“Zombieland: Double Tap” opens today in theaters. Right from the opening credits, you know you’re in for more  irreverent humor a la 2009’s “Zombieland”. It starts with the Columbia lady on her pedestal using the torch to beat down two zombies attacking her. There is also a voice-over from Jesse Eisenberg, thanking audiences for choosing this form of zombie viewing from all those available. The bar is set low enough in this sequel, as one critic put it, to step over it handily. This is a continuation of the fearsome foursome that roamed the Apocalyptic land in 2009, with Woody Harrelson... Read More

In March 2018, local filmmakers Scott Beck and Bryan Woods were still relatively unknown, although that was about to change. The duo, who grew up in Bettendorf and currently reside in Los Angeles, were about to skyrocket to stardom with a little film they’d written called “A Quiet Place.”   Beck and Woods have since made another film, “Haunt,” which is available on DVD and streaming services, and have a number of other projects in the works.   However, before that all happened, the duo were happy to sit down for an interview with me at the South By Southwest Festival.... Read More

In March 2018, national film writer Connie Corcoran Wilson had the opportunity to interview former Quad-Cities filmmakers Scott Beck and Bryan Woods for her blog, http://www.weeklywilson.com. Connie currently regularly contributes to QuadCities.com and has offered us the chance to run her interview with them here. Two Q-C natives, Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, won over the SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas, this weekend as the film they wrote, “A Quiet Place,” opened the festival and wowed audiences. The duo began making films as teenagers in Bettendorf, moved on to create a number of short films... Read More

“Running with Beto,” the HBO documentary that will air on HBO in early spring, was screened at its World Premiere at the Paramount Theater in Austin this morning (March 9) and a rapt crowd of supporters got to see Beto O’Rourke, his wife Amy, and their daughter Molly up-close-and-personal during a Q&A after the film screened. I was seated in the third row on the right when a large group of people began ascending the stairs that lead to the stage there. The tallest of the group, hunched over so as not to block the credits then running, was Beto O’Rourke, who managed a small wave to those... Read More

“Office Space” is that rare film that grew from a less-than-stellar opening to become one of the most loved (and rented) films in history. It has gained fans around the world, its popularity spreading via word-of-mouth, since the unfortunate “Big Bird” poster advertising the film was considered a major faux pas at the time. (It depicted the character Milton with yellow post-it notes all over his body.)   On the occasion of “Office Space’s” twentieth anniversary and also in conjunction with inducting Director Mike Judge (“Beavis & Butthead” creator) into the Texas Hall... Read More

Two Q-C natives, Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, won over the SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas, this weekend as the film they wrote, “A Quiet Place,” opened the festival and wowed audiences. The duo began making films as teenagers in Bettendorf, moved on to create a number of short films that won regional acclaim and worked on a number of projects around the area (including short films with QuadCities.com co-owner Sean Leary and columnist Tristan Tapscott) before heading to Hollywood. After a decade on the coast, things have started to break in a huge way for them, and we were happy to meet up with... Read More

Cast:  Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, Danny McBride, Demián Bichir, Carmen Ejogo, Jussie Smollett, Callie Hernandez, Amy Seimetz, Nathaniel Dean, Alexander England, Uli Latukefu, Tess Haubrich, James Franco, Guy Pearce Director:  Ridley Scott Writers: based on characters created by Dan O’Bannon and Ronald Shusett. Story by Jack Paglen and Michael Green. Screenplay by John Logan and Dante harper. Length:  2 hrs., 2 mins. “Alien: Covenant,” which opened May 18th, marks a return to form for Ridley Scott and the “Alien” franchise. I Ridley Scott is The Man in... Read More

In preparing a list of “the greatest” of anything, you are limited by your own exposure to the films (i.e., ‘Did you see these movies?”)  If you did see them, do you remember all of them? Fortunately for those of you longing for a political fix that isn’t nauseating (but actually entertaining), I have personally seen every single movie on this list—some of them more than once. I concentrated on the American political experience, not that of another country. For that reason, films like “Z” by Costa-Gravas, or his equally impressive “Missing” (Chile) or Helen Mirren’s“The... Read More

This is part of film critic Connie Wilson’s exclusive coverage of the SXSW Film Festival for QuadCities.com. “Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press” from Director/Screenwriter Brian Knappenberger @ SXSW Genre:  Documentary Feature Length:  95 minutes Writer/Director:  Brian Knappenberger Principal Cast:  Nick Denton, A.J. Daulario, John Cook, David Folkenflick, Floyd Abrams, Peter Sterne, David Houston, Margaret Sullivan, Jay Rosen, John L. Smith Review:  Connie Wilson   The trial between wrestler Hulk Hogan and Gawker Media pitted privacy rights against freedom of the press, but... Read More

Muppet Guys Talking: Secrets Behind the Show the Whole World Watched Genre: Documentary Length:  65 minutes Cast:  Jerry Nelson, Dave Goelz, Fran Brill, Bill Barretta, Frank Oz Reviewer:  Connie Wilson In 1955, creative genius Jim Henson created a troop of puppets known as The Muppets. By 1978 The Muppets” was the most-watched television show in history, with 235 million viewers in 102 countries, according to “Time” magazine. Henson’s untimely death at age 53 in 1990 left right-hand man Frank Oz (real last name: Oznowicz) more-or-less in charge of the troop, which came to fame on “Sesame... Read More