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1 month ago | 
theleadernews.com | Elliott Stewart
I’m on a flight leaving the beautiful city of Las Vegas, and about to arrive home in Houston. Vegas was pretty much what I had expected -- slot machines stacked up and down each and every hallway, and the sweet smell of second-hand smoke following me like some sort of Las Vegas spirit.
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2 months ago | 
theleadernews.com | Elliott Stewart
Elliott’s overall rating: 3 out of 5 starsA few weeks ago, as of writing this, the Oscar nominations were released. One film that was no surprise to see dominating the categories was The Brutalist. The Brutalist is a skyscraper of a film—a gigantic monument that towers over you, and all you can do is stand in its shadow. For a while, I was scared to enter the skyscraper. With the Oscar nominations, I had no choice now, and I had no idea what would be inside.
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Jan 20, 2025 | 
theleadernews.com | Elliott Stewart
Elliott’s overall rating: 3 out of 5 starsIn the 1993 film Jurassic Park, if you look past all the moments of characters gazing in awe at the brand new discovery of being able to regenerate dinosaurs from the ground up, you begin to realize something. As the film progresses, the horror of what’s been done sets in, and this is no better illustrated than in a line spoken halfway through the film.
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Dec 9, 2024 | 
theleadernews.com | Elliott Stewart
Elliott’s overall rating: 3 out of 5 starsGladiator II: 2.5 out of 5 starsWicked: 3.5 out of 5 starsLet me paint a picture. Nov. 22, two huge movies rolled out across theaters nationwide. A film about prejudice, horrific violence, and suppression, and also Gladiator II. I had no desire for either of these; the Wicked trailers nearly made me physically ill, and as of writing this, I’ve never seen the original Gladiator. Gladiator II was nothing special.
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Nov 18, 2024 | 
theleadernews.com | Elliott Stewart
Elliott’s rating: ✩ ✩ ✩ /✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩My grandma loves Forrest Gump. I can’t blame her -- it’s a classic. Sprinkled with themes of acceptance and growth, I can see why she would absolutely love the film. However, director Robert Zemeckis has been on a dull road ever since Forrest Gump, putting out mostly forgettable films, like his adaptation of Roald Dahl’s The Witches. More recently, the infamous live-action Pinocchio film, starring Tom Hanks.
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Oct 21, 2024 | 
theleadernews.com | Elliott Stewart
Elliott’s rating: ☆☆☆ ½ /★★★★★Back in elementary school, my school had a program, One Book One School, in which every single student read the exact same book. The book we would end up reading would be the most influential piece of writing I would read in my elementary years: The Wild Robot by Peter Brown. This book was my first introduction to concepts like death, loss, and even emotions like sadness or grief. The book didn’t necessarily make me feel sad, but it definitely made me feel.
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Oct 19, 2024 | 
cairnspost.com.au | Elliott Stewart
NSWDon't miss out on the headlines from NSW. Followed categories will be added to My News. They are the local heroes ditching their togs for a pair of tongs – tasked with serving up the perfect snags for King Charles when he visits Western Sydney for a good old fashioned Aussie barbecue. A team of lucky Surf Life Saving volunteers will serve up a royal sanger at a private BBQ in Parramatta, promising The Sunday Telegraph they will make sure His Majesty “get’s just the right amount of onions”.
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Sep 23, 2024 | 
theleadernews.com | Elliott Stewart
Elliott’s rating: 3 out of 5 starsHow do you pull off a legacy sequel? How can you possibly revisit the past without being pretentious and jaded? It seems like it’s an impossible task, a type of paradox almost. If that’s true, then Beetlejuice Beetlejuice finally cracks the code. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is the sequel to the 1988 classic Beetlejuice, directed by the iconic Tim Burton.
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Aug 19, 2024 | 
theleadernews.com | Elliott Stewart
WARNING- MILD SPOILERSStar rating: 3.5 out of 5 starsMarketing can make or break a film. Without good marketing, an amazing film could go unseen by the majority, which would be tragic. At the same time, a horrible film could be marketed to the moon and back and would end up being seen by the masses. The problem with incredible marketing is there’s no way to see if a movie is as good as promised unless you swallow your pride and watch it.
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Jun 17, 2024 | 
theleadernews.com | Elliott Stewart
Rating: ★★★★★/★★★★★Nostalgia. Not only one of the good feelings, but one of the most blinding. Nostalgia allows someone to experience a small piece of their past and be able to relish in that feeling. Nostalgia gives us heavy rose-tinted glasses on whatever evokes that feeling. As someone who’s barely old enough to be qualified as a Gen Z-er, it's hard to find things to be nostalgic for. When I do find comfort in something, it’s a magical experience.
