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Frank J. Avella

Tomatometer-approved critic
Biography:

Frank J. Avella is an award-winning playwright, screenwriter and film journalist. His plays include FROCI and VATICAN FALLS, screenplays include LURED and CONSENT. Short film: FIG JAM. He is a staff writer for The Contending and a contributor for Edge Media Network. Frank is a member of the New York Film Critics Online and the East Coast Rep for GALECA - The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics. He's a proud queer Italian-American.

Reviews

Movies 온라인카지노추천 Shows
Went Up the Hill (2024) 88% B “Went Up The Hill is supernatural weirdness personified and never really allows for a satisfying conclusion, but the two leads keep us enthralled throughout.” – The Contending Apr 17, 2025 Full Review The Good Teacher (2024) B “The Good Teacher explores some timely and perspicacious themes including just how easy it is to soil a reputation and destroy a life in today’s fearful and careful climate.” – The Contending Apr 17, 2025 Full Review Blood Ring 2 (1995) A- “And the key reason the film leaps into the stratosphere is the truly remarkable central performance by Sam Reilly...Here he navigates the complexities of an artist with a healthy ego and creative drive whose self-esteem isn’t as sturdy as one would think” – The Contending Apr 17, 2025 Full Review On Swift Horses (2024) 52% B “Even at two hours, Daniel Minahan’s evocative, slow-burn Noirish drama, On Swift Horses, feels way too short...I wanted more time to spend with these fascinating characters so I could be more invested in their respective journeys.” – The Contending Apr 17, 2025 Full Review Sandbag Dam (2025) A- “Bravo to all the creatives involved in Sandbag Dam for telling an urgent and important story and never making it feel like a polemic...” – The Contending Apr 8, 2025 Full Review Some Nights I Feel Like Walking (2024) B “Petersen Vargas’s funky, evocative new feature mesmerizes from start to finish, even when the narrative is a bit confusing and meandering. The film has a dream-like (sometimes nightmarish) quality blended with gritty realism..” – The Contending Apr 8, 2025 Full Review Blue Lights (2024) B+ “Santa Ana is deft at authentic dialogue and engaging conflicts. Here he captures the differing generational approaches to socially aware issues, and he explores how love and desire change as you get older. ” – The Contending Apr 8, 2025 Full Review 300letters (2025) A- “300 Letters is one of the more significant queer-themed films on the recent festival circuit and should be required viewing for anyone so immersed in their bubble world they find themselves feeling superior to others.” – The Contending Apr 8, 2025 Full Review The Wedding Banquet (2025) 88% B “Oscar-winner Youn Yuh-Jung delivers such a lovely, nuanced performance in Andrew Ahn’s The Wedding Banquet, that no matter it’s faults, the film is more than worth seeing to watch the truly magical transformation of her character.” – The Contending Apr 8, 2025 Full Review October 8 (2024) 72% A “October 8 should be required viewing for all college and university students and everyone who ever posted or reposted anything about Gaza and the conflict.” – The Contending Mar 27, 2025 Full Review Picture Mommy Dead (1966) D “Directed with little suspense by Bert I. Gordon and written by Robert Sherman, Picture Mommy Dead was panned when it was released in 1966, and I completely understand why.” – The Contending Mar 25, 2025 Full Review Endless Night (1972) B- “Besides Bennett, the film boasts excellent performances by Swedish actor Per Oscarsson as Michael’s dying architect buddy and the great George Sanders (Oscar winner for All About Eve) as Ellie’s uncle Andrew, who isn’t really her uncle.” – The Contending Mar 25, 2025 Full Review Diary of a Chambermaid (1964) 88% B “The film is most fascinating thanks to Moreau and her supporting cast, never overplaying the satire and striking just the right chords to show us a society on the verge of choices that will lead to a kind of madness... ” – The Contending Mar 25, 2025 Full Review The Tenth Victim (1965) 83% A- “This distinctive and perspicacious film boasts fab mod, pop-art photography by Gianni Di Venanzo and a groovy ‘60s score by Piero Piccioni. The film’s look exists more in a post-Bond era milieu melded with Ancient Rome.” – The Contending Mar 25, 2025 Full Review Gladiator II (2024) 70% B- “There are hints of what Gladiator II could have been in the more intimate scenes between star Paul Mescal and Connie Nielsen–thanks to the actors, not the leaden script which insists on keeping their relationship as black and white as possible.” – The Contending Mar 25, 2025 Full Review The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996) 68% B “...what makes the film soar—and it does, often—are the performances led by an absolutely commanding Davis. Jackson is no slouch either. This is one of his best turns. ” – The Contending Mar 25, 2025 Full Review Ho! (1968) B- “There are some fun moments in this neo-noir wannabe but the only reason to stay the course is Belmondo, who makes even the dullest sequences watchable. ” – The Contending Mar 25, 2025 Full Review Half a Chance (1998) B- “Delon and Belmondo have great chemistry together and when you add Paradis into the mix, it’s pretty magical—although her Kewpie doll demeanor takes some getting used to. ” – The Contending Mar 25, 2025 Full Review The Black Tulip (1964) B “The ridiculously handsome Delon is perfectly dashing in both roles... Delon was a true cinematic force and watching him at the very beginning of a remarkable career is a treat.” – The Contending Mar 25, 2025 Full Review Choose Me (1984) 95% B+ “To fully appreciate an Alan Rudolph film, one has to accept the bizarre, atmospheric, off-putting yet intoxicating world he creates. The moody visual style and evocative score offset by an overly dramatic and darkly comic narrative. ” – The Contending Mar 25, 2025 Full Review The Wages of Fear (1953) 100% A “To say it’s an extraordinary sit is not doing justice to this the nail-biting, anxiety-inducing, nihilistic look at the world.” – The Contending Mar 25, 2025 Full Review Queen of the Ring (2024) 73% A- “Rikards, in a true star-making turn, sets the screen ablaze as Millie. It’s a hell of a showcase for a thesp mostly known for Arrowverse shows on The CW.” – The Contending Mar 3, 2025 Full Review Cleaner (2025) 50% B- “What makes Martin Campbell’s Cleaner such an entertaining ride is the central performance by Daisy Ridley...Yes, it’s the usual ‘disillusioned-therefore-reluctant-hero’ role but she gives it more depth than usual.” – The Contending Feb 24, 2025 Full Review Bring Them Down (2024) 90% B “Bring Them Down is an unrelentingly grim look at what happens when assumptions are made and communication breaks down between already angry and distrusting people—in particular, men—who feel the world owes them something. ” – The Contending Feb 24, 2025 Full Review Seven Veils (2023) 77% B+ “(Atom Egoyan’s) latest film is expertly led by the gifted Amanda Seyfried, who fearlessly delves into the psyche of a woman deeply damaged by her past, bent on purging her demons through art.” – The Contending Feb 24, 2025 Full Review
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