Critically Acclaimed #84: Toy Story 4, Child's Play and Annabelle Comes Home!

It's a cavalcade of all-new movie reviews on this week's CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED!

Film critics William Bibbiani and Witney Seibold catch up on the new releases "Toy Story 4," "Child's Play," "Annabelle Comes Home," "Anna," "Ophelia" and "Endzeit" on the latest episode of the podcast, as they gear up for next week's big episode, with their picks for the best movies of the year so far!

Give it a listen!

Witney Seibold Reviews 'Midsommar'

"Midsommar," Ari Aster's follow-up to "Hereditary," evokes "The Wicker Man" and, like its predecessor, a whole lot of emotional angst. It's a harrowing film with a slow pace and a lot of wailing and weeping. And, yes, it will eventually explode into violence, even as the Swedish citizens remain placid and smiling. 

In his review of "Midsommar" on IGN, Witney Seibold calls "Midsommar" a "languorous and meticulously crafted slow-burn horror films about real-life grief interrupted by encroaching, unexpected outerworld dread." It's a film of emotional isolation, but, unfortunately, it has some of the same structural problems as "Hereditary." 

Read: Witney Seibold Reviews "Midsommar" at IGN 

Top Image: A24

Canceled Too Soon #153: Gene Roddenberry's Spectre (1977)

Everyone knows Gene Roddenberry created the utopian sci-fi series "Star Trek," but most people don't realize he also produced a failed TV pilot for a show about demons and orgies! SPECTRE starred Robert Culp and Oscar-winner Gig Young as paranormal investigators who get roped into a supernatural conspiracy involving John Hurt and fetish outfits aplenty.

It might seem like an odd chapter in Gene Roddenberry's career, but as film critics William Bibbiani and Witney Seibold point out in this episode the podcast, it's not that much of a stretch if you track the subtext (and text) of Roddenberry's work. 

But the real question is, was "Spectre" really... CANCELED TOO SOON? !

Give it a listen and find out!

William Bibbiani Reviews 'Annabelle Comes Home'

The evil doll Annabelle is back in "Annabelle Comes Home," a supernatural thriller about teenagers who get trapped in a house with an army of demons while the paranormal investigator Warren family is out for the evening. Mckenna Grace, Madison Iseman and Katie Sarife star in a supernatural thriller from writer/director Gary Dauberman.

In his review of "Annabelle Comes Home" at Bloody-Disgusting, William Bibbiani calls the film "satisfying, dramatic and spooky spin-off," and praises the performances as well as the new, demonic additions to the "Conjuring" franchise.

Read: William Bibbiani Reviews "Annabelle Comes Home" at Bloody-Disgusting

Top Photo: Warner Bros.

Canceled Too Soon #152: Exo-Man (1977)

In 1977, just a few weeks after the release of "Star Wars," came a failed TV pilot that so much like "Iron Man" people thought it was actually Iron Man for decades! It's the story of a physics professor who gets paralyzed by the mob and uses a high-tech supersuit to exact his vigilante revenge on the mob! 

It is... EXO-MAN!

On the latest episode of CANCELED TOO SOON, film critics William Bibbiani and Witney Seibold sit down with EXO-MAN and decide, once and for all, if this notorious failed pilot deserved to go to series.

Give it a listen!

The Two-Shot: Virtuosity and Enchanted!

In the 1990s, when cyborg Denzel Washington wasn’t fighting white supremacists in a futuristic prison, he was hunting virtual reality serial killers in nanotech bodies that looked just like Russell Crowe. That’s the premise of the supremely weird VIRTUOSITY, a cyber thriller about artificial intelligence and Russell Crowe eating glass.

And somehow, it’s the perfect double feature with ENCHANTED, a modern Disney classic about an animated princess who gets trapped in the cynical, real world! See where we’re going with this?

Join film critics William Bibbiani and Witney Seibold as they show you the place where good taste and bad taste collide, every week on THE TWO-SHOT! 

Give it a listen!

William Bibbiani Ranks All the 'Child's Play' Movies!

Chucky the killer doll has been committing heinous acts of murder for over 30 years now, and that means - with the release of the new remake of "Child's Play" - the time has come to look his whole franchise!

Check it out, because William Bibbiani has ranked all of the "Child's Play" movies, from the original to the weirdo sequels to the remake, this week at The Wrap!

Read: William Bibbiani Ranks the "Child's Play" Movies at The Wrap

Top Photos: United Artist