Zachary Lee

Chicago

Articles

Ji-Young Yoo is a fighter and a lover in 'Freaky Tales'

1 week ago | joysauce.com | Zachary Lee

When directors create films that serve as “love letters” to their hometowns, I don’t expect sword-wielding basketball players and punk rock warriors to factor in their stories, but that’s just one of the ways directors Anna Boden’s and Ryan Fleck’s Freaky Tales, which premiered at Sundance in 2024 and was released in theaters earlier this month, distinguishes itself from other cinematic tributes.
‎‘Sinners’ review by Zachary Lee • Letterboxd

1 week ago | letterboxd.com | Zachary Lee

“You want some?”More to say about the film’s spiritual stance, particularly how it harmonizes Christianity with hoodoo spirituality and the orisha (see: mojo bag, John the Conquerer). Love the way Coogler creates not just sympathy for the devil but gives them a whole culture.
4K UHD Review: Thief

1 week ago | undertheradarmag.com | Zachary Lee

Web Exclusive Few directors can claim a directorial debut as kinetic and pulse-pounding as Michael Mann. His 1981 film Thief, recently re-released in 4K UHD by the Criterion Collection, is not only one of the best thrillers crafted, but it comes as a fully-formed project, whose world and characters are fleshed out.
'Eric LaRue' cast and director discuss spirituality and symbolism in the film

1 week ago | ncronline.org | Zachary Lee |Maxwell Kuzma

Michael Shannon's directorial debut calls to mind the words of the apostle Paul in the book of Romans: "rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep." An adaptation of Brett Neveu's 2002 play of the same name, "Eric LaRue" follows the emotional journeys of parents Janice (Judy Greer) and Ron LaRue (Alexander Skarsgård) in the wake of a deadly school shooting committed by their own teenage son, Eric.
Director Alex Scharfman on Unicorn Mythology and Corporate Greed

1 month ago | interviewmagazine.com | Zachary Lee |Jake Nevins

Whatever preconceived notions about unicorns you may have, nothing will prepare you for director Alex Scharfman’s addition to their long-standing lore with A24’s Death of a Unicorn. More so resembling chimeras or griffins, Scharfman’s unicorns, novel but familiar, prowl like panthers, with eyes like snakes and talons like eagles.
Director Andrew DeYoung on Terence Malick, Marvel Fandom, and Male Loneliness

1 month ago | interviewmagazine.com | Zachary Lee |Jake Nevins

Director Andrew DeYoung’s laugh-a-minute comedy Friendship might just be one of the most spiritual movies of the year. That’s not to say that it name-checks the divine or that its characters are deeply religious. Rather, the types of questions it explores about how our identities are inherently shaped by the community around us and how overzealous fandom warps our ability to be in true community are fundamentally soulful.
Director Mimi Cave on Housewives, "Holland," and the Hyperreal

1 month ago | interviewmagazine.com | Zachary Lee |Jake Nevins

Few directors have been able to dissect the secrets that lurk beneath well-meaning visages as deliciously as Mimi Cave. Cave’s filmography consists of eerie music videos (“And Saints” by Sleigh Bells) and equally disquieting short films (Vessel), and her first feature, the 2022 thriller Fresh, was the perfect distillation of all of her artistic sensibilities.
Finding a Way Home: AndrĂ© Holland Never Rests

1 month ago | rogerebert.com | Zachary Lee

Few actors can command the screen with such sincerity and passion as André Holland. His visage is a home for a host of emotions to make their residency and whether he's working with seasoned directors like Barry Jenkins and Steven Soderbergh or first-time directors like Titus Kaphar and Rachael Abigail Holder, he gives his all, not so much playing his characters as much as he embodies him holistically.
Flying Lotus Takes Us Inside His Body Horror Space Odyssey

1 month ago | interviewmagazine.com | Zachary Lee |Jake Nevins

To say that Ash, the latest directorial effort from the man born Steven D. Bingley-Ellison but better known as Flying Lotus, is his most coherent film to date isn’t saying much. FlyLo’s first film, Kuso, premiered at Sundance in 2017 and focused on Los Angeles mainstays who must adapt to life after a catastrophic earthquake. The catch? It’s all told through a series of four increasingly depraved commercials and vignettes that play on various TV sets.
Flying Lotus Takes Us Inside His Body Horror Space Odyssey

1 month ago | flipboard.com | Zachary Lee

6 hours agoAt this point in the Trump administration, we must assume that many Democrats approve of the White House’s agenda and want it to continue. How else could we possibly understand their feckless attempts at disruption and protest in the face of a president who’s dismantling the American government, …