After his Jacqueline Kennedy biopic Jackie debuted to thunderous critical applause in 2016, it was inevitable that Pablo Larraín would eventually pursue a follow-up project. The Chilean director is no…
No Time To Die lives up to its staggering expectations
If any word other than “awaited” applies to No Time To Die, the 25th film in the James Bond franchise whose release was delayed five times between 2018 and 2021,…
Old is like a magic trick
For the past two decades, M. Night Shyamalan has steadily put out a new film almost every other year, with most of his defining work being psychological thrillers like Signs…
All Light, Everywhere interrogates surveillance in the justice system
When utilized correctly, the documentary medium can not only be one of the strongest tools for changing a viewer’s beliefs, but also one of the fiercest weapons of truth. The…
Pride Pics 2021 presents the disappointing My First Summer
Portland’s annual queer documentary film festival QDoc was postponed for the second year in a row, due to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. Instead of cancelling the festival altogether, the directors…
20 years later, Shrek is definitely still a movie
I’ll never forget the first time I saw Shrek. Not because it’s my favorite movie of all time or whatever, but because for children born in the early-to-mid 1990s it’s…
Grude Match
Grudge match is a semi-regular series in our Arts & Culture section where two or more Portland State Vanguard contributors debate on a divisive issue in pop culture. This edition…
The Mauritanian is chilling
During a recent NPR interview with Sam Sanders for the Da 5 Bloods press junket, director Spike Lee alluded to something I’d never really considered, and maybe that makes me…
Bros and Bovines on the Oregon frontier
1820, The Oregon Territory. Two men, Cookie (John Magaro) and King-Lu (Orion Lee)—who are struggling to survive in the burgeoning world of the Pacific Northwest—build a business off of fried…
Garbage Day
I want to start by emphasizing the above statement: This is a film where Rutger Hauer—best known for playing Roy Batty in Blade Runner and the titular killer in The…
‘Chameleon Street,’ Fascinating, forgotten and (mostly) factual
Chameleon Street, the only film by writer-director Wendell B. Harris Jr. is, in some ways, a classic American narrative. A young man (Harris) is unsatisfied with his life and decides…