The Handmaiden (아가씨) - Movie Review

The Handmaiden, co-written and directed by Chan-wook Park, is a 1930's crime thriller filled with deceit, debauchery, and double crosses as a con man tries to steal an inheritance from a secluded young woman. The film features acting performances from Min-hee Kim, Kim Tae-ri, Jung-woo Ha, and Jin-woong Jo.

Jack Reacher: Never Go Back - Movie Review

Jack Reacher: Never Go Back, produced by and starring Tom Cruise, sees the return of the titular hero made famous by the series of novels written by Lee Child. The movie was directed by Edward Zwick (Glory, Legends of the Fall, Blood Diamond) and features supporting performances from Cobie Smulders (Avengers), Aldis Hodge (Straight Outta Compton), Danika Yarosh, and Patrick Heusinger (Black Swan).

Luck-Key - Movie Review

Luck-Key, directed by Gye-beok Lee, is a remake of a Japanese film called Key of Life and tells the tale of two men who switch lives after an accident leaves one man with amnesia and the other with a new lease on life. The film features acting performances from, Hae-jin Yoo, Lee Joon, Yoon-hee Jo, Ji-yeon Lim, Hye-bin Jeon, Dong-hwi Lee.

Keeping Up with the Joneses - Movie Review

Keeping Up with the Joneses, directed by Greg Mottola (Superbad, Adventureland), shows us what might happen if an international spy couple were to invade the perfect suburban neighborhood. The movie features an ensemble cast that includes Jon Hamm, Gal Gadot, Zach Galifianakis, Isla Fisher, Matt Walsh, and Kevin Dunn.

TwoOhSix Picks - 2016 Hawaii International Film Festival

Aloha! I am very excited to once again be providing press coverage for the Hawaii International Film Festival (HIFF) which features a very unique perspective on film making while focusing on movies that come from all over the world with a heavy influence from the Asia/Pacific regions. After perusing this year's festival schedule, I have hand picked a selection of the films that I personally would not want to miss along with a few I have already seen and would highly recommend.

Trespass Against Us (TFF 2016) - Movie Review

Trespass Against Us, an official selection of the 2016 Tacoma Film Festival, gives us a glimpse into the lives of the Cutler clan who lives as outlaws on a British countryside compound. The film was directed by Adam Smith and features Michael Fassbender in the starring role with supporting performances from Brendan Gleeson, Lindsey Marshal, Sean Harris, and Rory Kinnear.

Ouija: Origin of Evil - Movie Review

Ouija: Origin of Evil tells the story of how a board game became the source of evil shenanigans thanks to some really bad historical happenings. The film was written and directed by Mike Flanagan (Oculus) and features acting performances from Elizabeth Reaser, Annalise Basso, Lulu Wilson, Henry Thomas, Parker Mack, and Doug Jones.

Operation Mekong aka Mei Gong he xing dong - Movie Review

Operation Mekong, directed by Dante Lam, is based on real events that took place in 2011 where 13 cargo ship crew members were killed by a drug lord in what is known as the Golden Triangle, a section of land that connects Myanmar, Laos and Thailand. The film features acting performances from Hanyu Zhang, Eddie Peng, Wenjuan Feng, Baoguo Chen, and Xudong Wu.

The Accountant - Movie Review

The Accountant, directed by Gavin O'Connor (Warrior), follows a Treasury Department investigation into a math genius who handles books for illegal organizations around the world. The film features acting performances from Ben Affleck, Anna Kendrick, J.K. Simmons, Jon Bernthal, Jeffrey Tambor, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, John Lithgow, and Alison Wright.

Asura: The City of Madness - Movie Review

Asura: The City of Madness, directed by Sung-su Kim, follows a corrupt cop down a bloody path of corruption and politics as he plays both sides of an investigation between prosecutors and the city's mayor. The film features acting performances from Woo-sung Jung, Jung-min Hwang, Ji-hun Ju, Do Wan Kwak, and Man-sik Jeong.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them - IMAX or Cinerama

Do you plan on seeing Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them when it comes out on November 18th? Do you know where you are going to see it and which theater will give you the biggest and best experience? My comparison of Seattle area theaters will help you make that oh so important decision!

2016 GeekGirlCon Recap

Year after year, GeekGirlCon just gets bigger and better while keeping the focus on the fans and allowing for one of the friendliest, most welcoming conventions around. This year's festivities again took place at Seattle's Washington State Convention Center and featured more panels, more guests, and an expanded exhibitor floor, all of which meant more fun for all the fans.

The Girl on the Train - Movie Review

The Girl on the Train, directed by Tate Taylor, is a psychological thriller based off of the best selling novel written by Paula Hawkins. The features Emily Blunt in the starring role alongside a supporting cast that includes Haley Bennett, Rebecca Ferguson, Allison Janney, Luke Evans, Édgar Ramírez, and Justin Theroux.

Queen of Katwe - Movie Review

Queen of Katwe continues Disney's tradition of inspiring tales wrapped around competition by showcasing champion chess player Phiona Mutesi, Uganda's ultimate underdog story. The film, directed by Mira Nair, features acting performances from David Oyelowo, Lupita Nyong'o, Madina Nalwanga, Martin Kabanza, Taryn Kyaze, and Esther Tebandeke.

American Honey - Movie Review

American Honey is a movie about a teenage girl who decides to join a traveling magazine sales crew instead of living a less than ordinary life. The film was directed by Andrea Arnold and features acting performances from Shia LeBeouf and Riley Keough as well as a stunning debut by Sasha Lane.

Deepwater Horizon - Movie Review

Deepwater Horizon is a film directed by Peter Berg and tells the true story of the offshore drilling rig which exploded during April 2010 and created the worst oil spill in U.S. history. The movie features acting performances by Mark Wahlberg, Kurt Russell, Gina Rodriguez, Kate Hudson, John Malkovich, J.D. Evermore, Dylan O'Brien, Joe Chrest, and James DuMont.

Bad Moms - Movie Review

Bad Moms, written and directed by Jon Lucas and Scott Moore, lets the ladies have their turn at letting loose and leaving all their responsibilities behind. The movie features acting performanes from Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell, Kathryn Hahn, Christina Applegate, Jada Pinkett Smith, Annie Mumolo, Oona Laurence, Emjay Anthony, Clark Duke, Jay Hernandez, and Wendell Pierce.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children - Movie Review

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is a film by Tim Burton and is based off of a young adult fantasy novel written by Ransom Riggs. The film features acting performances from Eva Green, Asa Butterfield, Samuel L. Jackson, Judi Dench, Rupert Everett, Allison Janney, Chris O'Dowd, Terence Stamp, and Ella Purnell.

TwoOhSix Picks - 2016 Tacoma Film Festival

It's time once again for The TwoOhSix to travel to the 253 to give you the 411 on the 2016 Tacoma Film Festival. This year's lineup is filled with lots of special events and prestigious premieres to go along with a full roster of feature films and shorts programs beginning on Thursday October 6th and running through Thursday the 13th. Below you will find my "TwoOhSix Picks" for this year's festival. These are the films I have selected as the ones you do not want to miss.

Snowden - Movie Review

Snowden, directed by Oliver Stone, tells the story of Edward Snowden, a former CIA and NSA agent who helped to release thousands of classified documents regarding illegal surveillance techniques. The film features acting performances by Joseph Gordon Levitt, Shailene Woodley, Melissa Leo, Zachary Quinto, Rhys Ifans, Nicholas Cage, Tom Wilkinson, Timothy Olyphant, Scott Eastwood, Keith Stanfield, and Ben Schnetzer.

Magnificent 7 - Movie Review

Magnificent 7, directed by Antoine Fuqua, is a remake of the 1960 film of the same name which is a remake of Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai film from 1954. This wild west tale of underdogs fighting impossible odds features an all star cast including Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D'Onofrio, Byung-hun Lee, Haley Bennett, Peter Sarsgaard, Luke Grimes, and Matt Bomer.

The Disappointments Room - Movie Review

The Disappointments Room is not a good movie and I can not recommend it to anyone. Nothing about the story, the visuals, or the editing made any sense at all. Kate Beckinsale must have either been contractually obligated to be in this movie or she lost a bet.

Follow @thetwoohsix

Blair Witch - Movie Review

Blair Witch, directed by Adam Wingard, is the third installment in a series of found footage style horror movies and, this time around, we see a group of young people heading back into the infamous Black Hills forest to make a documentary about their search for a long lost relative. The film features acting performances by James Allen McCune, Callie Hernandez, Corbin Reid, Brandon Scott, Wes Robinson, and Valorie Curry.

Line Walker (Shi tu hang zhe) - Movie Review

Line Walker, a Chinese action film based off of the highly successful TV show, follows a special crime unit as they try to retrieve a group of undercover agents who have had their identities wiped clean from the database. The film was directed by Jazz Boon and features acting performances from Nick Cheung, Louis Koo, Francis Ng, and Charmaine Sheh.

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi - Movie Review

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi, a film directed by Michael Bay, tells the story of an attack on a U.S. compound in Lybia and the security team who decides to take matters into their own hands. The movie, based on the novel by Mitchell Zuckoff, features acting performances by John Krasinski, James Badge Dale, Pablo Schreiber, David Denman, Dominic Fumusa, Max Martini, Alexia Barlier, and David Costabile.

Sully - Movie Review

Sully, directed by Clint Eastwood, tells "The untold story behind the miracle on the Hudson". The film, which was shot almost exclusively with IMAX cameras, features acting performances by Tom Hanks, Aaron Eckhart, Laura Linney, Valerie Mahaffey, Mike O'Malley, Jamey Sheridan, Anna Gunn, and Katie Couric.

Central Intelligence - Movie Review

Central Intelligence is an action comedy spy movie that reunites high school classmates, one a computer expert who hasn't lived up to his billing as "most likely to succeed" and the other a social outcast who has gone on to become a top agent in the CIA. The film stars Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Kevin Hart, Amy Ryan, Danielle Nicolet, Jason Bateman, and Aaron Paul.

2016 Portland Film Festival Recap

The 2016 Portland Film Festival has come and gone and, from everything I've seen, heard, and read, it was yet another smashing success! I am very happy to have had the opportunity to see a few of the films that were presented during the festival and have collected my reviews here for easy access.

The Light Between Oceans - Movie Review

The Light Between Oceans, directed by Derek Cianfrance, tells the story of a man who, after fighting in the first world war, take a job managing a lighthouse, meets the woman of his dreams, and then makes some really bad decisions. Based on a best selling novel, the film features acting performances from Michael Fassbender, Alicia Vikander, Rachel Weisz, Jack Thompson, and Anthony Hayes.

Morgan - Movie Review

The Movie:
Morgan, directed by Luke Scott, is a science fiction thriller that explores the world of artificial intelligence, it's potential use as a weapon, and how it compares to actual humanity. The film features a strong cast that includes Kate Mara, Paul Giamatti, Brian Cox, Michelle Yeoh, Toby Jones, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Vinette Robinson, Boyd Holbrook, and Anya Taylor-Joy.

Spaghettiman (PDXFF 2016) - Movie Review

In a world where defective microwaves can give normal people strange, food based powers, Spaghettiman bursts onto the scene with an outrageously comedic take on the super hero genre. The film, an official selection of the 2016 Portland Film Festival, was directed by Mark Potts and stars Ben Crutcher, Winston Carter, Brand Rackley, and Jo LoCicero.

Neil Stryker and the Tyrant of Time (PDXFF 2016) - Movie Review

Thirteen years ago, Neil Stryker took on an evil cult. Now, the futuristic hero returns to action at the 2016 Portland Film Festival in Neil Stryker and the Tyrant of Time. This low budget, time traveling action movie features acting performances by David Ogden Stiers, Walter Koenig, Nic Costa, Matt Zak, Bryna Smith, Jordana Ansley, and Rob Taylor in the starring role as both the hero and the villain and is also listed as a producer, writer, and director.

FSM (PDXFF 2016) - Movie Review

FSM, an official selection of the 2016 Portland Film Festival, follows the daily struggles of Samantha, a DJ living in Vancouver BC, as she tries to balance a career and a dating scene that hasn't been doing her any favors. Directed by Melanie M. Jones, the movie features acting performances from Vanessa Crouch, Sean Aiken, Georgie Daburas, Daniel Mallinson, Jessica Heafey, Kyla Wise, Hannah Pederson, Nneka Croal, and Garrett Black.

Colin Kaepernick - Self Expression and Leadership

Colin Kaepernick sat down while a song was being sung. That's what happened.

"I'm going to continue to stand with the people that are being oppressed. To me, this is something that has to change. When there's significant change and I feel like that flag represents what it's supposed to represent...this country is representing people the way that it's supposed to...I'll stand."

The meaning he gave to that action was protest, defiance, respect, compassion, communication, and self expression. The meaning given to it by everyone else is based on how each person feels, what they know, what they don't know, and who they are as individuals all collectively creating a sea of opinion. Our response to an action carries a lot of opinion and that story can easily become what we see as the truth or what happened rather than it being our perception of it.

The following story is meant to share what I have learned over the last couple days about this young man's journey and reflects the meaning I have given to what happened.

Middle Man (PDXFF 2016) - Movie Review

Middle Man, an official opening night selection of the 2016 Portland Film Festival and an official selection of the 2016 Seattle International Film Festival, tells the story of Lenny, a former accountant who takes off for Vegas to pursue a career in stand up comedy only to find himself in the middle of a murderous underworld. The film, directed by Ned Crowley, features acting performances from Jim O'Heir, Andrew J. West, Josh McDermitt, Anne Dudek, Tracey Walter, and Robert Catrini.

The Tunnel - Movie Review

The Tunnel is a film by South Korean director Seong-hoon Kim and tells the story of a man trapped underneath a collapsed highway tunnel along with the efforts of the rescue team tasked with getting him out. The movie features acting performances by Jung-woo Ha, Dal-su Oh, and Doona Bae.

TwoOhSix Picks - 2016 Portland Film Festival

The 2016 Portland Film Festival, one of the "coolest film festivals in the world", is back with a slate of films, events, workshops, and parties that any film fan would fall in love with. After taking a look at this year's lineup, I've put together a selection of movies you won't want to miss out on.

Kubo and the Two Strings - Movie Review

Kubo and the Two Strings is a stop motion animation film produced by Laika Entertainment (Paranorman, Coraline) and directed by Travis Knight. The film, which tells the story of a boy in Japan who must reclaim the lost artifacts and honor of his murdered father, features voice acting performances from Charlize Theron, Matthew McConaughey, Ralph Fiennes, Rooney Mara, George Takei, Brenda Vaccaro, and Art Parkinson.

Cinerama 70mm Film Festival Announcement

For Seattle movie buffs and cinema fans, the Cinerama 70mm Film Festival is always one of the biggest events of the year as it presents a truly unique theater experience. Nowhere else in the world will you be able to see a collection of films in this format presented with the technical capabilities that the Cinerama has at their disposal.

Suicide Squad - Movie Review

Suicide Squad, directed by David Ayer, is the latest installment from the DC Comics Cinematic Universe and features a collection of super powered villains who are forced to work together by taking on missions that are doomed to fail. The blockbuster film features performances by Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Viola Davis, Jared Leto, Jai Courtney, Cara Delevingne, Joel Kinnaman, Karen Fukuhara, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje.

Train to Busan - Movie Review

Train to Busan, directed by Sang-ho Yuen, is a South Korean action thriller about a group of people trapped on a high speed train as a zombie infection breaks out across the country. The film features acting performances by Yoo Gong, Me Dong-seok, Choi Woo-sik, Jeong Yu-mi, Kim Soo-an, and Sohee.

The Nice Guys - Movie Review

The Nice Guys, a film by Shane Black, tells the story of how a "Hollywood muscle" and "the world's worst detective" team up to solve a most unusual case involving a dead porn star who might be alive and a missing girl who everyone wants to kill. The film features acting performances by Russell Crowe, Ryan Gosling, Angourie Rice, Matt Bomer, Keith Davod, Beau Knapp, and Kim Basinger.

Star Trek Beyond - Movie Review

Star Trek Beyond catches up with the crew of the star ship Enterprise during their five year mission to explore the galaxy and, what starts out as a much needed pit stop, turns into a fight to save the entire Federation. This sci fi sequel features returning cast members Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, Simon Pegg, John Cho, and Anton Yelchin along with new additions Idris Elba and Sofia Boutella.