Author Archive: Calhoun Kersten
Calhoun Kersten is a recent transplant to the whimsical world of LA. Equal parts disarmingly charming and stunningly good looking, he enjoys horror films, nachos, and sharks. If you're interested in more of his depravity, please check out one of his many blogs.
Gayby
What happens when a straight woman and her gay best friend decide to have a baby together? Well, if you’re unlucky, you get a movie with Madonna and Rupert Everett or those couple of unfunny episodes of Will & Grace. Luckily, Gayby knows better than to follow in those footsteps. After all, it’s 2012. The [...]
Lawless
Lawless is the latest directorial effort from director John Hillcoat, based on the larger-than-life, true story of the Bondurant Boys and it’s as interesting one at that. See, no matter what anyone tells you, there are no real heroes of Lawless. On one hand, you have the outlaw brothers who are struggling to make their [...]
What A Man
What do you think of when I say the words “German romantic comedy?” It’s hard to think of anything, right? It just seems… well, wrong, really. The world of German cinema and the romantic comedy seem so diametrically opposed. And yet, that’s what the directorial debut of Matthias Schweighofer, What a Man, which attempts to [...]
Lifetime Gold Collection
What’s the slogan for Lifetime again? Isn’t it something like, “television for women?” I know, among other things, Lifetime has always prided itself on its emphasis on women and sharing the female perspective. It is, indeed, a lofty goal, but certainly an admirable one. Then how come, as a man, I find myself so agitated [...]
Wrong Turn 5
Wrong Turn has the unique distinction of easily being one of horror’s most forgettable franchises. It all started back in 2003 with the first film, which followed several adventurers as they were silently stalked and ruthlessly murdered by a bunch of backwater, inbred cannibals. Since then, every so often, another installment is quietly released to [...]
Hollywood to Dollywood
It’s hard to find more fully-formed, all-around relatable and generally likeable characters than the stars of the recent documentary Hollywood to Dollywood. Maybe that’s because twin brothers Gary and Larry (I wish I was kidding) aren’t quite cut out for Hollywood. In a city that is characterized by its dreamers as much as its insincerity [...]
A Cat in Paris
Animation is in a sorry state when the most obvious charm of an animated film is that it is hand-drawn. However, A Cat in Paris rises above most recent animated films not just because it is hand-drawn, but the painstaking care and stylization of the film. A Cat in Paris has the warmth of a [...]
After Dusk They Come
People always tell me that being a film reviewer must be a great job. It really is but, like every job, it has its up and downs. They ask me, “Well, what could be so hard about reviewing movies? I mean, you get to watch movies all the time!” Correction, folks. I have to watch [...]
Butter
Every once in a while a movie so impossibly ludicrous comes along that my faith in the moviemaking industry is tested. Such is the case with the movie Butter which follows a young girl, appropriately named Destiny, as she squares off against a power-hungry hausfrau in a statewide butter-sculpting competition. How a plot like this [...]
Portlandia Season Two
Portlandia first made waves when it aired on IFC and hipsters realized they had a place to call home. Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein lead their absurdist cast of guest stars in various skits and sketches that take place around the beautiful Northwestern city. VSC is bringing the acclaimed second season to blu-ray and DVD [...]
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