more reviews, interviews and festival coverage please go to:

TwoOhSix at SIFF 2019

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Knife + Heart - SIFF 2019 Capsule Review

The Movie: Knife + Heart

The Director: Yann Gonzalez

The Cast: Vanessa Paradis, Kate Moran, Nicolas Maury

The Story: Paris, summer 1979. Anne is a producer of gay porn at discount. When Loïs, her editor and companion, leaves her, she attempts to reclaim her by turning a film more ambitious with the flamboyant Archibald.

The Review:
This might just be the best 1970's set gay porn murder mystery comedic thriller I have ever seen. The mustaches alone are worth the price of admission but this is also a really fun romp through genre nostalgia and yes, it's about as absurd as you think it is. A little long for my liking but still a solid film that shows off its love of some very specific segments of cinematic history.


Knife + Heart is an official selection of the 2019 Seattle International Film Festival.


To see more reviews, interviews and festival coverage please go to:

TwoOhSix at SIFF 2019

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Wild Rose - 2019 SIFF Capsule Review

The Movie: Wild Rose

The Director: Tom Harper

The Cast: Jessie Buckley, Sophie Okonedo, Julie Walters

The Story: A musician from Glasgow dreams of becoming a Nashville star.

The Review:
A super spunky and energetic performance from Jessie Buckley, an Irish born singer and actress who takes center stage in a fun and whimsical production from director Tom Harper. Buckley manages to hit all the right notes while Harper uses a hit making formula that is guaranteed to play well with audiences even if it is a bit safe.


Wild Rose is an official selection of the 2019 Seattle International Film Festival.


To see more reviews, interviews and festival coverage please go to:

TwoOhSix at SIFF 2019

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Who Let the Dogs Out - SIFF 2019 Documentary Review

The Documentary: Who Let the Dogs Out

The Director: Brent Hodge

The Story: The story behind the song "Who Let the Dogs Out," which became a hit for the Bahamian group Baha Men in 1998.

The Woman Who Loves Giraffes - SIFF 2019 Documentary Review

The Documentary: The Woman Who Loves Giraffes

The Director: Alison Reid

The Story: Dr. Anne Innis Dagg re-traces the steps of her groundbreaking 1956 journey to South Africa to study giraffes in the wild - and discovers a startling contrast between the world of giraffes she once knew and the one it has become.

Good Kisser - SIFF 2019 Movie Review

The Movie: Good Kisser

The Director: Wendy Jo Carlton

The Cast: Rachel Paulson, Kari Alison Hodge, Julia Eringer, Carter Rodriquez, Courtney McCullough

The Story: Jenna agrees to a sexy weekend fling with materialistic girlfriend Kate and the worldly Mia. As the night unfolds, Jenna realizes she’s bitten off more than she can chew, and the love triangle begins to crack.

Monos - SIFF 2019 Capsule Review

The Movie: Monos

The Director: Alejandro Landes

The Cast: Julianne Nicholson, Moises Arias, Sofia Buenaventura, Deiby Rueda, Karen Quintero

The Story: On a faraway mountaintop, eight kids with guns watch over a hostage and a conscripted milk cow.

The Review:
Director and co-writer Alejandro Landes takes a group of teenage guerrilla soldiers and shoves them through an intensely brutal trip through the jungles of South America. The dark nature of the story is offset and balanced out by the stunningly beautiful cinematography which combined makes for an at times difficult yet ultimately rewarding experience.


Monos is an official selection of the 2019 Seattle International Film Festival.


To see more reviews, interviews and festival coverage please go to:

TwoOhSix at SIFF 2019

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Q Ball - SIFF 2019 Documentary Review

The Documentary: Q Ball

The Director: Michael Tolajian

The Story: Documentary that explores a group of men incarcerated at San Quentin who play for the penitentiary's basketball team.

Sword of Trust - SIFF 2019 Capsule Review

The Movie: Sword of Trust

The Director: Lynn Shelton

The Cast: Marc Maron, Jon Bass, Michaela Watkins, Jillian Bell, Toby Huss, Dan Bakkedahl, Lynn Shelton

The Review:
Director and co-writer Lynn Shelton proves once again that she is an expert film maker and multi talented artist who isn't afraid to poke fun at just about any topic she can find. This is one of those movies that sort of sneaks up on you with how genuinely funny it is which I believe is in large part due to the brilliant work turned in by the entire cast, including Shelton herself.


Sword of Trust is the official Opening Night Gala selection of the 2019 Seattle International Film Festival.


To see more reviews, interviews and festival coverage please go to:

TwoOhSix at SIFF 2019

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Tolkien - Movie Review

The Movie: Tolkien

The Director: Dome Karukoski

The Cast: Nicholas Hoult, Lily Collins, Colm Meaney, Patrick Gibson, Anthony Boyle, Tom Glynn-Carney, Derek Jacobi

The Story: The formative years of the orphaned author J.R.R. Tolkien as he finds friendship, love and artistic inspiration among a group of fellow outcasts at school.

TwoOhSix Picks - 2019 Seattle International Film Festival Part 1

The 45th annual Seattle International Film Festival is upon us with over 400 films spread out across 25 days at several different venues in the greater Seattle area. As always, I will be watching movies like crazy, posting reviews, and talking to a few film makers along the way. For now, here is a list of the movies that have caught my attention as the ones not to be missed during this year's festivities. The films are listed alphabetically and the post is split into two parts, this being part one. Look for a link to part two at the bottom of this post.

TwoOhSix Picks - 2019 Seattle International Film Festival Part 2

The 45th annual Seattle International Film Festival is upon us with over 400 films spread out across 25 days at several different venues in the greater Seattle area. As always, I will be watching movies like crazy, posting reviews, and talking to a few film makers along the way. For now, here is a list of the movies that have caught my attention as the ones not to be missed during this year's festivities. The films are listed alphabetically and the post is split into two parts, this being part two. Look for a link to part one at the bottom of this post.

Her Smell - Movie Review

The Movie: Her Smell

The Director: Alex Ross Perry

The Cast: Elisabeth Moss, Cara Delevingne, Dan Stevens, Agyness Deyn, Gayle Rankin, Ashley Benson, with Eric Stoltz and Amber Heard

The Story: A self-destructive punk rocker struggles with sobriety while trying to recapture the creative inspiration that led her band to success.

Albatross Soup - Short Film Review

The Short Film: Albatross Soup

The Director: Winnie Cheung

The Story: A hybrid documentary film based on an entertaining yet disturbing lateral thinking puzzle.

I Trapped the Devil - Movie Review

The Movie: I Trapped the Devil

The Director: Josh Lobo

The Cast: AJ Bowen, Susan Burke, Scott Poythress

The Story: A man descends into paranoia after trapping what he believes to be the devil in his basement, but things take a dark turn when his family unexpectedly arrive for Christmas.

Avengers: Endgame - Spoiler Free First Impression

Avengers: Endgame is the culmination of over ten years worth of movies set within Marvel's ongoing and ever expanding cinematic universe. Pretty much every significant or semi significant character from all those years is involved in some way shape or form in bringing this story to its ultimate conclusion. The words I will have typed below are not my official review of the movie and do not contain any hint of a spoiler so please feel safe to proceed if you haven't watched the movie yet.

Penguins - Movie Review

The Movie: Penguins

The Director: Alastair Fothergill and Jeff Wilson

The Story: Disneynature's all-new feature film is a coming-of-age story about an Adélie penguin named Steve who joins millions of fellow males in the icy Antarctic spring on a quest to build a suitable nest, find a life partner and start a family.

Pet Sematary (2019) - Movie Review

The Movie: Pet Sematary

The Directors: Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer

The Cast: Jason Clarke, Amy Seimetz, John Lithgow, Jeté Laurence,

The Story: Dr. Louis Creed and his wife, Rachel, relocate from Boston to rural Maine with their two young children. The couple soon discover a mysterious burial ground hidden deep in the woods near their new home.

Missing Link - Movie Review

The Movie: Missing Link

The Director: Chris Butler

The Cast: Hugh Jackman, Zoe Saldana, Zach Galifianakis, Stephen Fry, Timothy Olyphant, Emma Thompson

The Story: Mr. Link recruits explorer Sir Lionel Frost to help find his long-lost relatives in the fabled valley of Shangri-La. Along with adventurer Adelina Fortnight, this trio of explorers travel the world to help their new friend.

The Curse of La Llorona - Movie Review

The Movie: The Curse of La Llarona

The Director: Michael Chaves

The Cast: Linda Cardellini, Raymond Cruz, Patricia Velasquez, Roman Christou, Jaynee-Lynne Kinchen, Marisol Ramirez, Sean Patrick Thomas, Tony Amendola, Irene Keng

The Story: Ignoring the eerie warning of a troubled mother suspected of child endangerment, a social worker and her own small kids are soon drawn into a frightening supernatural realm.

Guava Island - Movie Review

The Movie: Guava Island

The Director: Hiro Murai

The Cast: Donald Glover, Rihanna, Letitia Wright, Nonso Anozie

The Story: A tropical thriller that casts Donald Glover as a musician with designs on pulling off a scheme to rob his way into the good life, which quickly gets him in over his head.

Hellboy (2019) - Movie Review

Hellboy is a steaming pile of trash that has earned the honor of being the second movie I have ever walked out of. (The other one is xXx: The Return of Xander Cage) It's like a group of studio executives had a meeting and said "Hey, that Deadpool was sure fun and people liked it. Let's do the same thing with Hellboy!" So yeah, they got the profanity and violence right but the dialog is stupid, the acting is atrocious, the special effects are garbage, and everything else about the movie is so bad I have to believe it was somehow intentional.

If you choose to watch this movie, I take zero responsibility.

Now please excuse me while I wash any memory of this movie from my brain.

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Mary Magdalene (2019) - Movie Review

The Movie: Mary Magdalene

The Director: Garth Davis

The Cast: Rooney Mara, Joaquin Phoenix, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Tahar Rahim, Denis Ménochet

The Story: The story of Mary Magdalene.

Shazam! - Movie Review

The Movie: Shazam!

The Director: David F. Sandberg

The Cast: Zachary Levi, Djimon Hounsou, Mark Strong, Jack Dylan Grazer, Asher Angel, Marta Milans, Grace Fulton, Cooper Andrews, Faithe Herman, Ian Chen

The Story: Teenager is given magical powers and must face off against a man who has gained control of ancient monsters who represent the seven deadly sins.

The Wedding Guest - Movie Review

The Movie: The Wedding Guest

The Director: Michael Winterbottom

The Cast: Dev Patel, Radhika Apte, Jim Sarbh, Nish Nathwani, Harish Khanna, Sidhu Manpreet, Meherbaan Singh

The Story: A story centered on a mysterious British Muslim man on his journey across Pakistan and India.

The Wind (2019) - Movie Review

The Movie: The Wind

The Director: Emma Tammi

The Cast: Miles Anderson, Caitlin Gerard, Julia Goldani Telles, Dylan McTee, Martin C Patterson, Ashley Zukerman

The Story: A plains-woman faces the harshness and isolation of the untamed land in the Western frontier of the late 1800s.

Dumbo (2019) - Movie Review

The Movie: Dumbo

The Director: Tim Burton

The Cast: Colin Farrell, Michael Keaton, Danny DeVito, Eva Green, Alan Arkin, Niko Parker

The Story: A young elephant, whose oversized ears enable him to fly, helps save a struggling circus, but when the circus plans a new venture, Dumbo and his friends discover dark secrets beneath its shiny veneer.

Crossbreed - Movie Review

The Movie: Crossbreed

The Director: Brandon Slagle

The Cast: Vivica A. Fox, Daniel Baldwin, Stink Fisher, Devanny Pinn, Vernon Wells, Antoine Lanier, John T. Woods, Jason McNeil, Mu-Shaka Benson, Brandyn T. Williams

The Story: In the near future, the President of the New United States of America hires a team of military veterans to retrieve an alien bio-weapon from a top secret research facility orbiting the Earth.

2018 Recap - The Favorites

Hello, hello! It is once again time to hand out awards for the TwoOhSix.com favorite movies and performances of 2018 and this just so happens to be the 10th edition of this recap post so it has been expanded and broken into categories for your reading pleasure. Thank you for joining me for another year of movie adventures, I hope you are able to find some films you may have missed or look at others you have seen in a different way.

Climax (2018) - Movie Review

The Movie: Climax

The Director: Gaspar Noé

The Cast: Sofia Boutella, Romain Guillermic, Souheila Yacoub, Kiddy Smile, Claude-Emmanuelle Gajan-Maull, Giselle Palmer, Taylor Kastle, Thea Carla Schott, Sharleen Temple, Lea Vlamos, Alaia Alsafir, Kendall Mugler

The Story: French dancers gather in a remote, empty school building to rehearse on a wintry night. The all-night celebration morphs into a hallucinatory nightmare when they learn their sangria is laced with LSD.

2018 Recap - The Movies

Here it is, you guys! My favorite movies of 2018 including the ten films nominated for favorite overall movie and some honorable mentions that were excellent but didn't quite make the cut. Between film festivals, indie projects, and major studio releases, this was a great year for both diversity and variety with films from around the world including France, Singapore, England, Japan, China, New York, Oakland, and Wakanda.

2018 Recap - The Performances

2018 was an impressive year for the film industry with so many great movies and lots of outstanding performances as well. After compiling my nomination list, I realized that the ladies were definitely leading the way this year so I decided to go with female actors in all of the available nomination slots. After scouring all the films I watched this seemed appropriate and an honest appraisal as I couldn't find any men who matched the ten women who were chosen.

In addition to the nominations, I have included a few special categories to start things off. The amazing actresses and actors listed below come from all over the world including England, Mexico, Italy, Japan, and Oakland and a Bay Area duo is where we will start things off.

Fighting with My Family - Movie Review

The Movie: Fighting with My Family

The Director: Stephen Merchant

The Cast: Florence Pugh, Jack Lowden, Dwayne Johnson, Lena Headey, Vince Vaughn, Nick Frost

The Story: The origin story of WWE superstar Paige.

TwoOhSix Recap - 2019 Seattle Asian American Film Festival

This is such a fun and well organized festival and I am thankful for having the chance to cover it every year. The crop of movies I was able to watch was very impressive and the opening night party was a lot of fun including a killer set from Filipina-American rapper Ruby Ibarra. Seriously, check her out, she's about to be real big real soon. The volunteer staff that runs the festival always puts on a smooth production and this year was definitely no exception. See below for a recap of the films I watched and my selection for 2019 TwoOhSix Festival Favorite.

For Izzy - 2019 SAAFF Movie Review

The Movie: For Izzy

The Director: Alex Chu

The Cast: Elizabeth Sung, Jennifer Soo, Jim Lau, Michelle Ang

The Story: The lives of a recovering addict and her single mother change forever when they move in next door to a widowed father and his adult daughter with autism.