Articles — Original Cin

Since 2017: Career film critics continuing the conversation

Honk For Jesus: Save Your Soul - The Bigger the Mega-Church, the Harder They Fall

Honk For Jesus: Save Your Soul - The Bigger the Mega-Church, the Harder They Fall

By Jim Slotek

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 30, 2022Satires about evangelism, Honk for Jesus: Save Your Soul, Adamma Ebo, Jordan Peele, Regina Hall, Sterling K. Brown), Prosperity gospel, Conphidance, Religious scandalsComment

Original-Cin Q&A: Danish Villain-For-Hire Pilou Asbaek Talks Taking It to Stallone in Samaritan

Original-Cin Q&A: Danish Villain-For-Hire Pilou Asbaek Talks Taking It to Stallone in Samaritan

By Bonnie Laufer

InterviewJim SlotekAugust 26, 2022Danish actors, Game of Thrones, Bergen, Pilou Asbaek, Samaritan, Sylvester Stallone, Javon Walton, Films based on graphic novelsComment

The Good Boss: Smart Workplace Satire Soars on Javier Bardem

The Good Boss: Smart Workplace Satire Soars on Javier Bardem

By Karen Gordon

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 24, 2022Spanish language, Spanish Films, The Good Boss, Fernando León de Aranoa, Javier Bardem, Manolo Solo, Almudena Amor, Satire, Toxic workplaces, Comedy, DramaComment

A Fan’s Notes: Fan Expo Veteran John Kirk Flashes Back to Rhys-Davies and More

A Fan’s Notes: Fan Expo Veteran John Kirk Flashes Back to Rhys-Davies and More

By John Kirk

PreviewJim SlotekAugust 24, 2022Comic Conventions, Toronto Fan Expo, Celebrity Q&As, Sean Astin, Brent Spiner, Jonathan Frakes, John Rhys-Davies Comment

Three Thousand Years of Longing: Idris Elba and Tilda Swinton Make Magic in a Story About Storytelling

Three Thousand Years of Longing: Idris Elba and Tilda Swinton Make Magic in a Story About Storytelling

By Karen Gordon

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 24, 2022Stories about storytelling, Stories about genies, Three Thousand Years of Longing, George Miller, Tilda Swinton, Idris Elba, The Queen of ShebaComment

The Territory: Documentary Chronicles Sadly Familiar Fight for Nature in the Amazon

The Territory: Documentary Chronicles Sadly Familiar Fight for Nature in the Amazon

By Kim Hughes

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 19, 2022The Territory, Documentary, National Geographic, Brazil, Amazon rainforest, indigenous filmsComment

Beast: Hey, If a Shark Can Take Things Personally, Why Not A Lion?

Beast: Hey, If a Shark Can Take Things Personally, Why Not A Lion?

By John Kirk

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 18, 2022Man-eating lions, Beast, Idris Elba, Sharlto Copley, Iyana Halley, Leah Jeffries, Baltasar Kormákur, When animals attackComment

The Legend of Molly Johnson: Mama's Got a Shotgun and a Double-Barrelled Message

The Legend of Molly Johnson: Mama's Got a Shotgun and a Double-Barrelled Message

By Liam Lacey

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 17, 2022Australian Westerns, The Drover’s Wife, Henry Lawson, he Legend of Molly Johnson, Leah Purcell, The Snowy Mountains, Rob CollinsComment

Orphan: First Kill - This Horror Prequel is NOT What Little Girls Are Made Of

Orphan: First Kill - This Horror Prequel is NOT What Little Girls Are Made Of

By Jim Slotek

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 17, 2022Orphan: First Kill, Onscreen de-aging, Isabelle Fuhrman, Rossif Sutherland, Julia Stiles, Horror prequels, William Brent Bell, Jaume Collet-Serra Comments

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law - Marvel Finds its Funny Bone, and She's 6'7" and Gamma Green

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law - Marvel Finds its Funny Bone, and She's 6'7" and Gamma Green

By John Kirk

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 16, 2022She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, Marvel series that spoof the genre, Stan Lee, John Buscema, Jessica Gao, John Byrne, Mark Ruffalo, Benedict Wong Comment

Locke & Key: When the Comic Reader’s Perspective is Dismissed

Locke & Key: When the Comic Reader’s Perspective is Dismissed

By John Kirk

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 15, 2022Locke & Key, Comic Book adaptation, Joe Hill, Netflix, Connor Jessup, Fantasy, Sci-fi, Sci-fi horrorComment

Five Days at Memorial: A Lethal Shelter From The Storm

Five Days at Memorial: A Lethal Shelter From The Storm

By Liam Lacey

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 13, 2022Five Days at Memorial, Hurricane Katrina, Sheri Fink, adaptation, Vera Farmiga, Cherry Jones, AppleTV+Comment

Emily the Criminal: Smart Indie Actioner a Showcase for Aubrey Plaza

Emily the Criminal: Smart Indie Actioner a Showcase for Aubrey Plaza

By Karen Gordon

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 11, 2022Emily The Criminal, John Patton Ford, Aubrey Plaza, Theo Rossi, Thriller, indie, Los Angeles, Petty crimeComment

Fall: White-Knuckle Thriller at Once Silly and Kind of Beguiling

Fall: White-Knuckle Thriller at Once Silly and Kind of Beguiling

By Kim Hughes

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 11, 2022Thriller, Mountain climbing, Fall, Scott Mann, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Virginia Gardner, Grace Caroline CurreyComment

Girl Picture: Love, Skating and Smoothies, Finnish-Style

Girl Picture: Love, Skating and Smoothies, Finnish-Style

By Liam Lacey

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 10, 2022Finland, Young adult, Girl Picture, Alli Haapasalo, Aamu Milonoff, Eleonoora Kauhanen, Linnea Leino, Ilona Ahti, Daniel HakulinenComment

Costa Brava, Lebanon: Garbage Comes to Eden

Costa Brava, Lebanon: Garbage Comes to Eden

By Liam Lacey

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 10, 2022Costa Brava, Lebanon, Drama, TIFF 2021, Mounia Akl, Nadine Labak, Saleh Bakri, Liliane Chacar KhouryComment

Bodies Bodies Bodies: Gen Z Murder Mystery a Knock-out Addition to the Canon

Bodies Bodies Bodies: Gen Z Murder Mystery a Knock-out Addition to the Canon

By Karen Gordon

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 9, 2022Murder mystery, Drama, Gen Z, Bodies Bodies Bodies, Halina Reijn, Sarah DeLappe, Kristen Roupenian, Amandla Stenberg, Maria Bakalova, Pete Davidson, Chase Sui Wonders, Myha’la Herrold, Rachel Sennott Comment

We Are Living Things: UFO Drama a Metaphor (Maybe?) for Aliens in America’s Backyard

We Are Living Things: UFO Drama a Metaphor (Maybe?) for Aliens in America’s Backyard

By John Kirk

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 9, 2022UFOs, Aliens, Immigrant experience, We Are Living Things, Antonio Tibaldi, Jorge Antonio Guerrero, Xingcheng Lyu, Zao Wang, O-Lan Jones, Paul CooperComment

The Sandman: Neil Gaiman's Magnum Opus May Be the Most Faithful Comic Adaptation Ever

The Sandman: Neil Gaiman's Magnum Opus May Be the Most Faithful Comic Adaptation Ever

By John Kirk

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 5, 2022The Sandman, Neil Gaiman, Tom Sturridge, The Endless, Netflix, TV series based on graphic novels, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Charles Dance, Gwendoline Christie, Patton Oswalt, Mark Hamill, Vivienne Acheampong, Mason Alexander Park Comment

Alma’s Rainbow: Restored Black Girl’s Coming-Of-Age Film Strikes a Contemporary Chord

Alma’s Rainbow: Restored Black Girl’s Coming-Of-Age Film Strikes a Contemporary Chord

By Liam Lacey

ReviewJim SlotekAugust 4, 2022Alma’s Rainbow, Ayoka Chenzira, Victoria Gabrielle-Platt, Kim Weston-Moran, Mizan Kirby, rerelease, Coming of age, Black experience, Julie Dash, Daughters of the Dust, Leslie Harris, Just Another Girl on the I.R.T. Comment