The Spool

The Spool is a lively and insightful platform dedicated to covering film and television. It aims to provide a variety of thoughtful perspectives that help audiences better appreciate the media they enjoy. Originally known as Alcohollywood, a film website started in 2011 by podcast hosts Clint Worthington and Jared Latore, The Spool is based in Chicago. It offers a rich mix of content, including reviews, interviews, and festival reports, covering both new releases and timeless classics.

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Revival gives its source material a worthy new life

2 weeks ago | thespool.net | Tim Stevens

What if, one day, scores of the dead came back to life with seemingly no explanation? Not as rotting, flesh-devouring monstrosity spreading disease in their death, but as if they’d never left? What if they looked the same and sounded the same but healed instantly, had incredible strength, and appeared to no longer need to sleep? Would we see it as a miracle? Or a threat? That’s the question behind the Aaron B. Koontz and Luke Boyce adaptation of the Tim Seeley/Mike Norton comic series .
Echo Valley crushed by its two sides

2 weeks ago | thespool.net | Tim Stevens |Michael Pearce

In the 90s, I was very into films laden with twists, in which the final denouement would recap exactly the way the story had unfolded behind the scenes you saw up until then. I prided myself on finding the lesser-known entries in this subgenre and championing them. So keep that in mind when I write has the feel of the kind of movie a teenage me might have found on the shelves at Blockbuster and fallen in love with.
Predator: Killer of Killers can’t slay all its predecessors but stands tall among them

3 weeks ago | thespool.net | Tim Stevens

There’s something so gloriously simple about the Predator. An intergalactic big game hunter that roams the universe, taking on the greatest killers of that planet of that era. Given its simplicity, it is galling how often media has struggled to deliver on its promise. Thankfully, is one that largely gets it right. After the triumph of , Dan Trachtenberg returns for another hunt as co-director, alongside Joshua Wassung, and co-story by credit with the film’s screenwriter, Micho Robert Rutare.
Stick plays mostly for par

3 weeks ago | thespool.net | Tim Stevens

In AppleTV+’s new comedy from Jason Keller, much is made of the difference between playing golf the smart way versus a more hig h-risk, high-reward style. The implication is that there is a time for both. Too much of one, and you end up a competent but boring player who never achieves glory. Too much of the other, and you’re a thrill to watch. Unfortunately, you’ll end up in the sand at least as often as you hoist the trophy.
An unpleasant but compelling climb to Mountainhead

3 weeks ago | thespool.net | Tim Stevens |Jesse Armstrong

Imagine being trapped in a geometric monstrosity on a mountain with four of the worst people you have ever known. Now imagine they are richer than anyone you’ve ever met. And yet, they’re just witty enough that their trash talk is a bit more complex than typical. That gets you, broadly, to the experience of the first feature film from writer/director Jesse Armstrong.
The Better Sister could’ve been a better show

4 weeks ago | thespool.net | Tim Stevens

With turns in TV thriller series like and (and arguably, to a lesser extent, ), Jessica Biel has carved out an impressive career second act playing possibly morally, if not legally, compromised protagonist. is the latest entry in that canon, one that finds her standing shoulders above the end result. It is fitting that came out the same day as as both feature a corps of good performances undone by their respective shows’ insistence on valuing plot mechanics above the characters.
Dept Q leaves you as cold as its case

4 weeks ago | thespool.net | Tim Stevens

From the moment we meet Matthew Goode as Detective Carl Morck in , it’s clear what we’re in for. Goode, his impossibly handsome self unconvincingly hidden behind a slightly unmanaged salt and pepper beard and loose clothes, is a protagonist in the Dr. House (of fame) model. One might expect House’s inspiration, Sherlock Holmes, would be the better comparison. However, while Morck is a crime solver, his reflexive disdain for others is pure House.
Adults still hasn’t quite arrived

1 month ago | thespool.net | Tim Stevens

Every 10 or so years, it seems as though American television owes the public a show about friends in their 20s hanging out and trying to make that transition from college life to full-out adulthood. For younger people, they’re aspirational. For people in their 20s, they’re relatable if only in the sense of found family and not yet found equilibrium. And for people beyond that age, there’s a sense of nostalgia. Or, perhaps, a bit of “well we did it better” resentment.
Fear Street: Prom Queen doesn’t deserve a crown or scepter

1 month ago | thespool.net | Tim Stevens |Matt Palmer

One of the least helpful or pleasant ways to critique film that you’ll see quite a bit online is someone asking, “Who is this for?” The person asking it usually means, “This movie isn’t for me, so how could it be worth making?” I acknowledge this. And yet I ask, “Who is for?”To be clear, it isn’t my intention to be dismissive. I’m just genuinely struggling to figure out its intended audience.
Resist the temptation of Sirens song

1 month ago | thespool.net | Tim Stevens

At a certain point, all the tales of rich people misbehaving but showcasing strong actors start to blend together. Are The Perfect Couple, Nine Perfect Strangers, Apples Never Fall, The Undoing, and this latest, the Molly Smith Meltzer-created the same show? Judging by plot, very much not. And yet, you’d be forgiven for confusing any number of them with any number of others. is, broadly, a tale of two sisters.