Minnesota Film Critics Alliance Newsletter
The Alliance Lately: The Crow That Blinked Twice Between the Temples
Welcome to The Alliance Lately, the official newsletter from the Minnesota Film Critics Alliance (MNFCA)!
The MNFCA is a collective of individuals dedicated to celebrating and critically examining the art of film. In this recurring publication, we’ll share a selection of insightful film reviews, absorbing essays, and interviews with film professionals.
Each issue of The Alliance Lately features a diverse array of perspectives and content. Our members have shared their most recent work with us, covering the latest releases and revisiting classic films that dissect the craft of filmmaking. Explore the links below and get a front-row seat to critically examine the art of film.
Check out the MNFCA Members page to meet our all-star lineup.
And now…The Alliance Lately.

Joe Botten
With the new release offerings slim this past weekend, The MN Movie Man focused on smaller gems that often slip through the cracks when blockbusters rule the multiplex. Throughout the past week, he published reviews for Hostile Dimensions, Strange Darling, Hell Hole, Between the Temples, The Secret Art of Human Flight, and Black Dog.
And remember to browse the archive! You can try a random letter and see what reviews pop out at you. This week, Joe suggests the letter “V”
Eli Brau
Over on the movie reviews section of the Cinephile Corner we have articles for a few new releases, including The People’s Joker, Firebrand, Chime, Janet Planet, Evil Does Not Exist, and The Watchers, and a classic review of Magnolia.
We also have two lists in our rankings section, including Luca Guadagnino’s movies ranked and Paul Thomas Anderson’s movies ranked.
Matt Clark
Here’s my latest piece on Bronson in Europe that I’m planning to continue in a couple more installments:
Le Sacre Monstre: Charles Bronson in Europe
Brian Eggert
On Deep Focus Review, Brian Eggert reviewed the new releases Blink Twice and Good One.
Hunter Friesen (The Cinema Dispatch)
At The Cinema Dispatch, Hunter published a review for The Deliverance.
Zach Hammill
Here’s a link to capsule reviews of the last several films I’ve seen, including this week’s new release Between the Temples:
The Last Few Things I Watched and My Brief Thoughts on Them
Chaz Kangas
Two Purple Rain related projects for its 40th anniversary:
- Purple Rain Filming Locations – Tracking down all the filming locations for Purple Rain and how they look 40 years later.
- Purple Rain Movie Reviews – Digging up all the contemporary critics’ reviews of Purple Rain when it first opened.
Catherine Krummey (Veg Out Recipes)
Catherine pairs the iconically awful 1997 movie Batman & Robin with matcha pandan frozen custard for the penultimate entry in the Summer of Scoops series on Veg Out.
Find her latest reviews and Letterboxd lists on The Feed.
Ruth Maramis
- Girl You Know It’s True – The Fascinating Milli Vanilli Biopic
- Slow Horses S4 Trailer – Why You Should Be Watching Apple TV’s Spy Series
- Babes (2024) – A Wildly Wacky but Refreshingly Frank Comedy
Paul McGuire Grimes (Paul’s Trip to the Movies)
- Strange Darling review
- Blink Twice review
- Twin Cities Live segment on 8/16 – Reviews and Interviews for Jackpot! and Bad Monkey
Mark McPherson (Movies With Mark)
Brian Orndorf (Blu-Ray.Com)
Movies
The Crow, Between the Temples, The Killer, Incoming, The Deliverance, Greedy People, The Clean Up Crew, Catching Dust, The Supremes at Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat, Hell Hole
Blu-ray/UHD
Death to Smoochy, The Instructor, Observe and Report
Keep your eyes peeled for the latest film critiques, reviews, and news from the Minnesota Film Critics Alliance! 🎬🍿