Horror, Interview, StreamingLeave a comment

‘The Manor’ Director Axelle Carolyn Wants to Know Why Everyone is So Afraid to Grow Old

October 19, 2021October 20, 2021 Bray Lawrence

Axelle Carolyn has been a lover of the horror genre from the beginning of her career. Ever since her jump from sitting in front of the screen to being behind the camera as a director, Carolyn has honed her craft to tell human stories through the genre that scares us most. For her new movie, The Manor, premiering on Amazon Prime Video as a part of “Welcome to the Blumhouse,” we were able to sit down and talk with Carolyn about life, death, and the fear of growing old.

Horror, Interview, StreamingLeave a comment

Gigi Saul Guerrero on Campy Horror and Respecting Your Elders in ‘Bingo Hell’

October 15, 2021October 15, 2021 Bray Lawrence

In Bingo Hell, co-writer and director Gigi Saul Guerrero creates a world of horror that harkens to the campiness of early ’80s schlock with a tale that feels as old as time itself. But it’s also a labor of love and reverence for the people in our lives that came before but are often never the protagonist of our stories — our elders.

Horror, Interview, StreamingLeave a comment

The Haunting History of Vampires and Blackness is Captured in ‘Black as Night’

October 11, 2021October 12, 2021 Bray Lawrence

In the film Black as Night, screenwriter Sherman Payne pens a haunting and alluring tale of vampires and their victims through a lens not much often looked through. Crafting a story that centers Shawna, a 15-year-old African American woman, as she battles vampires in a modern day New Orleans against a backdrop of not only the history of Hurricane Katrina but also the generational and systemic trauma of being Black in America.

Movies, Reviews, Streaming

Steve McQueen Highlights Necessary Histories with New Documentaries

September 25, 2021September 25, 2021 Jamal Michel

Director Steve McQueen’s newest Prime Video documentaries on West Indian and Caribbean life in 20^th century London are necessary viewing. In a style similar to Ava DuVernay’s 13^th, the Academy Award-winning director stitches together archival footage and thoughtful interviews that spotlight the violent history of some of London’s most vulnerable communities. Subnormal: A British Scandal, Black Power: A British Story of Resistance, and Uprising document the racially motivated atrocities that plagued black and brown neighborhoods across London in the 1960s, ‘70s, and ‘80s, and captures the delicate maneuverings of McQueen’s cinematic eye.

Interview, Movies, Streaming

NOC Interview: Idina Menzel Discusses Her New Film, ‘Cinderella’

September 2, 2021 Sophia Soto

The talented Idina Menzel plays the role of Vivian in the Amazon Original movie Cinderella. The new film is a musically-driven bold version of the traditional story you grew up with, following an ambitious young woman whose dreams are bigger than the world will allow. Cinderella is coming to Prime Video on September 3.

Movies, Reviews, Sci Fi

‘Nebulous Dark’ Can’t Time Travel Enough to Be a Strong Movie

August 18, 2021August 18, 2021 Bray Lawrence

A nightmare-fueled time-traveling plot unravels in Shahin Sean Solimon’s new film, Nebulous Dark, a sci-fi movie about the world’s last human man as he wakes from deep sleep to find the Earth has been conquered by aliens. This sounds pretty straight forward for a plot, but this is only how I could fully understand the film after watching it and reading the synopsis again. If you were to watch Nebulous Dark after only seeing the trailer, as I did, you would find an almost surreal, nihilist nightmare of a film that I can’t tell if it’s poorly edited and poorly written, or if it’s actively trying to attack the viewer on a subconscious level. What I was left with was an art piece that genuinely intrigues me and is unintentionally funny, by a film that takes itself incredibly seriously.

Streaming, Television

Official Trailer Debuts for the Second Season of Amazon’s ‘Modern Love’

July 15, 2021July 15, 2021 Mike Manalo

Last year, Amazon debuted its groundbreaking anthology series, Modern Love to solid reviews and an enthusiastic fanbase. I’m happy to report that the acclaimed series is coming back for another season, and this time it’s bringing some heavy acting talent with players like Dominique Fishback and Gbenga Akinnagbe, along with Zoe Chao, Kit Harrington, Anna Paquin, and a host of others!

Interview, Streaming, Television

Constance Wu on How Her Past and Motherhood Shaped Her for ‘Solos’

May 17, 2021June 11, 2021 Laura Sirikul

The new Amazon limited series Solos, set to debut on May 21, consists of seven separate inspiring stories that are all loosely interconnected. The anthology explores the strange, beautiful, heart-breaking, hilarious, wondrous truths of what it means to be human. In the trailer, Morgan Freeman’s voice describes the mutual feeling of loneliness that all of the characters feel, “We all feel alone in different ways; in feeling alone, we are somehow all together.”

Fantasy, Movies, Music

‘Cinderella’ is Arriving on Prime Video in September

May 13, 2021 Sophia Soto

Cinderella wrapped last year and fans have been ready to see it ever since. Now, we can finally get ourselves officially ready for the royal ball because the film will hit Prime Video in September of this year. As if that announcement wasn’t exciting enough, some first look images were also released!

Hard N.O.C. Life, Literature, Streaming, Television

Barry Jenkins and the Cast of ‘The Underground Railroad’ Talk About the Powerful Limited Series

May 13, 2021May 15, 2021 Jamal Michel

Colson Whitehead’s novel The Underground Railroad is a necessary reading for the ways it transcends a violent history and navigates the magic of self determination and Black personhood. The novel, published in 2016 and winner of the Pulitzer Prize and National Book awards for fiction, follows the life of Cora and Caesar, two slaves in 19th century Georgia who take on the treacherous journey that is their freedom. The novel is bold, loving, and powerful, and with its serving as the basis for director Barry Jenkins’ (Moonlight, If Beale Street Could Talk) Amazon series by the same name, it has become necessary viewing.

Movies, Music, Streaming

Get Ready, ‘P!NK: All I Know So Far’ Hits Amazon Prime Video on May 21

May 12, 2021May 15, 2021 Sophia Soto

P!nk’s new film, P!NK: All I Know So Far, is almost here and we are counting down the days! The singer just recently received the ICON Award at the Billboard Music Awards and has a very exciting month, sharing a new song, album, and movie with the world. “All I Know So Far” came out on May 7, while her new live album AIKSF: Setlist and movie will be released on May 21.

Guest Post, Streaming, Television

A ‘Gaze’ into the Soul of ‘The Underground Railroad’

May 12, 2021May 15, 2021 Guest N.O.C.

by Barry Jenkins | Originally published on Vimeo

In my years of doing interviews and roundtables and Q&A’s for the various films we’ve made, there is one question that recurs. No matter the length of the piece or the tone of the room, eventually, inevitably, I am asked about the white gaze. It wasn’t until a very particular interview regarding The Underground Railroad that the blindspot inherent in that questioning became clear to me: never, in all my years of working or questioning, had I been set upon about the Black gaze; or the gaze distilled.

Streaming, Television

See the Thrilling New Trailer for Amazon Prime Video’s ‘Panic’

May 12, 2021May 15, 2021 Sophia Soto

Get ready for Amazon Prime Video’s newest original series, Panic! The show, which was written and created by Lauren Oliver and based on her bestselling novel, will premiere on Friday, May 28. The cast includes Olivia Welch, Mike Faist, Jessica Sula, Camron Jones, Ray Nicholson, and Enrique Murciano. All 10 episodes will hit the streaming service at the same time, making it perfect to be your next binge-worthy show.

Movies, Sci Fi

First Look at ‘The Tomorrow War,’ Arriving July 2 on Prime Video

May 4, 2021 Sophia Soto

The Tomorrow War is a new sci-fi actioner that stars Chris Pratt, Yvonne Strahovski, J.K. Simmons, Betty Gilpin, and Sam Richardson. This will be Pratt’s first Executive Producer credit on a feature film. Though they wrapped in January 2020, back in April, Pratt announced the official release date of July 2, 2021 as well as the fact that it would be released on Amazon Prime Video.

Sci Fi, Streaming, Television

Amazon Prime Video’s ‘Solos’ Set to Premiere in May

April 19, 2021May 15, 2021 Laura Sirikul

Amazon Prime Video revealed images from their highly anticipated Amazon Original anthology series Solos today.

Created by David Weil, the series stars Academy Award-winning actors Morgan Freeman, Anne Hathaway and Helen Mirren, Emmy Award-winning actor Uzo Aduba, Nicole Beharie, Anthony Mackie, Dan Stevens, and Constance Wu.