FilmTran

By Keegan Tran Am I dumb? Do I just not get it? You're telling me a movie shot nearly 40% at night with no lighting who's subtitles read "grunting" for a vast amount of its runtime is being lauded by many film critics as one of the best films of 2020? In the same way we're allowed to give in to our innate urges and blindly enjoy superhero films, considered to be "low-brow" filmmaking; so to are we to renounce unenjoyable, pretentious drivel. Often times I describe the films produced under the A24 banner as "peculiar caucasian characters played by big name actors acting peculiarly", a sentiment encapsulated by First Cow almost to a T (sans a Chinese lead). There's certainly fun to be had with our two leads, but it hardly justifies seeing the film through to completion. Look, I don't hate "First Cow". And I don't want the takeaway from this article to be "I didn't enjoy First Cow, so there's no way you did eithe...

By Keegan Tran In a year devoid of traditional theatrical releases due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the film and television landscape was changed immeasurably. Wonder Woman 1984, Trolls World Tour, and Christopher Nolan's Tenet have fundamentally changed the way studios and theater chains approach releases. Studios scrambled to adjust their release calendars and salvage their investments by transitioning to streaming. However, 2020 stands as a phenomenal year for film and television, from big budget superhero titles to quaint indie productions. Join editor in chief Keegan Tran, senior writer Greetan Kan, and managing editor Neeran Gran for Filmtran's top film and television of 2020. As we are a small operation, it's important to note that this is an incomplete sampling of the year's releases, and as film's such as Minari and Nomadland become more easily viewable, we may amend this list. Honorable Mentions #Alive By all counts a traditional zombie movie; a fun premise a...

By Keegan Tran With 2019 wrapping (both Gregorian and Lunar) we at FilmTran compiled a list of the greatest film and television titles of the year. While the list obviously doesn't include every single show or film from 2019, we'll add redactions at the bottom for all 2019 items watched and added from 2020 onward. Join editor in chief Keegan Tran, senior writer Treegan Kan, and intern Koogan Tarn for their list - ranked in no particular order. Demon Slayer Frozen 2 Ad Astra Stranger Things 3 Mindhunter Season 2 Hustlers Little Women Doctor Sleep And the years ULTIMATE best films and shows. We agreed that if we could keep these three titles and erase every other piece of visual media from 2019 we'd be okay with that. Parasite Waves HBO's Watchmen 

 By Keegan Tran I’d like to push this blog further into niche obscurity.                 It isn’t uncommon to hear people talk about Evangelion and Twin Peaks in similar veins. Both represent hugely transformative pieces in their respective mediums, and both have a proclivity towards the cheesy, often slapstick foundations they were built on.                 I’ve tried on many occasions to watch Evangelion, but would drop the show every time. Much like the Sopranos or Citizen Kane I recognized its importance but could never get myself to enjoy it on its own merits. However, in 2020, shortly after it’s addition to Netflix (I know I know; Netflix’s treatment of the Japanese translation is considerably contentious) I decided to give it another shot. I had recently watched HBO’s Watchmen, some random re-runs of Twi...

     Josh Brolin’s prowess as a film actor is both unquestionable and well-proven, appearing in films adored by critics and audiences alike. Why then, do we so rarely see his name alongside performers of equivalent skill; the DiCaprio’s and Gyllenhaal’s. With roles as far back as 1985’s The Goonies, and 21 Jump Street two years later, Brolin is no stranger to the big screen. The mid 2000’s represented a resurgence in his career, appearing in Grindhouse, Planet Terror, and a leading role in the Coehn Brothers’ No Country for Old Men, which is widely regarded as a modern classic. Representing Brolin’s largest critical success at the time, he was shockingly overlooked come awards season. Despite No Country winning numerous Oscars, Golden Globes, and BAFTAs, Brolin’s name remains oddly absent less a SAG win for “Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture,” an aggregate category that he would share with six other actors (including Tess Harper with a collective si...