Morbidly Beautiful

1 week ago | morbidlybeautiful.com | Stephanie Malone |Kelly Mintzer

“Fast Times at Ridgemont High” birthed a teen movie renaissance, where a very young Nicolas (pre-) Cage got his start in a barely-there role. It’s Cameo Cage this week, as we check off films that our man is technically in… but just barely. It started with a “gift” from the Random Number Generator, Cage’s directorial debut, Sonny, in which he makes a small but memorable cameo.

1 week ago | morbidlybeautiful.com | Stephanie Malone

Kevin Smith’s “Dogma” is a bold, sharp, and witty religious satire with a devout cult following that’s still divine 25 years later. With its upcoming theatrical re-release and 4K restoration, this is an ideal moment to revisit the strengths, subversive intelligence, and pitch-perfect combination of heart and humor that have made Dogma such an enduring standout in Kevin Smith’s career.

2 weeks ago | morbidlybeautiful.com | Stephanie Malone

In the mesmerizing “A Desert”, the search for lost beauty becomes a dark descent through the literal and metaphorical wilderness. Two decades after its premiere, I am finally discovering for myself what made the mesmerizing show Lost such a cultural phenomenon in the early 2000s. I’ve become obsessed with the clever and profound way the show plays with the idea of being lost, both literally and metaphorically. A Desert is a stunning, devastating exploration of that duality.

3 weeks ago | morbidlybeautiful.com | Stephanie Malone

“Final Destination: Bloodlines” is a sequel that understands the assignment: honor the past, fix the messes, and deliver a killer good time. By now, we all know the rules: cheat death, and it’ll come back swinging—with a nail gun, a rogue escalator, a penetrating pool drain, or any number of exceedingly nasty and impossible-to-predict final blows. But Final Destination: Bloodlines, the long-awaited sixth installment and franchise rebirth, doesn’t just play by the rules.

3 weeks ago | morbidlybeautiful.com | Stephanie Malone |Kelly Mintzer

Nicolas Cage’s directorial debut “Sonny” is a grim, Southern noir about a tortured gigolo, soaked in sleaze and wildly uneven ambition. We’ve watched a lot of bad movies for the Cage Match. This must be understood, or nothing that follows will have the appropriate impact. I know bad movies. I’ve seen bad movies. And I know that Nicolas Cage Bad Movies are usually a different kind of bad. So I went into Sonny, Cage’s directorial debut, prepared for garbage. But friends.