Megan Bianco| San Clemente Times

At the Movies: ‘Doctor Sleep’ Has Some Shine

By Megan Bianco Filmmaker Mike Flanagan’s Doctor Sleep has to be one of the biggest examples of stories referred to as “the most unnecessary sequel…

Letters to the Editor, SOAPBOX

Letter to the Editor: Brava, Ms. Bianco

ELLEN GADDIE, San Clemente I look forward to every “At the Movies” column by Megan Bianco. Her reviews are thorough and have convinced me more…

At the Movies, GETTING OUT

At the Movies: ‘Parasite’

By Megan Bianco Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite is a film about two families, one very poor and one very rich. But then again, it isn’t. There…

At the Movies, GETTING OUT

At the Movies: ‘The Lighthouse’ is for the Artsy and Spooky

By Megan Bianco There really are two types of movie viewers. There are those who live and breathe film, absorb the history and production aspects…

At the Movies, GETTING OUT

At the Movies: ‘Pain and Glory’ Has a Lot of the Latter

By Megan Bianco Pedro Almodovar’s latest film, Pain and Glory, is said to be influenced by Federico Fellini’s 8 ½ (1963). This is redundant and…

At the Movies, GETTING OUT

At the Movies: ‘Dolemite is My Name’ and Then Some

By Megan Bianco While folks at Netflix still pride themselves on being pioneers of online streaming for movie viewing, they are also finally seeing that…

At the Movies, GETTING OUT

At the Movies: ‘Joker’ Causes a Big Question Mark

By Megan Bianco One question that has been on some people’s minds for the past year or so is, why are we getting a stand-alone…

At the Movies, GETTING OUT

At the Movies: ‘Judy’s’ End of the Rainbow

By Megan Bianco Judy Garland is one of the most famous and beloved women to ever live. Because of this, she has been the subject…

At the Movies, GETTING OUT

At the Movies: ‘The Souvenir’ is a Keeper for Star and Director

By Megan Bianco Filmmaker Joanna Hogg claims that she never allowed her lead actress to see the full script for her recent film, The Souvenir….

At the Movies, GETTING OUT

At the Movies: ‘Amazing Grace’ Lives Up to Its Name

By Megan Bianco In 1972, Warner Bros. hired filmmaker Sydney Pollack to shoot footage of a small two-day concert that featured legendary soul singer Aretha…

At the Movies, GETTING OUT

At the Movies: ‘High Life’ for the High Brow

By Megan Bianco Claire Denis is one of the most treasured exports to come out of French cinema, from the foreign classics Chocolate (1988), Beau…

At the Movies, GETTING OUT

At the Movies: ‘Diane’ Earns Indie Acclaim

By Megan Bianco As we continue into the spring season, the dry movie spell that we’re usually subjected to at the end of winter finally…

At the Movies, GETTING OUT

At the Movies: ‘The Mustang’ is a Dark Ride

By Megan Bianco Horse-centered films have become such a novelty with family-friendly content and little girls’ interests that when a horse movie for grown-ups comes…