RealMelValentin
Mel Valentin
Featured Critic
Mel Valentin has been writing about his first and possibly his last love, film, for more than a decade. Born somewhere on the East Coast in the last century, Mel moved to the San Francisco Bay Area two decades ago. Mel spends his days looking forward to when we can all return to movie theaters and film festivals in person.Articles by Mel Valentin:
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October 15, 2021
Bergman Island Review: Mia Hansen-Løve Delivers Another Insightful Character DramaMia Hansen-Løve’s latest, Bergman Island, delivers insightful, provocative character drama.
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September 23, 2021
Foundation Review: Isaac Asimov’s Groundbreaking Sci-Fi Landmark Gets the Prestige TreatmentBased on Isaac Asimov’s groundbreaking, galaxy-spanning science fiction trilogy, Foundation, Apple TV+’s spectacular, spare-no-expense ten-part series, arrives on the streaming service with a mix of hope, anticipation and, at least for some lifelong fans, apprehension. Anticipation and hope due to the original trilogy’s status as an urtext for the science fiction genre, generating tropes and […]
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August 6, 2021
Vivo Review: Another Unqualified Success for Lin-Manual MirandaWith new songs from Lin-Manuel Miranda, Vivo offers one of the most rewarding, family-oriented experiences this year or any other year.
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August 6, 2021
The Suicide Squad Review: Anti-Heroes (Re)UniteJames Gunn gives the Suicide Squad a bloody good overhaul.
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August 6, 2021
Free Guy Review: A Stealth Rom-Com Hiding Inside a Video Game WorldFree Guy is a stealth rom-com hiding inside a video game world.
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July 31, 2021
The Green Knight Review: The First, Great, Unqualified Masterpiece of 2021The elements of The Green Knight work together to create a singular cinematic experience — one unlikely to be matched this or any other year.
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July 16, 2021
Gunpowder Milkshake Review: The Matriarchy Rules, the Patriarchy DroolsBasically Kill Bill, John Wick, and Atomic Blonde in a blender, but this milkshake has no cherry on top.
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June 28, 2021
The Ice Road Review: Liam Neeson, Sedentary Action StarThe Ice Road adds one more mid-budget, forgettable actioner to Liam Neeson’s overstuffed B-movie resume.
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June 16, 2021
The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard Review: Redundant Sequel Crashes and BurnsSamuel L. Jackson throws down F-bombs and Salma Hayek screams a lot in this terrible sequel.
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June 11, 2021
The Amusement Park Review: A Lost Classic Brought Back From the DeadBetween the genre-redefining Night of the Living Dead in 1968 and the peak-career Dawn of the Dead a decade later, the late George A. Romero directed There’s Always Vanilla (1971), his only attempt at a romantic comedy, followed in quick succession by Season of the Witch and The Crazies in 1973, horror entries that received […]
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May 29, 2021
The Wages of Nostalgia: From Alice to Cruella and Back AgainAs a sign of Disney things to come, Cruella points to a creatively bankrupt future where artistry can only exist at the margins.
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May 21, 2021
Army of the Dead Review: A Master of Excess, UnleashedIn Army of the Dead, Zack Snyder returns to his zombie horror roots…but with mixed results.
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May 12, 2021
Oxygen Review: Mélanie Laurent Shines in Futuristic ThrillerOxygen (“Oxygène”), director Alexandre Aja’s follow-up to 2019’s gorily entertaining, Crawl, gives Mélanie Laurent a chance to shine.
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