On this episode of Adjust Your Tracking, Joe and I dig into two new horror movies that infuse the genre with humor and oddball, off-kilter twists and turns. Or, at least, they try. There’s the latest from “Nightcrawler” writer/director Dan Gilroy, “Velvet Buzzsaw,” launching on Netflix today, the art world satire mixed with “Final Destination” like slasher cliches.

Continue reading The Difficulty Of Mixing Horror & Humor In ‘Velvet Buzzsaw’ & ‘Piercing’ [AYT Podcast] at The Playlist.

We’re about ready to pack up from our snowy trip to the 2019 Sundance Film Festival which means we’re already beginning to feel the post-festival blues, especially as we’re thrust back into an infuriatingly dull Oscars season conversation (mention “Green Book” or “Bohemian Rhapsody” again and this writer may burst into hives). What’s worse is that after the excitement of the festival that produced a number of stellar films, we’re forced to face the wasteland that is early-2019 theatrical releases.

Continue reading 11 Movies To See In February at The Playlist.

Mia Wasikowska‘s latest film, “Piercing,” is a most unconventional love story between two highly disturbed individuals. “Piercing” is Nicolas Pesce‘s followup to his critically acclaimed directorial debut, “The Eyes of My Mother,” and a warmup for his hotly anticipated upcoming “Grudge” remake, which comes out in 2020. Although it isn’t a role we’re used to seeing Wasikowska in, she commands the character with ease, reminding audiences of her impressive range.

Continue reading Mia Wasikowska On ‘Piercing,’ Watching Horror Films, Working With Mia Hansen-Løve & More [Interview] at The Playlist.

One of the biggest complaints, outside of the terrible acting, horrible dialogue, and overall bad filmmaking, about the “Fifty Shades of Grey” franchise is the lack of real kinky, BDSM-style sex. The film franchise touches on it, but the never really dives deep. That’s where the new film “Piercing” comes in. However, the ‘Fifty Shades’-esque premise, as seen in the new red band trailer, turns kinky sex into a horrific affair and will no doubt make you think twice about being tied up by Mia Wasikowska.

Continue reading ‘Piercing’ Red Band Trailer: Mia Wasikowska Turns Kinky Fantasy Into Horrific Reality In New Thriller at The Playlist.

Filmmaker Nicolas Pesce burst onto the scene in a big way at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival with his debut feature, the startlingly reassured “The Eyes Of My Mother,” a twisted horror movie rooted in a kind of disturbed empathy about a woman who consumed by her deepest and darkest desires after tragedy strikes her quiet country life. Pesce’s encore movie “Piercing,” marks another visceral chapter in his fascinating filmmaking career.

Continue reading ‘Piercing’ Trailer: Mia Wasikowska Is A Prostitute Who Turns The Tables On A Psycho Christoper Abbott at The Playlist.

“Piercing” does not cut deep. More like light body modification than a stabbing, this film about a sexually and socially dysfunctional guy meeting a woman far more extreme than he is foregoes incisive writing in favor of entertaining but superficial psycho-sexual twists.

Possessed by a vicious desire, Reed (Christopher Abbott) fondles an ice pick. “Piercing” opens with him hovering over his infant son, tool in hand, contemplating murder.

Continue reading ‘Piercing’ Starring Mia Wasikowska Doesn’t Cut Deep [Sundance Review] at The Playlist.

Two years ago, writer/director Nicolas Pesce turned heads with his stylish and intense horror film, “Eyes Of My Mother.” It put the filmmaker on the map in a major way, and while his sophomore effort “Piercing” may boast bigger names in Mia Wasikowska and Christopher Abbott, it looks like Pesce will still be keeping audiences on edge at the Sundance Film Festival.

Continue reading ‘Piercing’ Poster & Photos: Mia Wasikowska Turns The Tables On A Killer [Sundance Exclusive] at The Playlist.

It’s the new year which means, there’s no rest for the wicked and the Sundance Film Festival is upon us. It’s funny how January is known as a dead time for movies — and it is for mainstream films — but in the realm of independent cinema, the first month of the year is that time when filmmakers are cramming to finish their Sundance-bound pictures.

READ MORE: The 100 Most Anticipated Films Of 2018

And the diverse, eclectic Sundance lineup runs the gamut.

Continue reading Sundance 2018: The Most Anticipated Films Of The Festival at The Playlist.

We’re just getting started with our look at the best in film and TV of 2017, but before we really got sucked into the retrospective, we wanted to take a minute to look forward to what’s to come in the next twelve months or so. Lord knows we need things to keep us going in the shitshow that has been the second half of the 2010s, and fortunately, cinema has provided.

After a slow start, 2017 turned out to be a pretty great year for movies, and 2018 looks to keep that up in a big way.

Continue reading The 100 Most Anticipated Films Of 2018 at The Playlist.

One of my favorite horror movies of 2016? Nicolas Pesce’s austere and disturbing black and white drama “The Eyes Of My Mother,” a startling directorial debut. Featuring no known stars to speak of, the slow-burn horror thriller centers on a woman traumatized by the death of her parents at a young age. With little guidance as she grows up, the girl’s fascination with the surgical, a skill passed down from her mother, takes a dark and twisted turn.

Continue reading ‘Eyes Of My Mother’ Director Nicolas Pesce Wraps Thriller ‘Piercing’ Starring Mia Wasikowska & Christopher Abbott at The Playlist.