0
Skip to Content
Penn Moviegoer
About Us
Membership
Animated
Drama
Foreign Language
Horror
Superheroes
Events
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
Search
Follow us on Letterboxd
Penn Moviegoer
About Us
Membership
Animated
Drama
Foreign Language
Horror
Superheroes
Events
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
Search
Follow us on Letterboxd
About Us
Membership
Folder: By Genre
Back
Animated
Drama
Foreign Language
Horror
Superheroes
Events
Folder: Archive
Back
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
Search
Follow us on Letterboxd
What Movies Should You See This Year?
Alfred (Red) Joseph 9/15/17 Alfred (Red) Joseph 9/15/17

What Movies Should You See This Year?

Read More
Interview: Gook Director Justin Chon
Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 7/30/17 Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 7/30/17

Interview: Gook Director Justin Chon

Read More
2017 AAIFF Review: Gook
Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 7/30/17 Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 7/30/17

2017 AAIFF Review: Gook

Read More
Has Christopher Nolan Peaked With Dunkirk?
Stephan Cho 7/29/17 Stephan Cho 7/29/17

Has Christopher Nolan Peaked With Dunkirk?

Read More
2017 Asian American International Film Festival–Opening Night
Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 7/28/17 Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 7/28/17

2017 Asian American International Film Festival–Opening Night

Read More
Dear OJ: Made in America , You Don’t Get to Double Dip
Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 7/17/17 Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 7/17/17

Dear OJ: Made in America , You Don’t Get to Double Dip

Read More
Staff Picks: Top 25 Films of the Century
Staci Bell 7/6/17 Staci Bell 7/6/17

Staff Picks: Top 25 Films of the Century

Read More
Review: Political Animals
Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 6/19/17 Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 6/19/17

Review: Political Animals

Read More
Review: Hondros
Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 6/1/17 Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 6/1/17

Review: Hondros

Read More
Bad Rap: Meet the Rappers Shattering Asian American Stereotypes
Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 5/30/17 Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 5/30/17

Bad Rap: Meet the Rappers Shattering Asian American Stereotypes

Read More
Tribeca 2017 Review: Shadowman
Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 5/24/17 Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 5/24/17

Tribeca 2017 Review: Shadowman

Read More
Tribeca 2017 Review: Wasted!
Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 5/23/17 Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 5/23/17

Tribeca 2017 Review: Wasted!

Read More
Baby’s First Cult Classics: The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Stephan Cho 5/1/17 Stephan Cho 5/1/17

Baby’s First Cult Classics: The Rocky Horror Picture Show

Read More
Tribeca 2017 Review: A Suitable Girl
Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 4/29/17 Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright 4/29/17

Tribeca 2017 Review: A Suitable Girl

Read More
Tribeca 2017 Review: Blame
Stephan Cho 4/27/17 Stephan Cho 4/27/17

Tribeca 2017 Review: Blame

Read More
Tribeca 2017: House of Z and Premiere Q&A
Stephan Cho 4/26/17 Stephan Cho 4/26/17

Tribeca 2017: House of Z and Premiere Q&A

Read More
Review: All This Panic
Rebeca Maia 4/24/17 Rebeca Maia 4/24/17

Review: All This Panic

Read More
Baby’s First Cult Classics: The Room
Stephan Cho 4/21/17 Stephan Cho 4/21/17

Baby’s First Cult Classics: The Room

Read More
Review: Free Fire
Daphne Passa 4/20/17 Daphne Passa 4/20/17

Review: Free Fire

Read More
Staff Picks for the MST3K Revival
Staci Bell 4/13/17 Staci Bell 4/13/17

Staff Picks for the MST3K Revival

Read More
Newer Posts
Older Posts

Latest Moviegoer Reviews

Featured
Mr. Sorkin Goes Back to Silicon Valley: Why The Social Reckoning Falls Short
Henry Franklin
Mr. Sorkin Goes Back to Silicon Valley: Why The Social Reckoning Falls Short
Henry Franklin

It’s 2026. The AI arms race is fully underway, and all the major tech players are rolling out new and better generative products. You hear that Aaron Sorkin, the Academy-trophied Tiresias who wrote The Social Network, has penned (and directed) a sequel of sorts that continues the Facebook story.

Then you find out it’s about The Facebook Files, what turned out to be an explosive but less-than-apocalyptic episode in the company’s history, and something within you deflates.

 No one reading this has to imagine that scenario, because it is, of course, what happened.The Social Reckoninghas just hit theaters—and it’s a colossal misfire.

Read more →
Henry Franklin
 Unraveling the Fascist Illusion in The Conformist
Adelaida Siaca-Ortiz
 Unraveling the Fascist Illusion in The Conformist
Adelaida Siaca-Ortiz

Bernardo Bertolucci’s Il Conformista tells the story of fascist spy named Marcello on an assassination mission, as memories from his past haunt him in the present. One of the film’s central ideas is Marcello’s faith in the image of fascist Rome. Bertolucci weakens this image through a distortion of time and space and powerful imagery


Read more →
Adelaida Siaca-Ortiz
The Essential College Back-to-School Movies
The Moviegoer
The Essential College Back-to-School Movies
The Moviegoer

Summer is over once again, and to ring in the new season–and our new members–The Moviegoer lists the best and most iconic college movies (with special emphasis paid to the ones that are about the back to school season). The following fifteen classics are in no particular order.

Read more →
The Moviegoer
Project Hail Mary: 2026’s Hopecore Movie
Lucas Jeffrey
Project Hail Mary: 2026’s Hopecore Movie
Lucas Jeffrey

Project Hail Mary is an adaptation of Andy Weir’s 2021 novel of the same name. It follows science teacher Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling) after he wakes up on a spaceship with no memory of how he got there. As his memory returns, he also gains an unlikely friendship in Rocky the Eridian alien. The acting is great, the screenplay is charming and full of heart, and the visuals are striking.

Read more →
Lucas Jeffrey
From Titane to Longlegs: How Neon Quietly Took Over Horror
Henry Keefer
From Titane to Longlegs: How Neon Quietly Took Over Horror
Henry Keefer

If you asked most people a few years ago who was “winning” indie horror, the answer would've been obvious: A24, of course. But between 2021 and now, something shifted. Not all at once and not always clearly, but deliberately. While A24 horror started to feel scattered, Neon built something more strategic.

What’s interesting is that Neon didn’t start with a clear horror identity at all. It was built over time, and I track that evolution in three distinct pseudo-phases: pre-Titane, post-Titane, and post-Longlegs. Each phase had a different strategy. First it was discovering talent, then experimenting with identity, and finally scaling into something that looks a lot like dominance.

Read more →
Henry Keefer
Ranking the Films of Pasolini
Henry Franklin
Ranking the Films of Pasolini
Henry Franklin

Last year marked the fiftieth anniversary of the death of one of the most important filmmakers of all time. In early November 1975, Pier Paolo Pasolini was murdered. Perhaps the killing was carried out by the militant right-wing group Banda della Magliana–or maybe by an overzealous fan. The case remains open in Rome after the original suspect retracted his confession more than twenty years ago. 

I undertake to rank all twelve of Pasolini’s feature films. Of course, the scope of his oeuvre extends beyond these; I recommend in particular his street documentary Love Meetings and his excellent meta short film La Ricotta. 

Read more →
Henry Franklin
A Brief Defense of "Wuthering Heights"
Luke Weidemoyer
A Brief Defense of "Wuthering Heights"
Luke Weidemoyer

Emerald Fennell said as much herself: "The thing for me is that you can't adapt a book as dense and complicated and difficult as this book. I can't say I'm making ‘Wuthering Heights.’ It's not possible. What I can say is I'm making a version of it." She put the title in quotation marks intentionally, providing a disclaimer that this film is not the classic text. Every adaptation imposes a vision, turning the source material into something else.

Read more →
Luke Weidemoyer
The Oscar Nominees You Haven't Seen
Luke Weidemoyer
The Oscar Nominees You Haven't Seen
Luke Weidemoyer

Even the most devoted cinephiles rarely tune in to the nominees for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Short. Most film buffs, myself included, don’t make it to the short film programs or indie showcases where these films typically screen, and many of them quickly disappear into obscurity after their premieres. Perhaps because of this invisibility, documentary shorts have the potential to carry some of the sharpest political messages in today’s cinema. This year’s nominees certainly exemplify this potential, covering urgent topics like gun violence, war, protest, reproductive rights, and, um, wandering donkeys. Despite their small audiences, these films deserve a closer look. They are brimming with provocative voices, even if this year’s particular batch sometimes fails to stick the landing.

Read more →
Luke Weidemoyer
Nuremberg: Vanderbilt’s Political Mirror
Rishabh Ambavanekar
Nuremberg: Vanderbilt’s Political Mirror
Rishabh Ambavanekar

The new movie Nuremberg attempts to convey the same message, albeit through a more character and relationship-driven lens. The overall theme, though, remains the same: Nazi’s aren’t some abstract villain–they are real, and they are human. 


Read more →
Rishabh Ambavanekar
The Housemaid: A Thriller That Wants to Go Viral More Than It Wants to Breathe
Mark Street
The Housemaid: A Thriller That Wants to Go Viral More Than It Wants to Breathe
Mark Street

There are two different movies inside The Housemaid. One stars Amanda Seyfried, who turns in a performance so surprisingly controlled, so layered, and so quietly unnerving that every time she appears the film sharpens. The other stars Sydney Sweeney, who is asked to anchor the entire story but never finds a pulse for the role. The gap between them becomes the film’s defining tension—and not the kind it intended.


Read more →
Mark Street
Beneath the Skin: Black Swan 15 Years Later
Daniel Knorr
Beneath the Skin: Black Swan 15 Years Later
Daniel Knorr

15 years ago today, Daren Aronofsky’s psychological thriller Black Swan hit theaters for the first time. The film was seen as a return to form for the director, bringing back much of the neurotic style that his infamous 2000 film Requiem for a Dream had–now dressed in the suffocating clothes of ballet instead of drug induced paranoia. In the time between these two films, Aronofsky released the oddball sci-fi film The Fountain (2006) to mixed reviews, and the quiet and candid The Wrestler (2008) to slightly better reception. Both of these films were a stark departure from Aronofsky’s Requiem for a Dream and Aronofsky’s affinity for reveling in his audience's misery. Now 15 years since its release, Black Swan has seen continued life in the misguided discourses of social media comment sections. Before I critique these discourses however, I would like to critically discuss the film detached from its legacy and reception. 


Read more →
Daniel Knorr
Is This Thing On?: What Bradley Cooper Really Needed
Lucas Jeffrey
Is This Thing On?: What Bradley Cooper Really Needed
Lucas Jeffrey

Is This Thing On? stars Will Arnett as a middle-aged father going through a divorce who finds solace in stand-up comedy. And while, yes, Alex (Arnett) may not be particularly great at stand-up (to begin the film, anyway), the movie is surprisingly very funny. I walked in with relatively low expectations, assuming I’d get a laugh here or there, but I was laughing constantly through the movie.

Read more →
Lucas Jeffrey
Kiss of the Spider Woman: A Meta-Musical That Strangles On Its Own Threads
Henry Keefer
Kiss of the Spider Woman: A Meta-Musical That Strangles On Its Own Threads
Henry Keefer

For all its chaos, Kiss of the Spider Woman commits. Hard. Condon isn’t phoning it in, he’s trying to capture something much bigger than this movie can contain. It’s a movie about escaping, and even if the fantasy starts to collapse, I can still feel the ambition.


Read more →
Henry Keefer
Richard Linklater’s Big Year: Nouvelle Vague and Blue Moon
Henry Franklin
Richard Linklater’s Big Year: Nouvelle Vague and Blue Moon
Henry Franklin

This year, Linklater opened and closed the festival season with two films: Blue Moon, which hit stateside cinemas this past weekend, and Nouvelle Vague (to be released theatrically on Halloween and then streaming on Netflix, the film’s US distributor, by the middle of next month). Though radically different formally and thematically, both films freeze exquisite moments in time—evoking more than just texture and sound, but a feeling of living in a time and place divorced very much from our own.

 


Read more →
Henry Franklin
One Battle After Another: PTA’s Shockingly Poignant Popcorn Blockbuster 
Matthew Noriega
One Battle After Another: PTA’s Shockingly Poignant Popcorn Blockbuster 
Matthew Noriega

One Battle After Another is less clearly About Something as it is About a Multitude of Things. I left the theater thoroughly speechless, not necessarily because I was so gobsmacked by the film, but rather because there was so much to pull at that I couldn’t really discern what to focus on. 


Read more →
Matthew Noriega
Ranking the Films of Fernando Di Leo’s Milieu Trilogy
Arica Himmel
Ranking the Films of Fernando Di Leo’s Milieu Trilogy
Arica Himmel

In Di Leo’s trilogy, you’ll instantly recognize the stunt dummies. You’ll also notice that most characters getting riddled with bullets never bleed; when they do, the blood is comically bright red. As funny as this was, it was still somewhat unsettling for me to watch—but also slightly refreshing. I’m glad that technology has progressed, but I don’t know if I’m ever dying to see what it’s like when someone's head is “properly” blown off.

Read more →
Arica Himmel
Why Luca Guadagnino Got Snubbed at the 2025 Oscars
Luke Weidemoyer
Why Luca Guadagnino Got Snubbed at the 2025 Oscars
Luke Weidemoyer

Luca Guadagnino is no stranger to critical acclaim - or Oscar snubs. In 2024, the Italian director delivered two strikingly different but equally lauded films: Challengers, a steamy, slow-burn tennis romance, and Queer, a moody adaptation of the William S. Burroughs novella. Both films were praised by critics, yet neither received a single Oscar nomination.

Read more →
Luke Weidemoyer
In The Shadow of The Brutalist
Luke Weidemoyer
In The Shadow of The Brutalist
Luke Weidemoyer

Yes, The Brutalist is long. It’s pretentious. It’s ambitious and unapologetically grand. But this is what makes it interesting. It’s a film that forces you to bear witness to an unchecked ego and sit with that discomfort. Far from being a stock tale of genius, the film is a complex (and flawed) meditation on the forces that can elevate and destroy a man.

Read more →
Luke Weidemoyer
How I Finally Understood The Substance
Allie Frydrych
How I Finally Understood The Substance
Allie Frydrych

I didn’t like The Substance at first, likely because I was trying to avoid the reality that most women, indeed, are victims. That conversations around women’s bodies go beyond mere comments or jokes—they compose our being. They dictate how long others deem us worthwhile partners or employees. They tell us to spend our New Year’s at the gym instead of with our families. To spend that extra minute dawdling in front of the bathroom mirror. To gawk when we see a woman over 60 on our movie screen. And that no matter how good at your job you are, everyone is talking about your boobs.

Read more →
Allie Frydrych
A Face in the Crowd: Prescience at What Cost?
Henry Franklin
A Face in the Crowd: Prescience at What Cost?
Henry Franklin

There is one film, though, that I believe deserves the modern parallels it often invokes: A Face in the Crowd. Released in 1957 to moderate acclaim, the film is the work of Hollywood envelope-pusher Elia Kazan and screenwriter and novelist Budd Schulberg, whose eponymous collection of short stories the film is based on. A Face in the Crowd focuses on the meteoric rise of a jailbird from Arkansas.

Read more →
Henry Franklin

The Moviegoer is a student-run organization at the University of Pennsylvania dedicated to film and media criticism. Our mission is to provide insightful coverage of popular culture, written by and for the Penn community. We publish articles on our website and on social media, organize screening events for our members, and hold weekly meetings in the Kelly Writer’s House–open to all. The Moviegoer seeks to provide a safe and inviting space for writers and movie buffs to come together and share their opinions.

Interested in joining The Moviegoer? Get in touch.

Search for movie reviews, show recaps, streaming recommendations, indie film analysis and coverage of popular culture from The University of Pennsylvania’s Moviegoer Club:

No results found

The Moviegoer is generously sponsored by The Kelly Writers House

The University of Pennsylvania 2015 - 2025 | Site Map | 🔒Moviegoer Board