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Matt is trying his best

@shutupmatt.bsky.social

writer | burnin’ bridges since ‘92 | chaotic neutral | professional complainer | future corpse (he/him) https://saltlakefilmreview.com/author/mattbullions/

191 Posts161 Follower236 Folgt
Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 7d ago

‘And while it’s admittedly got some problems, I’d like to believe this film could encourage people to speak truth to power again, in a time where we need this kind of hero more than ever.’ Here’s my review of #TheSocialReckoning, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/10/11/t...

‘The Social Reckoning’ is a Timely and Urgent Battle Cry

Sony Pictures It’s generally not advisable to do a sequel to a film received as well as David Fincher’s The Social Network. That 2010 film made a lot of money and enjoyed critical acclaim and award…

saltlakefilmreview.com

Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · last wk.

‘It often flirts with competence, but never knows which parts of itself to take seriously and which to play with a self-aware wink.’ Here’s my review of #OtherMommy, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/10/10/n...

Not Even Jessica Chastain Can Save ‘Other Mommy’

Universal Pictures Earlier this year, before screenings of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, a trailer for Universal Pictures’ next film played – Other Mommy, a horror film starring Jessica Ch…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 2w ago

‘It makes its point early and often, and keeps banging you over the head with it repeatedly, screaming it at you until you leave the film feeling defeated, depressed, exhausted, but more than anything, annoyed.’ Here’s my review of #Digger, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/10/03/d...

‘Digger’ is Shrill, Grating and Exhausting

Warner Bros. Alejandro González Iñárritu is one of two filmmakers to ever win back-to-back Best Director Oscars, and I like maybe two of his films overall. He seems to make his point with the subtl…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 2w ago

‘I cannot believe I’m saying this about a Colleen Hoover adaptation but I think the book might have been better.’ Here’s my review of #Verity, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/10/02/v...

‘Verity’ Bores Where it Should Thrill

Amazon/MGM Studios I’ll start this off by saying I don’t really get Colleen Hoover. Hollywood keeps adapting her books, and it seems like she’s overtaken the spot in this business once occupied by …

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 3w ago

‘You won’t get a lot of the cold hard facts here, but if you want a genuinely unsettling, grim, cynical and bleak character study anchored by some excellent performances, look no further.’ Here’s my review of #Primetime, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/09/27/p...

‘Primetime’ is Unsettling and Bleak

A24 Dateline NBC’s To Catch a Predator was a big deal for a hot minute in the early aughts, a series born out of a very successful Dateline segment that captured the attention of viewers around the…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 4w ago

‘Cregger has now made three horror/comedy films that do not undermine either the comedy or horror. Many directors have never gotten that balance right, and now he’s done it three times.’ Here’s my review of Zach Cregger’s #ResidentEvil, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/09/19/r...

‘Resident Evil’ Successfully Resurrects a Zombie IP

Sony Pictures Before I begin, quick disclaimer. I am not a video game person. I never have been, not even when I was a child. I have also never seen a Resident Evil movie. It was just never somethi…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · last mo.

‘This is kind of a mess but just like the first, it’s a warm and endearing mess. And while it’s not improving on the first, I think most fans will appreciate another journey with the characters they love.’ Here’s my review of #PracticalMagic2 in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/09/13/p...

‘Practical Magic 2’ Casts a Messy, Yet Charming Spell

Warner Bros. Pictures I realized something troubling when I sat down earlier this week to rewatch Griffin Dunne’s 1998 eventual classic Practical Magic, based on the Alice Hoffman book series. I ha…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 2mo ago

‘Is this more or less a nostalgia play, or an advertisement for the film’s accompanying soundtrack? Probably, yes. But honestly, I was having too good a time to really be bothered by any of that.’ Here’s my review of #Nimrods, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/08/14/n...

‘Nimrods’ is More Than Just Nostalgia Bait For Green Day Fans

Inaugural Entertainment Californian rock band Green Day has been a mainstay of American rock music for longer than I’ve been alive. The band, headlined by the iconic Billie Joe Armstrong, has endur…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 2mo ago

‘This feels like if someone asked ChatGPT to generate a romantic comedy written by George Orwell.’ Here’s my review of #OneNightOnly, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/08/09/o...

‘One Night Only’ is a Dystopian Nightmare Disguised as a Rom-Com

Universal Pictures I love a good rom-com. And it’s kind of a barren, desolate landscape these days when the genre is concerned. Filmmakers are still making quality rom-coms, make no mistake, but th…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 3mo ago

#Hadestown is a pinnacle of musical theatre – a wildly creative and viscerally thrilling piece of work that transcends genre and is always subverting audience expectations.’ Here’s my review of HADESTOWN: THE MUSICAL, in movie theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/07/24/h...

‘Hadestown’ is a Devastating and Thrilling Musical Masterpiece

Crosswalk/Bleecker Street It’s so rare that audiences get to see a professionally shot recording (which I’ll refer to as a pro-shot for the remainder of this review) of a Broadway musical, and it’s…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 3mo ago

‘This electric screenplay also manages to have a lot to say about what it takes for a long-term relationship to endure. It’s cynical yet hopeful, mean yet empathetic.’ Here’s my review of Olivia Wilde’s #TheInvite, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/07/11/t...

‘The Invite’ is the Best Film I’ve Seen So Far This Year

A24 One of my favorite types of movie is the filmed play. Whether that be a literal filmed stage production, like the Hadestown film we’re finally getting in a few weeks, or something like Olivia W…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 4mo ago

‘I found myself with a big dumb grin across my face multiple times during this film, and considering the hot mess I went in expecting, I think that’s high praise.’ Here’s my review of #MastersOfTheUniverse, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/06/05/n...

Nicholas Galitzine Gives ‘Masters of the Universe’ The Power

Amazon/MGM Studios When I saw the trailer for Masters of the Universe, I felt conflicted. As a big fan of actor Nicholas Galitzine, who has impressed me again and again in films and TV projects ove…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 5mo ago

‘It’s a profoundly unsettling experience, a deranged, demented art installation dressed up like a horror film, and it left me genuinely shaken.’ Here’s my review of #Backrooms, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/05/31/b...

‘Backrooms’ is a Surreal and Disorienting Nightmare

A24 Friends of mine who don’t like horror movies often ask me how I could watch a certain movie and not be scared by it. I always say horror movies don’t scare me, but I can appreciate the craft of…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 6mo ago

‘Seeing a movie about a trailblazing artist that plays it completely safe is always something that frustrates me, and sadly there seems to be no end to this trend in sight.’ Here’s my review of #Michael, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/05/05/m...

‘Michael’ and the Perils of the Musical Biopic

Lionsgate I’d like to begin by saying that I have a complicated relationship with the musical biopic. They often hit all the same predictable story beats – the rise, the fall, the redemption …

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 6mo ago

‘It’s a beautifully made follow-up to a beloved film that gives the viewer the fan service they might want, but also refuses to keep its characters in a 2006 state of mind.’ Here’s my review of #TheDevilWearsPrada2, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/05/01/t...

‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’ is a Legacy Sequel That Works

20th Century Studios I’d always thought of David Frankel’s 2006 film The Devil Wears Prada as the kind of film that wasn’t wildly popular when it originally released back in summer 2006, but people…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 6mo ago

‘If you’re buying a ticket to this film for the guts and gore, you’ll get it. There’s plenty about this film that’s viscerally disgusting, but unfortunately nothing that’s actually scary.’ Here’s my review of #LeeCroninsTheMummy, in theaters now. #themummy saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/04/19/l...

‘Lee Cronin’s The Mummy’ is Exhausting and Repetitive

Warner Bros. In 2023, writer/director Lee Cronin showed up on my radar when the very taut, tense and delightfully absurd Evil Dead Rise was released. That film didn’t set the world on fire, but did…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 6mo ago

‘It’s unabashed travelogue fluff, a throwback screwball romantic comedy that against all odds, is as delightful as a dish of gelato on a hot summer day.’ Here’s my review of #YouMeAndTuscany, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/04/12/y...

‘You, Me & Tuscany’ Offers Blissful Escapism in a Time We Really Need It

Universal Pictures In 2022, director Kat Coiro released the Jennifer Lopez/Owen Wilson romantic comedy Marry Me, which received a mixed/leaning positive response. I decisively said yes to Marry Me,…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 7mo ago

‘It’s a perceptive and sharp film about how little you can know about the person you spend your life with. It’s a cringe comedy that doubles down on the cringe, and it’s a hell of a date movie.’ Here’s my SPOILER-FREE review of #TheDrama, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/04/04/t...

‘The Drama’ is a Dark, Disturbing and Hilarious Date Movie

A24 When an advertising campaign actively avoids telling you what a movie is about, sometimes there’s a damn good reason for that. Today I saw writer/director Kristoffer Borgli’s The Drama, which i…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 7mo ago

‘The film itself is entertaining and thrilling for awhile, but has significant trouble maintaining its momentum, even with an abbreviated 90-minute runtime.’ Here’s my review of #TheyWillKillYou, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/03/27/t...

‘They Will Kill You’ Never Quite Slays

Warner Bros. I was looking forward to Kirill Sokolov’s debut English-language feature They Will Kill You, despite the odd choice of Warner Bros. choosing to release this film one week after the Rea…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 7mo ago

‘It’s what you think of whenever you think whimsically about the magic of movies – it’s grand, extravagant and thrilling, but also recognizably human being-sized emotionally.’ Here’s my review of #ProjectHailMary, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/03/21/p...

‘Project Hail Mary’ Stirs the Soul and Mind

Amazon/MGM Studios In 2015, Ridley Scott’s The Martian, an adaptation of the popular science fiction novel by Andy Weir, was released and was a huge hit in every sense of the word – critics l…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 7mo ago

‘The film is simultaneously going all-in on the aspects that made the first film work, but it’s also not trying to simply play the greatest hits of the original.’ Here’s my review of #ReadyOrNot2 #HereICome, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/03/20/r...

‘Ready or Not 2: Here I Come’ is (More) Gory Good Fun

Searchlight Pictures Matt Bettinelli-Oplin and Tyler Gillett, together known as the filmmaking duo Radio Silence, made one of my most rewatched horror movies of the past decade, 2019’s Ready or Not…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 7mo ago

‘The film deals with some difficult subject matter – grief, guilt, regret, abandonment, etc., but never dives too deeply into any of it, and as a result we have a film that feels emotionally fragmented.’ Here’s my review of #RemindersOfHim, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/03/15/r...

‘Reminders of Him’ is Not Particularly Memorable

Universal Pictures Hollywood keeps trying to make Colleen Hoover happen, and sadly it seems to be working. It Ends With Us was a surprise sleeper hit that went onto be the subject of a million ongo…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 7mo ago

I had this review sitting in the drafts, and forgot about it. But now that it’s available on Disney+, it felt like a good time to dust this one off. Here’s my review of ZOOTOPIA 2, now available to stream on Disney+. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/03/12/z...

‘Zootopia 2’ is Charming, Clever and Timely

Disney From my vantage point, Rich Moore and Byron Howard’s 2016 Disney Animation Studios film Zootopia is one of the finest American animated films of the 21st century. It’s whimsical, amusing and…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 7mo ago

‘I’ve always said the worst thing that a movie can be is boring, and #TheBride! never bored me for a second.’ Here’s my review of THE BRIDE!, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/03/11/t...

‘The Bride!’ Earns That Exclamation Point

Warner Bros. There are fewer things I love in film more than a big swing. And if you saw Maggie Gyllenhaal’s 2021 directorial debut The Lost Daughter, the last thing you’d expect her to make next w…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 8mo ago

Reposting this review because one of my favorite films of 2025, Bill Condon’s #KissOfTheSpiderWoman, is now on Hulu and you need to make this part of your weekend entertainment. saltlakefilmreview.com/2025/10/10/k...

‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’ is Dazzling and Devastating

Lionsgate/Roadside Attractions I’m admittedly an easy target for the movie musical. Since I was very young, I’ve been drawn to the spectacle of the classic musical. And the element of escapism tied…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 8mo ago

‘So, our first-week-of-January horror movie arrived a little late this year.’ Here’s my review of #PsychoKiller, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/02/22/p...

‘Psycho Killer’ is One of the Worst Horror Movies I’ve Ever Seen

20th Century Studios Every now and again, a movie comes along that has legendarily bad buzz, and I can’t stay away. I love a good spectacle, and when a movie is of the ‘slow down and gawk at the ca…

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Matt is trying his best@shutupmatt.bsky.social · 8mo ago

‘Fennell’s adaptation is sold as this sexy, steamy meeting of classic literature and the tawdry romance novel. And while there’s plenty of steaminess to be found in her film, there’s also no passion.’ Here’s my review of #WutheringHeights, in theaters now. saltlakefilmreview.com/2026/02/13/e...

Emerald Fennell’s ‘Wuthering Heights’ is a Stylish and Sensual Slog

Warner Bros. Emily Brontë’s 1847 novel Wuthering Heights has been adapted about a million times. It’s the classic novel you read in your high school literature class, and if you’re anything like me…

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