Josh Bell
Story Archive
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Screen‘Despicable Me 3’ throws together a rote sequel
Thursday, June 29, 2017 The cast has gotten so cluttered that Gru’s onetime assistant Dr. Nefario is literally frozen for the entire movie, just to get him out of the way.
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A&EThe Amazing Las Vegas Comic Con demonstrates the strength of the local geek community
Thursday, June 29, 2017 Organizers estimated attendance for this year’s edition at more than 33,000, the largest number yet.
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ScreenSam Elliott carries low-key drama ‘The Hero’
Thursday, June 29, 2017 But one great performance isn’t enough to sell it.
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ScreenFilm review: ‘Baby Driver’ gets by on musical energy
Tuesday, June 27, 2017 Director Edgar Wright attempts to do for music geekery what his Scott Pilgrim vs. the World did for video gamers.
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Screen‘GLOW’ captures the heartfelt cheese of ’80s pro wrestling
Thursday, June 22, 2017 The Netflix show is full of gloriously terrible fashions and endearingly trashy pop culture.
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ScreenDisjointed Netflix sci-fi parable ‘Okja’ delivers a blunt message
Thursday, June 22, 2017 The title character is a genetically engineered “super-pig,” created by corporate agribusiness Mirando, led by a weirdly childlike CEO played by Tilda Swinton.
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ScreenFilm review: ‘Beatriz at Dinner’ makes the political personal
Thursday, June 22, 2017 A tense dinner confrontation between right- and left-wing perspectives might sound unpleasant, but this movie has more depth than a simple political shouting match.
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Screen‘Transformers: The Last Knight’ can’t shape-shift into a good movie
Wednesday, June 21, 2017 Just getting through Michael Bay’s fifth—and, for the third time, reportedly final film in the series—makes for an exhausting endeavor.
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ScreenTupac Shakur deserves better than dull biopic ‘All Eyez on Me’
Friday, June 16, 2017 Shipp’s resemblance to Shakur is not enough to build a nearly two-and-a-half-hour biopic around.
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ScreenUneven comedy ‘Rough Night’ lives up to its title
Thursday, June 15, 2017 Some timely, progressive talking points are occasionally shoehorned in, but they’re lost amidst the formulaic plot, vulgar jokes and one-note characters.
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ScreenDiane Lane gets her groove back in tepid rom-com ‘Paris Can Wait’
Thursday, June 15, 2017 At 80 years old, Eleanor Coppola has finally joined the family business, writing and directing her first narrative feature film,
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ScreenThe Las Vegas Film Festival marks 10 years with a change of venue
Thursday, June 15, 2017 Landing at the Palms' Brenden Theaters sacrificed some of the community feel, but offered a much better facility for showing the movies.
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Screen'Cars 3' takes a slow trip to nowhere
Wednesday, June 14, 2017 It has elements that might make for fun toys for kids, but combine into an underwhelming movie.
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Screen'47 Meters Down' offers smarter shark attacks
Wednesday, June 14, 2017 The recent trend in shark movies has been to go sillier, but this one goes deeper and darker.
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A&EKaty Perry's 'Witness' is a shameless attempt at 'purposeful pop'
Wednesday, June 14, 2017 She's never been above pandering to her audience, has she?
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Screen‘The Mummy’ fails to reinvent a classic franchise
Thursday, June 8, 2017 This version is structured like a blockbuster action movie, rather than the creeping horror of its inspiration.
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Screen‘My Cousin Rachel’ promises thrills it can’t deliver
Thursday, June 8, 2017 It has all the necessary ingredients for a great Gothic potboiler, but writer-director Roger Michell rarely gets it above lukewarm.
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ScreenWhat’s being planned for Universal’s Dark Universe?
Thursday, June 8, 2017 Bride of Frankenstein, the Invisible Man and more.
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Screen‘It Comes at Night’ explores the horror of uncertainty
Thursday, June 8, 2017 The movie answers none of its questions, but writer-director Trey Edward Shults builds an effective atmosphere of mistrust and dread.
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ScreenA Marine and her dog form an unbreakable bond in ‘Megan Leavey’
Thursday, June 8, 2017 What could easily have ended up as two hours of patriotic pandering mostly avoids taking the easy way out.
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A&EFilm review: Gal Gadot shines in the entertaining ‘Wonder Woman’
Thursday, June 1, 2017 It’s a bit surprising that the movie around her is mostly a success, given how much of a mess DC has made of its efforts to launch a superhero cinematic universe.
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Screen‘Baywatch’ drowns in bad jokes and worse action
Thursday, May 25, 2017 Once again, the only thing it has going for it: attractive stars in skimpy attire.
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ScreenClumsy Netflix military satire ‘War Machine’ sends mixed messages
Thursday, May 25, 2017 Brad Pitt plays Gen. Glen McMahon like he’s in an SNL sketch, with exaggerated mannerisms and an affected vocal delivery.
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ScreenIndie drama ‘The Lovers’ explores infidelity of a different kind
Thursday, May 25, 2017 Tracy Letts and Debra Winger make the most of their rare leading roles, and the director trusts them to convey the story’s complex emotions, often wordlessly.
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ScreenFilm review: There’s no life left in the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ franchise
Thursday, May 25, 2017 Johnny Depp stumbles and mumbles his way through Dead Men Tell No Tales.
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Screen‘Alien: Covenant’ refocuses on suspense and horror
Thursday, May 18, 2017 For fans hoping to see more hapless humans eviscerated, the series latest film delivers.
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ScreenFilm review: Love conquers illness in ‘Everything, Everything’
Thursday, May 18, 2017 The romance straddles the line between sweet and cloying, and Amandla Stenberg’s performance is a winning one.
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ScreenHBO’s ‘The Wizard of Lies’ does a decent job explaining Bernie Madoff
Thursday, May 18, 2017 The most impressive performance comes from Michelle Pfeiffer as Madoff’s wife, Ruth.
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NoiseParamore’s ‘After Laughter’ embraces a candy-coated, synth-heavy ’80s-style sound
Thursday, May 18, 2017 “Hard Times” could fit on an old Blondie album, and the infectious “Fake Happy” could be the “Walking on Sunshine” of sadness.
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ScreenFilm review: Richard Gere plays the inscrutable ‘Norman’
Thursday, May 18, 2017 There’s something oddly appealing about him, even if no one can quite figure out what that is.
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ScreenKing Arthur becomes a generic action hero in ‘Legend of the Sword’
Thursday, May 11, 2017 It awkwardly marries Lord of the Rings-style fantasy filmmaking to Guy Ritchie’s hyperactive style.
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ScreenThe beloved Anne of Green Gables returns in a Netflix series
Thursday, May 11, 2017 Although it was created by Breaking Bad veteran Moira Walley-Beckett, this isn’t a dark or gritty take on the classic tale
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Screen‘I Love Dick’ turns an experimental novel into experimental TV
Thursday, May 11, 2017 In the tradition of most performance art, the show is both audacious and deeply annoying.
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ScreenFilm review: ‘The Wall’ traps two soldiers in a deadly game
Thursday, May 11, 2017 Although it opens with onscreen text about the declared “end” of the Iraq war in 2007, it’s less about social commentary than visceral, sometimes cheap thrills.
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ScreenFilm review: Amy Schumer and Goldie Hawn get lost in ‘Snatched’
Thursday, May 11, 2017 Schumer brings some personality to her role, but it’s a fairly generic part for a writer and performer whose fame has been based on her unique perspective.
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A&ECountry man Chris Stapleton spreads out on his second album
Wednesday, May 10, 2017 It's another assured, musically accomplished collection of country and roots-rock.
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A&EFilm review: ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’ doubles down on what worked
Thursday, May 4, 2017 The tone is snarky, the new casting is eclectic and the soundtrack again resembles the compilation albums that used to be sold on late-night TV.
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ScreenFilm review: ‘The Dinner’ gorges on self-importance
Thursday, May 4, 2017 There’s a lot of vague dialogue and plenty of non-illuminating flashbacks, including a long digression about the Battle of Gettysburg.
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NoiseFive thoughts: Jamey Johnson with Margo Price and Brent Cobb at Brooklyn Bowl (April 28)
Monday, May 1, 2017 Although she wasn’t the headliner, Price was the act on the bill with the most buzz, and her rousing set was easily the highlight of the night.
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NoiseThriller ‘The Circle’ delivers a heavy-handed warning about technology
Friday, April 28, 2017 Emma Watson, with her shaky American accent, never quite gets a handle on her character.
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Screen‘American Gods’ takes the fun out of Neil Gaiman’s fantasy classic
Thursday, April 27, 2017 The somber, oppressive tone extends to the performances and the writing, but the worst thing about American Gods is its absurdly slow pace.
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ScreenTV review: ‘Dear White People’ cleverly satirizes tough subjects
Thursday, April 27, 2017 The show has a point to make, but part of that point is simply to depict the lives of people who are too often relegated to the pop-culture background.
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NoiseLas Rageous Day 2: Avenged Sevenfold, Mastodon and more
Monday, April 24, 2017 The closing set provided a proper send-off for a successful first-year festival.
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NoiseLas Rageous Day 1 recap: Killswitch, Coheed, Anthrax and Godsmack
Monday, April 24, 2017 UFC president Dana White was up close for Godsmack—and not ensconced in some VIP area.
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Screen'The Lost City of Z’ has too much restraint for its own good
Thursday, April 20, 2017 The title promises something a lot more fantastical than the movie delivers, and the dull restraint is a poor substitute for all-out jungle madness.
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ScreenEven Oprah struggles with ‘The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks’
Thursday, April 20, 2017 By the end, you get the idea that Lacks was very important, but as a person, she remains distant.
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A&ECatching up with Scott Ian of Anthrax
Thursday, April 20, 2017 Lone band founder and guitarist/songwriter talks festivals, fans and DJ gigs at the Hard Rock.
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Screen‘Free Fire’ only occasionally hits its targets
Thursday, April 20, 2017 The entire plot of this stylish, occasionally clever action movie amounts to little more than a bunch of idiots shooting at each other.
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Screen‘Unforgettable’ never deviates from its tired formula
Thursday, April 20, 2017 Katherine Heigl’s go-for-broke turn might open up some new possibilities for her as a supervillain.
