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The Rotunda
Tuesday, July 15, 2025

Reviews

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Reviews

The Reel Life: "Trolls World Tour"

It’s hard to be excited for a sequel film, let alone one from Dreamworks. Sure, they’ve turned out hits like “Shrek 2”, “How To Train Your Dragon 2”, and “Kung Fu Panda 2”. But it’s difficult to justify a sequel to a film as hyperactive and peppy to a fault as 2016’s “Trolls” ...


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Reviews

The Reel Life: "Cats (2019)"

This is a genuine example of a once in a generation event. This is a live birth of a future midnight movie phenomenon, that will pack drive-ins for decades as audiences cackle at the screen, tossing cat toys and popcorn with wild abandon. Its rare to see something like this before the zeitgeist that ...


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Reviews

The Reel Life: "The Invisible Man (2020)"

In the world post Tom Cruise’s “Mummy” reboot, anything even remotely connected to the Universal classic monster movies is likely going to be scoffed at. However, this low-budget and modernized take on H.G. Wells’ tale “The Invisible Man” has both the acting and creative potential to pull ...


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Reviews

The Reel Life: "The Hunt (2020)

Satire noun The use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues. (Oxford English Dictionary) Going purely off of the definition of the genre, “The Hunt” is, without ...


Onward
Reviews

The Reel Life: Onward (PRINT)

Once, there was magic in the world. It enchanted people across the lands with exuberant sights of fancy and tales of brave heroes and great sacrifice. And most of that magic came from a studio called Pixar. While their tracked record is still a cut above most, it’s easy to immediately think “It’ll ...


a6f0deb0562e01b5dfb3f6316c4dcbbe
Reviews

The Reel Life: "Onward"

Once, there was magic in the world. It enchanted people across the lands with exuberant sights of fancy and tales of brave heroes and great sacrifice. And most of that magic came from a studio called Pixar. While their tracked record is still a cut above most, it’s easy to immediately think “It’ll ...



7e6add1a2356d9611fe235dbfff0a3de
Reviews

The Reel Life: "Harley Quinn (Season 1)"

As one of DC Universe’s few original series at this time, “Harley Quinn” has definitely set itself apart. It has more in common with “Doom Patrol” than the other animated offerings, striking an extremely adult tone in terms of humor and violence, while also embracing its characters dark past. ...


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Reviews

The Reel Life: "The Call of the Wild (2020)"

To many, “The Call of the Wild” is just another one of those “gung-ho America” books that was required during middle school, like “Little House on the Prairie” or “Hatchet.” The true legacy of the classic novel is likely lost on many growing up today, so it makes sense to change it some ...



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Reviews

The Reel Life: "Sonic the Hedgehog (2020)"

Sonic has had quite a few ups, downs, and loop-de-loops over the past 29 years, and the official first design of his film version definitely ranks up there with the biggest missteps of the franchise. However, thanks to a quick redesign and a more faithful approach to the character, he actually seems ...


The Setonian
Reviews

Birds of Prey SHORTER PRINT

She’s definitely got moxxi. That’s one thing nobody will argue against when it comes to Dr. Harlene Quinnzel, aka Harley Quinn, the kooky ex-girlfriend of the Joker and general hell raiser in her own right. Despite appearing like a lost puppy looking for the Joker in the celluloid turd that was ...



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Reviews

The Reel Life: "Bad Boys For Life"

Whatchu gonna do when they come for you? Because they’re back. Will Smith (“Men in Black,” “I, Robot”) and Martin Lawrence’s (“Boomerang,” “Death at a Funeral”) dynamic duo have returned, 25 years after Michael Bay’s directorial debut and 17 years after the so bad its good action ...


cd669c763041935d40e59c49c53b2467
Reviews

The Reel Life: "Bad Boys For Life" PRINT

Whatchu gonna do when they come for you? Because they’re back. Will Smith (“Men in Black,” “I, Robot”) and Martin Lawrence’s (“Boomerang,” “Death at a Funeral”) dynamic duo have returned, 17 years after Michael Bay’s cult classic sequel. With new directors, could this be the best ...


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Reviews

The Reel Life: "Knives Out"

The game is afoot in Rian Johnson’s (“Star Wars: The Last Jedi,” “Looper”) latest mystery flick. He cut his teeth on the genre in the early 2000s with movies like “Brick” and continued to put mystery elements in later ones like “Looper.” But “Knives Out” is a straight up mystery ...



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Reviews

The Reel Life: "Frozen 2"

Five years, 1.2 billion dollars and countless hours on the radio later, “Frozen” might very well be the most successful of Disney’s newest princess films, or animated films period. Something about it caused both rapturous applause and seething contempt from equal parties across the globe. So, ...


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Reviews

The Reel Life: "Ford v. Ferrari"

Watching cars, driven by attractive stars, zoom down tracks constructed for giant and white knuckle third acts is nothing new to film. Race movies are a genre probably as equally as old and beloved as Western or Spy films. It takes a lot to reinvigorate something like a race car film. However, James ...


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Reviews

The Reel Life: "Charlie's Angels (2019)"

“Charlie’s Angels” isn’t “Mission Impossible.” While that might seem obvious, there really isn’t a way to keep the identity of the series, in any off its incarnations, and be as serious as something like Cruise’s spy series. That is part of the charm though. Given all of the dark lands ...


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Reviews

The Reel Life: "Last Christmas"

For every rom-com, there are buckets of expectations and clichés that come along with them. Boy meets girl, the opposites attracting, the man with the secret, the possibilities go on and on. This Christmas themed rom-com from director Paul Fieg (“A Simple Favor,” “Bridesmaids”) and a screenplay ...


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