River Cities Reader Podcast

River Cities Reader Podcast


June 6, 2024, on Planet 93.9 with Dave and Darren — “Ezra,” “In a Violent Nature,” “The Great Lillian Hall,” and “Summer Camp”

June 06, 2024

Mike Schulz talks with Dave Levora and Darren Pitra about the latest round of films he’s reviewed. They get right into it, folks. These are professionals at work. They know their jobs. Don’t taunt or gawk at them. They’ve got moves, and they know people.


The films are:




  • In a Violent Nature, a Canadia slasher directed by Chris Nash and starring Ry Barrett, Andrea Pavlovic, Cameron Love, Reece Presley, Liam Leone, Charlotte Creaghan, Lea Rose Sebastianis, Sam Roulston, Alexander Oliver, Lauren-Marie Taylor, and Timothy Paul McCarthy. Shulz didn’t hate this movie, but he can understand why others would, like Levora’s friend. It’s all from the killer’s perspective, so those who are familiar with a common trope of such films can expect Nature to proceed very, very slowly. Those who can stand it might yet falter over the unexpectedly brutal murders, which took Schulz by surprise in the inventiveness of the kills. Those who can handle both may have found their summer’s jam here.
  • Summer Camp, directed by Castille Landon and starring Jessica Lange, Diane Keaton, Kathy Bates, Alfre Woodard, Beverly D’Angelo, Nicole Richie, Josh Peck, Betsy Sodaro, Dennis Haysbert, and Eugene Levy. Schulz saw this, and happened to catch the exchange between two elderly ladies who watched it as well, and expressed how stupid they found the entire enterprise. Amen, Schulz said to himself.
  • The Great Lillian Hall, an HBO film directed by Michael Cristofer and starring Jessica Lange, Kathy Bates, Lily Rabe, Jesse Williams, and Pierce Brosnan. Given the sudden-seeming proliferation of adult-onset dementia, Lange’s performance is the one great element in an otherwise unimpressive production.
  • Ezra, a “kidnapping comedy,” directed by Tony Goldwyn and starring Bobby Cannavale, Rose Byrne, Vera Farmiga, Whoopi Goldberg, Rainn Wilson, Tony Goldwyn, William Fitzgerald, and Robert De Niro. Cannavale plays the temperamental father to an autistic son. Those who are raising special-needs children of their own will appreciate how intelligently Goldwyn treats the story, which means none of the characters depart reality momentarily so they can score a laugh off spectators.

The previews include:



  • Bad Boys: Ride or Die, directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, aka Adil and Bilall, and starring Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Joe Pantoliano, Vanessa Hudgens, Alexander Ludwig, Paola Núñez, Jacob Scipio, and DJ Khaled. Has America forgiven Will Smith by now? Presumably, the box office will let us know.
  • The Watchers, directed by Ishana Night Shyamalan and starring Dakota Fanning, Georgina Campbell, Olwen Fouéré, and Oliver Finnegan. Is Ishana a chip off the old M Knight block? Will she prove as hopelessly addicted to the twist ending as her dad? Guess we’ll find out soon, won’t we?
  • Levora brings The Sand, which was released on DVD in 2015, but has been re-released recently for the theaters. Directed by Isaac Gabaeff and starring Brooke Butler, Meagan Holder and Mitchel Musso, there must be some reason why people might want to see this one. . .

“Ezra,” “In a Violent Nature,” “The Great Lillian Hall,” and “Summer Camp”