Pasckie Pascua's Nerdy Squirrel Reviews: Movies.

“Please Don't Feed the Children” (2024, Tubi) psychological thriller. A group of orphans head south in search of a new life after the country's adult population is wiped out from a viral outbreak. Soon they discover a dangerous secret from a deranged woman.           This movie was directed by Destry Allyn Spielberg , daughter of the master, Steven, and Kate Capshaw. Alas, dad's filmmaking genes didn't do well in this debut work by Destry.  Yet somewhere there's promise in this dystopian nightmare until the nightmare got real. A creature showed up.        Dad Steven's first movie (which he also wrote), 1964's “Firelight,” made when he was 17, showed hints of the future genius. Destry is 28. 🎥💻📽 “Lazareth” (2024, Hulu) thriller film , starring Ashley Judd , Sarah Pidgeon , and Katie Douglas . Plot: A woman protects her orphaned nieces from a self-destructing world, raising them in isolation until...

<>“Nosferatu” (2024, Amazon Prime), written and directed by Robert Eggers . Production design is haunting, photography is disturbingly sinister, sound editing kneads your spine. And, of course, Nicholas Hoult (as Thomas Hutter) expectedly delivers and Lily-Rose Depp (as Ellen Hutter) is a revelation.         Meanwhile, with the prosthetics or masks, it is hard to rate the performance of Bill Skarsgård 's titular Count Orlok but Simon McBurney (as Herr Knock otherwise known as Renfield) is chillingly hilarious although a bit exaggerated, I think. But Aaron Taylor-Johnson (as Arthur Holmwood) is miscast.        Take note that Nosferatu/Count Dracula, Jonathan Harker and Lucy Harker, Abraham Van Helsing, Lucy Westenra, Renfield, John Seward, Arthur Holmwood etcetera assumed different names in this version. 🎥👍📽 <>“Nosferatu The Vampyre” (1979, Tubi), directed and written by Werner Herzog . A remake of...

“The Canyons” (2013, Sundance Now) erotic thriller - drama film directed by Paul Schrader and written by Bret Easton Ellis . Set in Los Angeles , the movie follows a wealthy young man who produces low-budget horror films. Mr Schrader is supposedly good as a writer (“Taxi Driver,” “Raging Bull”) and then as director (2017’s “First Reformed.” And you know Mr Ellis for his bestsellers “ Less than Zero ” (1985) and “ American Psycho ” (1991), both turned into movies, starring Robert Downey Jr. and Christian Bale, respectively.         But this movie, topbilled by a wasted Lindsay Lohan and a porn actor James Deen who couldn’t act, is a tedious exercise in cinematic futility. Some critics praised Ms Lohan’s acting. Really?         Plot: The discovery of an illicit love affair leads two young Los Angelenos on a violent, sexually charged tour through the dark side of human nature. Uh huh. 🎭👎🎬 “I Spit on Your ...

“The Alto Knights” (2025, Max) biographical crime drama. Story: In a failed assassination attempt orchestrated by his ambitious underboss, Vito Genovese , Luciano family boss Frank Costello finds himself at a crossroads. Robert De Niro both portrays Mr Genevese and Mr Costello , which can be confusing a bit because both speak like De Niro and both talk like Mafia bosses. As is though, this is not a bad movie although nothing is really new here. But a tired retelling of what we already knew or watched in so many mob cinema tropes.         Plot: In a failed assassination attempt orchestrated by his ambitious underboss, Vito Genovese , Luciano family boss Frank Costello finds himself at a crossroads. Weary of the constant bloodshed and betrayals that define his life, Costello informs Genovese of his intention to retire and cede control of the Luciano family. However, Vito, a man consumed by ambition and paranoia, refuses to believe Costello's in...

[Paul DeCirce and his band, Peace Jones, in a "Bonfires for Peace" concert at Pritchard Park in downtown Asheville, North Carolina, 2005] The TRAVELING BONFIRES is an Asheville (North Carolina)-based organization that advocates community connectedness, dovetailed on cultural diversity and a global worldview on peace. The Bonfires’ centerpiece program is the “Bonfires for Peace” series of free concert events—which finds home in downtown Asheville’s Pritchard Park from 2003 to date, gathering a multitude of musical acts and performers from all over the US on a relentless spring to fall calendar. Through the organization’s “Vagrant Wind” and “Wander Women” subprograms, The Bonfires also continually produces small-venue shows and gigs—eg poetry readings, dance recitals, filmshowings, art exhibitions, lectures and talks, and other artist presentations. Formed in the Cordillera mountains of northern Philippines in mid-1980s by journalist-poet Pasckie Pascua, The Bonfires made the ...

COME TOGETHER (Asheville, North Carolina): August 21, Saturday, is a significant day to the Traveling Bonfires’ “Bonfires for Peace.” Two events—one in Manila, another in Asheville—happen, for the benefit of breast cancer victims and other nonprofits. Touch Samadhi’s Annunaki, Kri, Medisin, and Zenssie spin records at Pritchard Park’s event (starts 4pm, ends at 9). [Photo: The Asheville-based band BUYAKA at the "Bonfires for Peace at Pritchard Park" last April 17.] TRAVELING BONFIRES-PHILIPPINES: Upcoming Events and Productions [1] “ALAB NG DIBDIB: A Traveling Bonfires Benefit for Breast Cancer Prevention” Set program dates: [1] August 14 (Saturday): Nude Sketching Sessions at ArtVentures@Conspi. 1PM - 4PM (models: Elai Isaac, also as host; and Pearl Imperial); [2] August 21 (Saturday): Folk rock gig. 8PM - 11:30PM, featuring TBonfires-Philippines Core Bands: Anak ni Aling Juana, BERSUS, Kalayag, NukLus, and Awee Sanchez. Venue: Conspiracy Bar and Garden Café, Quezon City...