Jared Mobarak
LightNews LightNews
banner
jaredmobarak.com
Jared Mobarak
@jaredmobarak.com
1.1K followers 1.4K following 1K posts
Graphic Designer • Rotten Tomatoes-Approved Critic: @thefilmstage.com & heyhaveyouseen.com • Art Director: cultivatecinema.com (RIP) • Member: @ofcs.bsky.social & @gwnyfilmcritics.com • Curates @cinematicfbombs.com

Buffalo, NY • jaredmobarak.com • 🇱🇧
Posts Replies Media Videos
jaredmobarak.com
From the press kit of HARD TARGET:

Directed by John Woo, starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, Yancy Butler, Arnold Vosloo, Lance Henriksen, and Wilford Brimley.

#filmsky
B&W Publicity Photo for HARD TARGET: JEAN-CLAUDE VAN DAMME stars as Chance, a down-and-out merchant sailor who uses his martial arts skills to battle a sadistic band of hunters who prey on homeless veterans in New Orleans' French Quarter. Photo by Randee St. Nicholas. Copyright ©1993 Universal City Studios Inc. All rights reserved. B&W Publicity Photo for HARD TARGET: Chance (JEAN-CLAUDE VAN DAMME) single-handedly takes on a band of sadistic hunters in a deadly safari game. Photo by Melissa Moseley. Copyright ©1993 Universal City Studios Inc. All rights reserved. B&W Publicity Photo for HARD TARGET: Acclaimed Hong Kong director JOHN WOO makes his American film debut with JEAN-CLAUDE VAN DAMME in "HARD TARGET". Photos by Melissa Moseley. Copyright ©1993 Universal City Studios Inc. All rights reserved. Color Publicity Slide for HARD TARGET: Chance's (JEAN-CLAUDE VAN DAMME) quest begins when he rescues Natasha Binder (YANCY BUTLER), a young woman whose father was a recent victim of the killers. Photo by Melissa Moseley. Copyright ©1993 Universal City Studios Inc. All rights reserved.
November 28, 2025 at 1:34 AM
jaredmobarak.com
New @cartoonsaloon.bsky.social short from Giovanna Ferrari is still available for free until tomorrow (11/22) at 6pm EST. Like all of their output, it's very good.

Watch: watch.animationshowcase.com/landing/691c...

My thoughts: jaredmobarak.com/2025/11/21/e...
Animated still of a girl with giant red hair hanging by a rope with a torch of flame in her hand down a narrow well.
November 22, 2025 at 4:35 AM
jaredmobarak.com
From the press kit of THE DEEP END:

Directed by Scott McGehee & David Siegel, starring Tilda Swinton, Goran Visnjic, Jonathan Tucker, Peter Donat, Josh Lucas, and Raymond J. Barry.

#filmsky
Color Publicity Slide: Goran Visnjic and Tilda Swinton in "The Deep End." Photo Credit: Jim Sheldon. © Fox Searchlight Pictures. Color Publicity Slide: Scott McGehee, Director, Giles Nuttgens, Cinematographer and David Siegel, Director of "The Deep End." © Fox Searchlight Pictures. B&W Publicity Photos. (Top) TILDA SWINTON as Margaret Hall. (Bottom) TILDA SWINTON as Margaret Hall. Photo Credit: Jim Sheldon © 2001 Twentieth Century Fox. All rights reserved. From press kit: A NOIR MASTER REDISCOVERED She had the resourcefulness of the mother, the domestic woman, accustomed to emergencies. - Elisabeth Sanxay Holding, The Blank Wall As vitally contemporary as THE DEEP END feels, writer/directors Scott McGehee and David Siegel found their inspiration for the riveting tale from a little-known 1940s novel: The Blank Wall, written by Elisabeth Sanxay Holding. Like Jim Thompson and other noir writers before her, Holding's powerful tales of unremitting nightmares - in her case centered around women characters -- are just now being rediscovered. When she first burst onto the scene in the '40s, Holding was celebrated by no one less than Raymond Chandler, who said: "For my money, she is the top suspense writer of them all ... her characters are wonderful; and she has a sort of inner calm that I find very attractive." Holding seemed to have an innate understanding that true heart-stopping suspense emerges not just from murders and mysteries but from the fabric of ordinary life. She wrote with searing honesty about women, marriage and motherhood. The New York Times enthused about Holding's characters: "With the best intentions in the world, [they] quietly wreck each other's lives."
November 21, 2025 at 2:09 AM
jaredmobarak.com
From the press kit of BRAVEHEART:

Directed by Mel Gibson, starring Mel Gibson, James Cosmo, Patrick McGoohan, Sophie Marceau, Angus Macfadyen, Catherine McCormack, and Brendan Gleeson.

#filmsky
Color Publicity Slide: Mel Gibson stars as legendary Scottish knight Sir William Wallace in "Braveheart." The Icon Productions/Ladd Company production is a Paramount release directed by Mel Gibson and produced by Mel Gibson and Alan Ladd, Jr. and Bruce Davey. The screenplay was written by Randall Wallace. Stephen McEveety is executive producer. Photo by: Andrew Cooper. Copyright © 1995 by B. H. Finance C.V. All rights reserved. Color Publicity Slide: William Wallace (Mel Gibson) finds an unexpected ally in Princess Isabelle (Sophie Marceau) in "Braveheart." The Icon Productions/Ladd Company production is a Paramount release directed by Mel Gibson and produced by Mel Gibson and Alan Ladd, Jr. and Bruce Davey. The screenplay was written by Randall Wallace. Stephen McEveety is executive producer. Photo by: Andrew Cooper. Copyright © 1995 by B. H. Finance C.V. All rights reserved. B&W Publicity Photo: Angus McFadyen plays Robert the Bruce in "Braveheart." The Icon Productions/Ladd Company production is a Paramount release directed by Mel Gibson and produced by Mel Gibson and Alan Ladd, Jr. and Bruce Davey. The screenplay was written by Randall Wallace. Stephen McEveety is executive producer. Photo by: Andrew Cooper. Copyright © 1995 by B. H. Finance C.V. All rights reserved. B&W Publicity Photo: Mel Gibson is director, producer and star of "Braveheart." The Icon Productions/Ladd Company production is a Paramount release also produced by Alan Ladd, Jr. and Bruce Davey. The screenplay was written by Randall Wallace. Stephen McEveety is executive producer. Photo by: Andrew Cooper. Copyright © 1995 by B. H. Finance C.V. All rights reserved.
November 14, 2025 at 12:49 AM
jaredmobarak.com
Why not just make animation games again that tap into a user’s creativity with IP while still allowing them to actually create?

I loved playing Tiny Toon Adventures: Cartoon Workshop on my NES when I was younger. If only I still had the VHS tapes I recorded my videos on to see how crazy they were.
Cover for Tiny Toon Adventures: Cartoon Workshop. Front shows the logo big above a silhouette in a directors chair looking at a screen with Plucky standing on his chair and Buster on the floor. Back has text: LIGHTS! CAMERA! ACTION! YOU'RE THE DIRECTOR OF YOUR OWN CARTOONS. Now you can do more than just watch Tiny Toon Adventures cartoons on TV. You can make your very own! With Tiny Toon Adventures Cartoon Workshop it's easy, it's fun, and you don't need a degree from the Acme Animation School. Just select a character, the setting, the action, as well as music, sound effects and dialogue. Then save your cartoon creations on video tape with your VCR and prepare to put on your own animation festival! • Make your own cartoons staring your favorite Toonster pals, including Buster, Babs, Plucky and Furrball. • It's easy to do. Use pre drawn animations and action sequences to create unique cartoons. • Direct one or two characters at a time, choosing their actions, where they go and how fast they move. • Select from a wide assortment of classic Toonatic phrases your characters can use. • Pick a scene for all the wacky action, like Acme Looniversity, Little Beeper and Calamity Coyote's Desert World and other popular settings. • Add some tunes and funny sound effects. Use your imagination to create a variety of cartoon adventures up to five minutes long. Who knows, you may even make it big in show business before Babs does!
November 13, 2025 at 10:49 PM
jaredmobarak.com
From the press kit of THE MAJESTIC:

Directed by Frank Darabont, starring Jim Carrey, Bob Balaban, Jeffrey DeMunn, Hal Holbrook, Laurie Holden, and Martin Landau.

#filmsky
Vintage looking black and white painted poster with a giant Jim Carrey filling the frame and a small Laurie Holden tucked into the bottom left corner. Partial text: Darabont's new film celebrates and salutes the Hollywood of yesterday, a bygone era where audiences marveled at Fred and Ginger...Bogart and Bacall...and Tracy and Hepburn. At the same time, "The Majestic" unveils a bleak era in that heyday of Hollywood, a dark period dominated by the investigation by the United States government into Communist infiltration in the movie industry. It was a time defined by a group of filmmakers branded as "The Hollywood Ten," whose defiant refusal to testify brought them contempt citations, grand jury indictments and, finally, imprisonment. Those ten artists and citizens were screenwriters Alvah Bessie, Lester Cole, Ring Lardner Jr., John Howard Lawson, Albert Maltz, Samuel Ornitz, Adrian Scott and Dalton Trumbo, and directors Edward Dmytryk and Herbert Biberman. "The perception now is that those individuals brought before the committee who did not name names were the heroes of that era," screenwriter Michael Sloane says. "Those that did name names were the villains. At the time, it was just the opposite. Dalton Trumbo was one of the Hollywood Ten. He was given an award by the Writers Guild in 1970, and in his acceptance speech, he said the only true thing that was probably ever said about the blacklist - there were no villains, there were no heroes, there were only victims." "Michael and I have known each other for many years, and we swap reads," the filmmaker says. "In other words, it's important to have trusted critics, people who will read your work and give you honest feedback. Michael's been a trusted critic of mine for years, and I his. So, he handed me this script. And, my reaction was, 'Gosh, I'd really like to make this movie. I really loved the story that much'." Color Publicity slide for THE MAJESTIC with a woman and man looking into each other's eyes while a colorful theater marquee is seen behind them. Caption: Jim Carrey stars as Luke Trimble and Laurie Holden is Adele in "The Majestic" directed/produced by Frank Darabont. "The Majestic" is presented by Castle Rock Entertainment in association with Village Roadshow Pictures and NPV Entertainment, and is distributed by Warner Bros.. Color Publicity slide for THE MAJESTIC with a man in a hat looking through the box office glass at another man getting him his ticket. Caption: (from left) Jeffrey DeMunn is Mayor Ernie Cole and Jim Carrey is Luke Trimble in "The Majestic" directed /produced by Frank Darabont. "The Majestic" is presented by Castle Rock Entertainment in association with Village Roadshow Pictures and NPV Entertainment, and is distributed by Warner Bros..
November 7, 2025 at 2:45 AM
jaredmobarak.com
Definitely. And even then they had to shoot in Ireland because they knew putting that flag up in America would cause way too much trouble even in 2023.
For Komasa's first English-language film, it turned out, "my Central European heritage played a big role in finding the right tone," he says. "When discussing with the creative production team the political underpinnings of ANNIVERSARY, I always used the analogy of Polish history, in which people had the experience of living under tyrannies from the right and from the left alike." The idea for the altered American flag as the key visual representation of the movement arose from both its symbolic weight and its history of revisions. It would have been tricky to film the scenes with The Change flag in the United States, Churchill notes, had someone outside the production caught sight of it. "It's a piece of cloth that people have died for," Komasa says.
October 31, 2025 at 3:02 AM
jaredmobarak.com
From the press kit of MAC AND ME:

Directed by Stewart Raffill, starring Jade Calegory, Jonathan Ward, Christine Ebersole, Lauren Stanley, and Tina Caspary.

#filmsky
Eric Cruise (JADE CALEGORY). Photo by Robbie Robinson. ©1988 Orion Pictures Corporation. All Rights Reserved. MAC AND ME Pictured: 9-4A - Eric Cruise (JADE CALEGORY) with his neighbor Debbie (LAUREN STANLEY). PHOTO BY ROBBIE ROBINSON. ©1988 Orion Pictures Corporation. All Rights Reserved. MAC AND ME Pictured: 74-16 - Ronald McDonald with Eric Cruise (JADE CALEGORY). 73-3 - Eric Cruise (JADE CALEGORY) with a disguised Mac on his lap and Ronald McDonald in background. PHOTO BY ROBBIE ROBINSON. ©1988 Orion Pictures Corporation. All Rights Reserved. R.J. Louis, who introduced one of the screen's most appealing young heroes as the executive producer of "The Karate Kid" and "The Karate Kid, Part II," conceived "MAC and ME" five years ago. It has been a labor of love ever since, one which has enlisted some remarkable allies. Fifteen years ago, as a young account executive at an advertising agency on the West Coast, Louis was introduced to one of the firm's leading clients, McDonald's Restaurants. The relationship was renewed when Louis requested a special appearance by Ronald McDonald -- the chain's amusing symbol of youthful good will -- in "MAC and ME." Not only was permission granted, but through his discussions with McDonald's top management, Louis learned of the work of the Ronald McDonald Children's Charities. Formed in 1984, the charity raises funds for sick and needy youngsters and benefits the worldwide establishment of Ronald McDonald Houses, where the families of critically ill children can stay near their kids in a home-like atmosphere. A unique arrangement was reached, under which a portion of the profits of "MAC and ME" will benefit the charity with the minimum contribution set at $500,000. The result is a trio of gratifying "firsts" ... the first time McDonald's has ever licensed motion-picture and television rights to Ronald McDonald ... the immensely popular character's screen debut... and the first time McDonald's has participated in a major motion picture on behalf of its favorite cause.
October 31, 2025 at 12:40 AM
jaredmobarak.com
For anyone who doesn’t have Watermelon+, Farah Nabulsi’s THE TEACHER just hit Amazon Prime.

watch.amazon.com/detail?gti=a...

@watermelonpictures.bsky.social
From JustWatch: The Teacher المعلم A Palestinian school teacher struggles to reconcile his life-threatening commitment to political resistance with his emotional support for one of his students and the chance of a new romantic relationship with a British volunteer worker.
October 29, 2025 at 3:15 AM
jaredmobarak.com
I know it won't happen, but the new Achievement in Casting Oscar should go to ANNIVERSARY. An insane cast at the very top of their game.

Diane Lane
Kyle Chandler
Madeline Brewer
Zoey Deutch
Phoebe Dynevor
Dylan O'Brien
Mckenna Grace
Daryl McCormack

Come on now.
ANNIVERSARY poster with the cast standing side-by-side left to right with blood/paint streaks of red behind them to allude to the American flag.
October 24, 2025 at 7:45 PM
jaredmobarak.com
While @arabfilm.bsky.social don’t yet use their account here, keep November 18th on your calendar as that’s when the 100 Greatest Arab Films of All Time list starts dropping.

I’m excited to see what made it (besides the one I was honored to write a blurb about) and get a watchlist going.

#filmsky
From arabfilmmedia at Instagram: “Cinemayaat, the Arab Film & Media Institute's newest initiative, launches right after the conclusion of the 2025 Arab Film Festival, with a list of the 100 Greatest Arab Films of All Time. Based on the votes of hundreds of professional critics, academics, curators, and select filmmakers, the 100 Greatest Arab Films of All Time list (also known as AFMI100) presents a modern canon of the 100 best narrative feature films to ever come out of the Arab world. The list countdown will begin on November 18, 2025. Head to the link in our bio now to sign up for our newsletter and receive updates on Cinemayaat and AFMI100; don't miss out on this chance to discover and celebrate the best classic and contemporary Arab cinema ever made.”
October 24, 2025 at 1:58 AM
jaredmobarak.com
Is Prime the only honest seller saying NO OTHER LAND is available in SD? Or are they the only seller that somehow doesn’t have access to an HD file? Because iTunes and YouTube both say HD.

I can’t conceive why one wouldn’t offer it if the others do.

Anyone know?

#nootherland #fimmsky
Purchase screen for NO OTHER LAND from Prime saying you can only buy SD. Purchase screen for NO OTHER LAND from YouTube saying you can only SD or HD. Purchase screen for NO OTHER LAND from iTunes saying you can only buy HD.
October 23, 2025 at 9:25 PM
jaredmobarak.com
Shadowgate on NES
Screenshot from SHADOWGATE on NES. Image in top left shows a wraith floating on red carpet with torches on either side of stone arch framing it. Top right shows list of "Goods" - Key 1, Torch 3, Torch, Key 2, Arrow. Bottom half is text block - "What's this? A wraith is standing in your way, barring your path!!"
October 21, 2025 at 3:27 PM
jaredmobarak.com
From the press kit of JASON GOES TO HELL:

Directed by Adam Marcus, starring John D. LeMay, Kari Keegan, Kane Hodder, Steven Williams, Steven Culp, and Erin Gray.

#filmsky
Director Adam Marcus (front) and Jason Voorhees (Kane Hodder, rear) from New Line Cinema's Jason Goes To Hell: The Final Friday. Photo Credit: Mark Fellman/New Line Cinema. © 1993 New Line Cinema Corp. All rights reserved. Jessica (Kari Keegan) and "the dagger" in the spooky old Voorhees house in Jason Goes To Hell: The Final Friday. Photo Credit: Mark Fellman/New Line Cinema. © 1993 New Line Cinema Corp. All rights reserved. Jason in JASON GOES TO HELL. Photo by Mark Fellman/New Line. © 1993 New Line Cinema. Jason in JASON GOES TO HELL. Photo by Mark Fellman/New Line. © 1993 New Line Cinema.
October 16, 2025 at 6:59 PM
jaredmobarak.com
Haven’t been to the old Regal Niagara Falls / new Dipson Capitol Theatre in almost two decades. But everyone is talking about the new PTA, so why not? #onebattleafteranother
Theater hallway with focus on auditorium 12
October 11, 2025 at 4:24 PM
jaredmobarak.com
From the press kit of THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT:

Directed by Stephan Elliott, starring Hugo Weaving, Guy Pearce, and Terence Stamp.

#filmsky
Mitzi/Tick (Hugo Weaving) breaks into song ... and bloom, in "THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT," a Gramercy Pictures release. Photo: Elise Lockwood © 1994 Gramercy Pictures Top: Director Stephen Elliott (center) discusses a scene with stars Hugo Weaving (left) and Terence Stamp (right) in the Gramercy Pictures release THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT. Bottom: Felicia/Adam (Guy Pearce) makes a striking figure atop Priscilla while cruising across the Australian outback in THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT. Felicia/Adam (Guy Pearce, left) and Mitzi/Tick (Hugo Weaving, right) evoke the adage that yes, "good taste is timeless" in the Gramercy Pictures release THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT. Adam/Felicia (Guy Pearce) does a little decorating of Priscilla during a travel stopover in the Gramercy Pictures release "THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT." Photo: Elise Lockwood © 1994 Gramercy Pictures
October 10, 2025 at 1:45 AM
jaredmobarak.com
“the girlfriend of one of the founders of antifa”
A photo of Clementine Churchill in black and waving.
October 9, 2025 at 2:16 AM
jaredmobarak.com
From the press kit of 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU:

Directed by Gil Junger, starring Heath Ledger, Julia Stiles, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Larisa Oleynik, David Krumholtz, and Andrew Keegan.

#filmsky
An ill-tempered teenager with all the charms of a viper, Kat Stratford (Julia Stiles, right) meets her male equivalent, Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger, left) — a sullen senior with a mysterious past, in Touchstone Pictures' comedy, "10 Things I Hate About You." Allison Janney (center) stars as dysfunctional guidance counselor Ms. Perky. The film is distributed by Buena Vista Pictures Distribution. Photo credit: Richard Cartwright. Caught in the middle of a convoluted scheme, Kat Stratford (Julia Stiles, left) finds that the guy of her dreams, Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger, right) is being paid to date her by school jock Joey Donner (Andrew Keegan, center), in Touchstone Pictures' comedy, "10 Things I Hate About You." The film is distributed by Buena Vista Pictures Distribution. Photo credit: Richard Cartwright.
October 2, 2025 at 12:19 AM
jaredmobarak.com
I've officially acknowledged my love for THE VOID isn't enough to keep following Steven Kostanski’s career in hopes for another in that vein. PSYCHO GOREMAN was fine and FRANKIE FREAKO and DEATHSTALKER probably are too, but they're not for me.

Maybe Jeremy Gillespie was the one driving that bus.
Image from THE VOID of three figures in white hoods with a black triangle over their faces.
September 30, 2025 at 5:37 PM
jaredmobarak.com
EYES WIDE SHUT polish release poster by Leszek Zebrowski. Illustrated face with mask pushed up above bridge of nose.
September 30, 2025 at 4:34 PM
jaredmobarak.com
From the press kit of PRETTY WOMAN:

Directed by Garry Marshall, starring Julia Roberts, Richard Gere, Laura San Giacomo, and Hector Elizondo.

#filmsky
Repro quality key art mask of Richard Gere and Julia Roberts from Pretty Woman. Black strip border all-around, color boxes lined up at left. Actors are posed back to back with his tie over her shoulder and in her hand. Front cover of the Pretty Woman press notes. White page with black title at top in bold sans serif with Richard Gere and Julia Roberts' names above it. Reduced credits at bottom. Publicity photo from Pretty Woman of Richard Gere and Julia Roberts posed at department store looking off-screen to the right. Collage of three publicity still from Pretty Woman. Left shows Julia Roberts and Garry Marshall standing and facing each, her hands on his shoulders and his hands wrapped around her forearms. Top right shows Marshall directing Richard Gere on set. Bottom right shows Marshall directing the camera operator.
September 25, 2025 at 2:29 AM
jaredmobarak.com
Painting of Magnolia I commissioned from Justin Reed many moons ago where he puts all the main characters into a single location inside Jason Robards house—including the bar guys in the background, Phillip Baker Hall on the TV, and frogs falling out the window.
September 21, 2025 at 2:01 PM
jaredmobarak.com
Post a movie you like with a terrible rotten tomatoes score
Rotten Tomatoes page for THE SLAMMIN’ SALMON - 35% Critic score and 48% Fan score
September 17, 2025 at 3:02 AM
jaredmobarak.com
Dom's context on the Tuch snub and the Sabres having only two players on this list (Dahlin and Thompson) is truly damning to ownership.

www.nytimes.com/athletic/659...
FWIW, as someone who wanted Tuch on the list, believes he belongs, and would take him over most of the 5C guys and some 5B guys — we talked to several GMs for this exercise and none of them went to bat for him. They saw the list, saw "Garland: 5C" and "Tuch: HM" and didn't say "I prefer Tuch." We talked to others as well (scouts, analysts, coaches) and it was one or two of 20+ that felt Tuch should be there. His support was (surprisingly) tepid. Perhaps that changes if he was on initially and he probably should've been! Still, the industry people we talked to at large didn't bat an eye at the snub. Are all those people wrong? I would say so, and you would say so, and a lot of other people would say so. I think the Sabres are under-represented here as a whole and I think there's a lot of industry-wide capitulation on the franchise that is probably too harsh. That may have affected the Tuch snub which I do agree is a legitimate question. But if the starting point to your question is "would any GM prefer Garland to Tuch" the answer is apparently yes.
September 14, 2025 at 3:18 PM
jaredmobarak.com
Gus Van Sant still has the fans. Insane lineup for DEAD MAN’S WIRE. I haven’t sat front row in a theater in over a decade.

Thank goodness no subtitles.

#tiff50
View from front row of cinema 14 in Scotiabank. Very close to screen.
September 7, 2025 at 12:28 PM