New Release Review - "Subservience"

by Eric Hillis, TheMovieWaffler.com - published 2024-09-17
The early '70s gave us a wave of dystopian sci-fi thrillers in which Artificial Intelligence turns against its human masters. Movies like Colossus: The Forbin Project, Westworld and Demon Seed saw super-computers, theme park robots and smart homes, all of which were supposed to make our lives better, reveal their dark sides. We now live in a world where the concerns of those '70s thrillers are rapidly becoming a reality, and yet our current wave of AI thrillers feel arguably less realistic than their 50-year-old forebears. Maybe it's because the latest AI thrillers simply graft their sci-fi narratives onto old formats. Most of them (M3GAN, T.I.M., AfrAId) are simply updates of "evil nanny" thrillers, where initially Mary Poppins-like home helpers turn out to be psychos (The Nanny, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle and numerous made for TV thrillers). That's the case once again with Subservience, though this one adds an element of sleaze, making it an erotic robotic thriller if you will.

Important documentary Thank You For Sharing screens at the Fall 2024 New Jersey Film Festival on September 22

by Anran Li - published 2024-09-17
What makes a documentary truly captivating? For a film discussing personal experiences, relationships, traumas, and mental well-being, balancing the nuances of emotions, narrative styles, and approaching perspectives is a delicate craft. The audience craves empathy, not a lecture, and creating an informative and endearing documentary about mental health issues is a significant challenge. It's a delicate balance, and either condescending, distant, overgeneralizing, or too unrelatable messages can quickly bore viewers away. Furthermore, despite the newsreel footage vesting them a coat of “reality,” more insightful viewers can still identify the subjectivity in depicting the topic. Therefore, no exhausting preaching would be easily pardoned. And that is why Thank You for Sharing stands out.

New Jersey Film Festival Fall 2024 Video Filmmaker Q+A with The Horse Tail Director Justyna Łuczaj-Salej

by Vic Fern - published 2024-09-16
Here is the New Jersey Film Festival Fall 2024 Video Filmmaker Q+A with The Horse Tail Director Justyna Łuczaj-Salej and Festival Director Al Nigrin:

Interview with Look at Me Director Taylor Olsen for the New Jersey Film Festival

by Al Nigrin - published 2024-09-14
Here is the interview I conducted with Look at Me Director Taylor Olsen over the internet: Nigrin: Your feature film Look at Me is a fictional autobiography about an insecure, awkward and lonely bisexual actor who goes on an unwitting journey of self-love in the midst of an eating disorder relapse. Tell us about the genesis of this film and the process you went through to complete it.

Intriguing feature Look at Me screens at the New Jersey Film Festival

by Anran Li - published 2024-09-13
“Seeking external validation isn’t healthy.” “Always prioritize yourself, take care of your body and mind.” “You must accept and love yourself before you can love someone else.” …Really? Whenever I open YouTube, there are always those people: demonstrating Pilates tutorials in front of their panoramic view windows or sharing “super easy, low carb” chia seed pudding recipes, smiling, radiant, and effortless. Through their Morandi-colored filters, it seems “changing for the better” is merely one inspirational slogan away, and all we lack is determination or “the right mindset.” “Embrace your imperfections; there is always a way to cure you.” Those tender, tickling voices that initially feel like feathers brushing our bruises would eventually weave a suffocating pile of nets but are barely enough to extricate a person already caught in the swamp. When the tasteless, lukewarm chicken broth numbs our hearts, Look at Me spilled in a spoonful of black pepper mixed with cayenne chili.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Live in Concert — With Great Animation Comes Great Music

by Gina Marie Rodriguez, JerseyArts.com - published 2024-09-12
Spiderman fans, raise your hands! Why the request for an exuberant roll call, you may wonder, because you are going to want to take that hand and navigate over to the New Jersey Performing Arts Center's website to purchase a ticket to Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Live in Concert post haste.

New Jersey Film Festival All You Need is Blood Video Filmmaker Q+A

by Vic Fern - published 2024-09-12
Here is the New Jersey Film Festival Fall 2024 Video Filmmaker Q+A with All You Need is Blood Director Cooper Roberts, Festival Judge Morgan Kalmbach, and Festival Director Al Nigrin:

Touching short The Dog Days screens at the New Jersey Film Festival

by Anran Li - published 2024-09-11
Watching The Dog Days is like catching up with old friends on a hot summer afternoon.

New Release Review - "AfrAId"

by Eric Hillis, TheMovieWaffler.com - published 2024-09-10
While the rest of us try to figure out if Artificial Intelligence will ultimately help us do our jobs or put us all out of work, Hollywood is determined to embrace AI. We've already seen movies like The Creator, Atlas and Alien: Romulus act as stealth AI propaganda by equating fear of AI to racism and xenophobia. One corner of Hollywood however seems determined to exploit our fears of AI, and that's the horror studio Blumhouse. The studio scored a hit with their 2022 AI thriller M3GAN, which likened AI to an uncontrollable tearaway child. With AfrAId, AI is posited as something of an irresponsible parent. That the movie attracted actors of the quality of John Cho, Katherine Waterston and Keith Carradine probably reflects the current disdain towards AI in Hollywood's acting stable.